Professional Ethics in College Professors

College professors are not immune to unprofessional behavior. Stories of teachers who degrade and belittle students, come to work with alcohol on their breath, and provide inaccurate information have been reported by students to government ministries who ensure College hiring procedures are in compliance (Posadzki, 2012). Colleges have responded that their instructors meet the basic requirements of a college instructor.

Is personal hygiene just for kids?! Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/explore/personal-hygiene/?lp=true

Colleges and Institutes Canada is is the national, voluntary membership organization representing publicly supported colleges, institutes, cegeps and polytechnics in Canada and internationally. Although it does not have a professional code of ethics for college instructors it does provide relevant research. Given that instructors who have met the basic requirements of the government are still conducting themselves unprofessionally. continuous professional development throughout the entire careers seems prudent.

 In her study of the development of teaching practice in college faculty (found on the CICAN resources section), Boelryk (2014) found that workplace learning is the result of interactions between workplace affordances and individual engagement.  Engaging in the offerings of a teaching and learning centre, if your College has one, or in independent professional development based on the feedback of your peers and students is part of this life course of a professional college instructor.

Boelryk, A. Professional learning and post-secondary teaching:  Investigating faculty’s lived experiences of development in teaching practice. PhD Thesis Simon Fraser University. Retrieved July 20, 2017 from https://www.collegesinstitutes.ca/file/professional-learning-and-post-secondary-teaching-investigating-facultys-lived-experiences-of-development-in-teaching-practice/

Colleges and Institutes Canada. What We Do.  Retrieved July 20, 2017 from https://www.collegesinstitutes.ca/what-we-do/about/

Posadzki, A. (September 3, 2012). Students complain of unprofessional teachers at career colleges: documents the Canadian Press. Global News. Retrieved July 20, 2017 from http://globalnews.ca/news/282216/students-complain-of-unprofessional-teachers-at-career-colleges-documents/