Role of National Education Policy-2009 and National Professional Standards for Teachers in Developing Teachers’ Professionalism

Oct 15, 2026

Teacher professionalism is treated as a social construct shaped by educational policy, practice, and professional standards. This paper examines how the National Education Policy (2009) and the National Professional Standards for Teachers influence professionalism, drawing on expert perspectives from those directly involved in formulating these frameworks. Six experts participated in semistructured interviews focusing on professionalism indicators. Findings show teachers’ professionalism was not fully integrated in drafting or agenda setting, and limited coordination occurred between NEP and NPST experts. The study recommends prioritizing teacher professionalism when developing national education policies.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Conceptual background of professionalism

Global policy and standards for teachers

Teachers’ professionalism as an education policy priority

Role of National Education Policy-2009 and National Professional Standards for Teachers in Developing Teachers’ Professionalism Asma Khizar *, Muhammad Nadeem Anwar** and Mushtaq Ahmad Malik*** Abstract Teacher’s professionalism is a social construct that is defined through educational policy, practice, and standards. These are considered inevitable for developing professionalism. This paper discusses the role of National Education Policy (NEP) and National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPSTs) for the development of professionalism based on the views of experts who had direct experience with the process of formulation of NEP and NPSTs. Six experts; three associated with the preparation of NEP (2009) and three of NPSTs were interviewed through a semistructured interview consisting indicators of professionalism, conducted, recorded and transcribed. The analysis showed that while preparing NEP (2009) and NPSTs, teachers’ professionalism was not considered in true spirit. They declared that there was nomutual coordination between NEP and NPSTs experts for the development of teacher’s professionalism and was also not included onto the agenda. It is recommended that teacher professionalism may be focused while developing National Education Policies. Keywords: National Education Policy-2009, national professional standards, professionalism * Lecturer, Department of Education, University of Sargodha. Email: [asmaeeman@gmail.com](asmaeeman@gmail.com) **Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Sargodha. [Email: nadeem.anwar@uos.edu.pk](Email: nadeem.anwar@uos.edu.pk) *** Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Sargodha. [Email: mushtaq.ahmad@uos.edu.pk](Email: mushtaq.ahmad@uos.edu.pk) Introduction A paradigm shift has been seen in the world from the materialistic views to knowledgebased society and economy. To cope with global issues, emerging challenges and to enhance quality, every sort of profession is guided through policies, principles, and standards. Professionalism among employees is necessary for excellent performance (Ahmad, 2011) . Although the term professionalism is used in different fields, still it is difficult to define (Tichenor & Tichenor, 2005). According to Hoyle (2001), professionalism means the quality of services and not the improvement of status. Further, it is explained by Naylor (2001) that professionalism is a multi-dimensional concept which comprised of attitude towards job and achievement of a high level of professional standards. Hence professionalism may be defined as the respectable status of the occupation (Kennedy, 2007), improvement in service quality (Hoyle, 2001), attainment of maximum standards, professional autonomy and self-control (Boyt, Lusch, & Naylor, 2001) . During the last decade, the teacher’s professionalism has been focused worldwide by policymakers, researchers and educational leaders to improve the quality of the educational process (Ali, 2001) . In this respect, teaching as a profession requires professional knowledge, skills, and disposition. Teachers’ professionalism is based on professional qualification and excellence in teaching (Anwar, 2005) which includes the understanding of the teaching process, teaching competencies, and attitudes towards teaching (Anees, 2005) . Professional teachers can address issues about teaching, curriculum, students care, assessment and all matters related to the teaching-learning process (Rizvi, 2003) . In developed countries, there are some common policy elements for a successful education system that focus on teachers’ professionalism as a significant area of quality education. Education systems of these countries provide many opportunities for continuous professional development, professional collaboration in the teaching-learning process and teachers’ involvement in decision making about instructional practices and curriculum (Wei, R. C., Andree, A., & Darling-Hammond, L. 2009) .

FAQs

What does the paper say about teachers’ professionalism as a concept?

Teachers’ professionalism is presented as a social construct defined through educational policy, practice, and professional standards, and described as multi-dimensional in terms of attitudes and professional achievement.

How did the authors study the role of NEP (2009) and NPSTs?

Six experts were interviewed using semistructured interviews. The interviews focused on indicators of professionalism and were recorded and transcribed for analysis.

What were the main findings regarding NEP (2009) and NPSTs?

The analysis indicated that teachers’ professionalism was not considered in true spirit during the preparation of NEP (2009) and NPSTs. It also reported no mutual coordination between the experts involved, and it was not included on the agenda.

What recommendation does the paper make?

Teacher professionalism should be a focused priority when developing National Education Policies, ensuring it is properly integrated and coordinated with relevant professional standards.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Anna Hans