My definition of professionalism is the skills and capability and competence to perform your job within a specific profession. As an educator I feel that being professional involves many things. The first and most important of them being: maintaining a positive yet appropriate relationship with students and colleagues. Another requirement of this is to be well prepared for all lessons and tasks of the day. Finally, I feel that another expectation of professionalism is communicating with parents about the progress of their children via email, report cards, parent- teacher interviews and so forth.
Belonging to an organization such as the BCTF influences my educational philosophy and commitments through the expectations that the BCTF holds of their members. Being apart of this profession comes with certain expectations of a teacher in and out of a classroom. These expectations will probably shift my educational philosophy and my commitments drastically over the years. While some may find this hindering I hope that I do not find these expectations restrictive but beneficial to my career and my educational practices.