Unit 2
Teachers and Social Change

In Unit 2, we discuss the various expectations that teachers face in the classroom. We begin by using the concepts of “professionalism” and “proletarianization” to analyze the ways in which the many competing political, social and economic claims made on teachers affect how they are able to perform the role of teaching. In Section 2, we examine how the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms influences teachers’ behaviour. In the final section, we shift our focus to the practice of teaching, finishing the unit with a report from teachers themselves.

The school and the classroom teacher are often seen as the main agents of social change, but how easily is the teacher able to facilitate such change? Using a sociological and historical focus, we examine the role of the teacher as an agent of change. What the unit reveals is that teaching is a contradictory endeavour, full of possibilities, limitations and frustrations.

Objectives

After completing Unit 2, you should be able to

1. identify, and discuss the origins of, some of a teacher’s roles, rights and responsibilities.
2. assess the varying influences on the roles that teachers undertake.
3. discuss whether teaching is a profession, and identify the factors that contribute to or detract from the designation “profession.”
4. explain teacher reactions to innovations, and discuss their perspectives on their professionalism.