AVELINA TESTON-LLAGAS

There is no more noble profession than teaching. A great teacher is a great artist, but his medium is not canvas, but the human soul. – Anonymous

The term professional has become a global nomenclature for people who excel in their respective careers and professions. There were IT professionals in India who worked in Silicon Valley but returned to their home country to share their expertise. We salute professional soldier; we commend the professional artist. Business and industry conduct continuing professional development to ensure that every employee grows in his/her area of expertise and become multiskilled. They claimed that their companies are managed “ by professionals who operate with a great deal of autonomy”.

By semantics profession is a type of job that requires special training and gives status and prestige to the individual. A professional is one who has competent skills, observes high standards of the job, and abides by the code of ethics.

Who is professional teacher? She/he is the “ licensed professional who possesses dignity and reputation with high moral values as well as technical and profession competence… she/he adheres to, observe, and practice this set of ethical and moral principles, standards, and values.” (Code of Ethics of professional teachers, 1997)

With the passage of the Philippine Teachers’ Professionalization Act of 1994, teaching has become the genuine profession it aspires to be. It has become a profession at par with other professions like medicine, laws, nursing and the like. It has the attributes of the other professions: licensure examination, oath taking for licensing, membership in professional associations, inclusion in the roster of professionals at the Professional Regulation commission, and continuing profession education. The teacher is no longer a mere teacher but a professional teacher.