The Ethical Responsibilities of a Music Teacher
Ethics in Teaching Music?
There are many ethical responsibilities associated with any career path. But those associated with being a teacher are some of the most intuitive. As a teacher you're responsible for the education of another human being. The decisions you make will impact them for the rest of their lives whether you realize it or not.
As a teacher you're responsible for creating a curriculum that will be able to be adapted to fit any needs. This is important because all people learn at very different paces. Because of this it is important to have the information you're teaching readily available for your students to look upon or study. It is also very important that you explain your material in a clear and concise manner.
In addition to this you're responsible for the well being of your students at least while they are in your class. If you witness anyone misbehaving it is your job to reprimand them. Bullying is a major concern in the classroom and it should be one of your priorities to stop it form happening.
When teaching a subject like music it is important not to discourage the children as playing an instrument is a acquired skill. It is very easy to put too much pressure on a student. It is very hard to take a step back and realize that just because something is simple for you it may not be for your students. For instance my music teacher was always upset about having to remind us of the chromatic scale. The chromatic scale is the organization of the twelve notes used in most western music. It is the absolute most basic foundation element of learning western music. without it the instruments you play won't make any sense. As a musician it is easy to overlook the chromatic scale when teaching a beginner but it is absolutely essential.
The Chromatic Scale
Possibly the most important ethical responsibility of a music teacher, or any teacher for that matter, is to never have sexual relations with one of their students. It is immoral and unprofessional. Even if the student is of legal age it is still unethical to have sexual relations with them. The penalty for this can be anything from the loss of your job to serious jail time, or even death in some extreme cases. Unfortunately, even though the law and codes of conduct at many institutions clearly state that this is against the rules, there are still countless cases of this that have occurred in the past or are still happening to this day.
Overall, it is important to remember whatever you do will reflect both upon you as a teacher and upon the institution you teach at.
References:
Image #1: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/2014/01/miles_teller_jk_simmons_whiplash_a_l.jpg
Image #2: http://paulthom.com/MUSIC/THEORY/UNIT07/07GIFS/CCRASC.GIF
Image #2: http://paulthom.com/MUSIC/THEORY/UNIT07/07GIFS/CCRASC.GIF
You have a really nice description of the standard way of being a good teacher , but you need to go more int o dept with the ethics in your position. For example describing why is it ethical to be responsible when educating another human being; maybe describe the impact it can happen if you are not responsible and you don't give your job importance. Another example of how you should emphasize the ethics in your position is when you say "If you witness anyone misbehaving it is your job to reprimand them." I think its your job to teach them, but it an ethical thing to reprimand them.
ReplyDeleteYour description of how a teacher's actions can alter the students' life was moving and well-put. You probably should have specified that you were talking about teaching music to a classroom full of kids. That is because I couldn't be sure if sexual relationships between a private teacher and a single student (of consenting/comparable age) would necessarily be immoral. Also, I would have liked to see some analysis of why sexual relations between a teacher and a student are unethical. Some past cultures believed that sexual relations between the teacher and student were a part of instruction (see Greeks). Why were they wrong according to current ethical constructs?
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pederasty_in_ancient_Greece#Philosophical_expression