Professional and personal values and virtues in education and teaching

TLDR

Teacher professional conduct is linked to moral duties and the view of education as a human right. The study categorizes professional teaching values into deontic, aretaic, and technical norms. The paper argues that professional development requires both duty‑based and character‑building elements, critiques Higgins’ ascetic view, and contends that the technical and moral aspects of teaching are inseparable, challenging current teacher education models. Teaching and the good life: a critique of the ascetic ideal in education, Educational Theory 53:131–154.

Abstract

This paper distinguishes the key dimensions of professional value in teaching under three headings: (i) deontic norms; (ii) aretaic norms; and (iii) technical norms. With regard to (i) it is held that aspects of the professional conduct of teachers are properly (though not exclusively) implicated in the observance of moral principles and duties—especially in so far as education may also be considered a human right. With regard to (ii), however, it is argued that professional development is not exhausted by fidelity to obligations, and also needs to be understood in terms of the development of personal qualities of character. That said, some criticism is here offered of a recent critique by Chris Higgins (2003 Higgins, C. 2003. Teaching and the good life: a critique of the ascetic ideal in education. Educational Theory, 53: 131–154. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) of the 'ascetic' ideal of teaching, and of his defence of a more 'self‐regarding' conception of professional development. The final section of the paper argues that insofar as it seems difficult if not impossible to separate the technical from the moral in teacher expertise, contemporary conceptions of professional teacher education and training appear to mislocate the true epistemic character of pedagogical engagement.