Ethics...important enough to repeat!

This chapter on ethics was very powerful. Yes, it was a lot of things I already knew or assumed about teaching, but these issues are still hugely important. I think Christenbury had to address these issues somewhere in the book in order to stress how important these things are. I think we would all be surprised how many teachers violate these rules on a daily basis. I think it is easy for us to say that we will never do any of these things now, but who knows?...maybe years down the road when our fresh perspective on teaching has worn off, we might be tempted to slack a little. The whole concept of giving students respect is very broad. Sure, it seems like an obvious thing to say, but it is good to think about actual scenarios where you might forget to show the student respect. Also, being a professional in the classroom is a good reminder for me not to try to be on the student's level. I obviously want my students to like me a lot, but that isn't always going to happen. My priority needs to be maintaining my professionalism and being a teacher, not a friend. It is also very important to know where the boundaries are as far as building relationships with students. Physical contact, like hugs, pats on the back, or other gestures you might do to show your appreciation or care about a student, might be offensive or inappropriate to that student. Making sure to recognize those boundaries before we step into the field is going to be crucial in us keeping our jobs. Overall, this chapter did say a lot of things I was already aware of, but it was defintily necessary to be included in this book. It showed me how important Christenbury viewed these ethics, and it is always a good reminder for us.