This papers looks at how lecturers can apply the principles of professionalism in their daya to day task at work.

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The Applicability of
Professionalism Principles to
the Teaching Practices of
Higher Education Institution
Lecturers.
By
Odunze Daisy Ifeoma (PhD)
National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe
Postgraduate Diploma in Higher Education
November 2019

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1 Introduction
The concept of professionalism in higher education and indeed in all education sectors has evolved
and continues to evolve with increased globalization leading to changes in its applicability in
higher education institutes, in areas such as student relations, management of work priorities and
processes. This changing philosophy of professionalism has resulted in lack of initiatives in
producing quality research outputs from institutions of higher learning (Panday 2018).There is a
claim that educators in higher education institutes lack professionalism because they start their
profession without an adequate knowledge and understanding of the issues of professionalism in
education while in many other sectors such as medicine, engineering, and others, extensive
professional training is given before the start of practice. Professionalism is required in higher
education because absence of it is a major factor leading to low quality of education in many
countries and if educators are unprofessional, students in turn would not learn professionalism
irrespective of their study area. The saying that if we all did things, we are capable of doing, we
will literally astound ourselves by Thomas Edison is very true when it comes to professionalism
in higher education. There is a lot desired and still to be achieved in terms of professionalism in
higher education.
2 Definition of Terms
• Profession
Green (2009) defines ‘profession’ as being a function that comprises actions ‘directed at some
specific end that could be a human need or good’. A comprehensive definition by the Australian
Council of Professions (2016) specifies that a profession requires the possession of special
knowledge and skills in a widely recognized body of learning derived from research, education
and training at a high level. Educators in higher education belong to the academic profession.
• A professional
A professional is someone who derives their income from their specific expertise and is a member
of a profession governed by codes of ethics, and profess commitment to competence, integrity and
morality, altruism and the promotion of public good within their expert domain. Professional are
accountable to those they serve and the society. Lecturers in higher education institutes are
professionals.

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• Professionalism
According to sociologist, professionalism is a set of beliefs, value and norms of legitimizing the
occupational autonomy and social privileges of the profession (Panday 2018). The Australian
Council of Professions (2015) defined is as a personally held believe of a professional about their
own conduct as a member of a profession and is often linked to the upholding of the principles,
laws, ethics and conventions of a profession in the form of a code of practice. Oak and Gopal
(2016) defined professionalism as the proper or accepted behavior, attitude or attributes in any
given profession. Ozga (1995) sees professionalism as ‘a form of control on the occupation
members to monitor ‘the quality of service’ provided by the professionals.
• Professionalization
Professionalization in general terms refers to the process of improving qualifications and
competence of the professionals in meeting the standardized criteria in their performance as
professionals (Satori et al 2006). Professionalization occurs either through before-the job training
or on-the-job training and it constitutes a series of process of professional development.
3 Discussion
3.1 Professionalism in Higher education
Boyt et al. (2001) explained professionalism in higher education as the ability of teachers to exert
influence on their work through their attitudes and behaviors. The influence however depends on
the degree and nature of professional qualities possessed by the teachers and reflected in their
attitudes and attributes. Kolsaker (2008) quoted key characteristics of the academic profession, to
include ‘shared values, altruistic concern for students, educational expertise, high level of
autonomy, generation of new knowledge, application of logic, use of evidence, conceptual and
theoretical rigour and the disinterested pursuit of truth’. Evans (2010) identified three main
components of academic professionalism to include the following;
• Behavioral; ‘what practitioners physically do at work’
• Attitudinal; attitudes held which relate respectively to; perceptions, beliefs and views held.
• Intellectual; practitioners’ knowledge and understanding and their knowledge structures
which relate respectively to; the bases of people’s knowledge; the nature and degree of

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reasoning that they apply to their practice; what they know and understand; and the nature
and degree of their analyticism
Boyt et al. (2001), and Hargreaves and Goodson (1996) agree that professionalism in higher
education is expressed by the following central dimensions: skills and theoretical/specialist
knowledge; adherence to a professional code of conduct and self-regulation which determines their
responsibility and accountability towards their profession and their clients; relationship with the
clients based on trust; autonomy and altruism directed towards the public good.
Similarly, Oak and Gopal (2016) described professionalism by higher education lecturers to mean
the following; striving for excellence; trustworthiness; accountability and responsibility for one’s
actions; honesty; openness and transparency; respecting others; respecting confidentiality and
being ethically correct; empathy for others and; integrity.
Ahmad and Johari (2010) in their study found that academics’ views on professionalism relate to
the specialization of knowledge, inculcation of ethical values, and educating the minds of the
learners. They argue that efforts to build professionalism by academics begin with knowing their
own personal interests, formalizing their expertise and later enhancing their expertise through
collaboration and networking.
All the above definitions of professionalism in higher education show the significance of
knowledge, autonomy and professional responsibility in educational practice. It also shows that
improving the level of professionalism of professionals requires the ability to identify and
emphasize their individual characteristics (professionality).
3.2 How can professionalism be applied in in higher education?
According to Ahmad and Amin (2012), there are two major principles of professionalism in higher
education and they are;
• Principle 1; commitment to the student; This principle pushes for educators to strives to
help each student realize his or her potential as a worthy and effective member of society
through stimulating the spirit of inquiry in students, the acquisition of knowledge and
understanding, and the thoughtful formulation of worthy goals.

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• Principle 2; commitment to the profession: The public has a vested interest in education
and therefore demands for the highest ideals of professionalism.
These Professionalism principles can be applied in teaching practices of higher education lecturers
through the professionalization of the lecturers. The concept of professionalization includes two
dimensions; improvement of status and the improvement of practice (Hoyle 1980). Improvement
of status entails organized efforts made to meet professional criteria while improvement in practice
involves perfection of practice. Both improvement of status and practice can be behavioral,
attitudinal or intellectual.
Processes and means by which professionalism principles can be applied by lectures in higher
education are discussed briefly below;
1. Innovative Teaching: professionalism in teaching requires the process to be innovative
and practical rather than just not theoretical knowledge. Educators should employ different
strategies in teaching to enhance the teaching and learning process. Some of these strategies
include use of interdisciplinary case studies, educational visits and excursions, exchange
programmes and use of modern technology in teaching and learning.
2. Productive Interaction with Colleagues; professionalism in higher education requires
constant effective interaction of educators with one another. It is important that
collaboration in research, teaching, and curriculum development is encouraged as it builds
on the professionalism of higher education institutes. Educators focused on
professionalism should be concerned with how to collaborate to create an environment that
maximizes learning and bolsters achievement.
3. Self-development; professionalism calls for higher educators to constantly look for ways
to develop themselves through constant learning and trainings. Attending conferences,
seminars, and training workshops are part of the professional traits expected in higher
education.
4. Empathy for others; professionalism in higher education requires that members
understand and take into consideration the views of other stakeholders in an empathetic
manner. Having the necessary sympathy and empathy are the hall marks of a good
professional (Oak and Gulpa 2016).

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5. Positive Interaction with Students: Professionalism demands that educators do not let
their desire to be liked by students or feared by students affect their delivery of educational
services. Professionalism calls for lack of favoritism for or discrimination against students.
Professionalism also demands that educators understand and respect the fine line between
being a caring adult and a friend. Boundaries must always be enforced and respected by
educators.
6. Confidentiality; Professionalism demands that educators do not gossip or inappropriately
share confidential information. it is not just professional but also ethical that confidentiality
is maintained at all times by professionals in higher education.
7. Time management; a professional educator is conscious of time and plans and implement
activities in a systematic manner. It is very unprofessional to misuse or mismanage time in
higher education settings. Every activity should be professionally planned, and the times
adhered to.
8. Positive attitude: positive attitude in teaching and learning is essentially professionalism
in higher education. There is need to inculcate positive thinking attitude in educators of
higher education institutes even in the face of heavy problems. Professionalism demands
that educators be positive in dealing with issues especially pertaining learners.
9. ‘Student First’ Attitude: professionalism in higher education requires that educators
should always place the wellbeing of their client – students first. Extra steps must be taken
to ensure that their views and perspectives are satisfied and considered. Teamwork should
also be encouraged amongst the students. This will help to build negotiation skills,
interpersonal relationship skills and communication skills in the students.
10. Professional Appearance; According to Zieger (2016), an educator’s appearance plays a
role in conveying professionalism. There is a common saying that appearance speaks
louder than words. It is important that higher education practitioners appear neat and
professional as much as possible.
4 Conclusion
Lack of professionalisms causes the higher education to lose its glory and fame and necessary
initiatives must be taken to apply professionalism in the higher education sector. Professionalism
in higher education calls for educators to be experts not only in their own field, but also in other
areas. Finding ways to apply professionalism in higher education teaching is not difficult

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considering that the many attributes of professionalism falls in three categories; behavior, attitude
and character. The good thing is that applying professionalism principles is possible in incremental
small measures over time until professional change is affected not just in the lecturer or educator
but in the institution as well.
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