Setting Boundaries Between Teachers and Students
The yoga ethics in the student/teacher relationship arises from an idea of various boundaries ranging from an array of personal upbringing and regular life experiences. There exists a relationship between teachers and their students who have set boundaries in their coordination and how they interact with each other. Through these relationships, students can attempt to create situations that escalate beyond their comfort. When this situation occurs, teachers and students get involved in a scenario that cannot be solved pleasingly. Besides, some people view a yoga teacher and a student relationship as a form of creating rigid boundaries that aim to ensure safe and controlled feelings among themselves.
Yoga relationship assists students and teachers in negotiating the existing gaps and opening up themselves to creating connections. It also helps them to affirm that they need more stable and strong control over their environments. Most students have the desire to please their yoga teachers, and this contributes to a power imbalance that is inherent in every relationship. In Yoga relationships, teachers respect the ethics surrounding the power imbalance, and they opt to maintain their professionalism while dealing with students. It is, therefore, necessary for students in this relationship to understand the ethical boundaries between them and teachers and their rights.
Teachers are expected to uphold ethical behaviors and do within their capabilities to avoid misconduct. Different communities have their various unique personalities, and this includes those individuals who exploit others for their benefit. This exploiting personality, however, can cause harm to others due to the trust and respect which students have given them. In cases of any harm or violations of the existing boundaries, the students can be amplified when they understand the harms which arise through such imbalances. In an ideal situation, yoga teachers are more powerful than others due to the trust and guidance desired from the students (Telles et al., “Increased mental well-being and reduced state anxiety in teachers after participation in a residential yoga program.”). These students are vulnerable and have given the teachers power and influence over them in the relationship. Teachers should therefore have healthy imbalances of power when interacting with the students.
Yoga Student-Teacher Relationship
Through the yoga ethics in the student/teacher relationship, there exists an understanding of personal and social boundaries, which generate various decisions making processes. As a teacher, therefore, there is a need to apply the physical implicit instructions, charge practices energetically and implement the dynamism of their relationship with students. Often, there might be cases of potential complications which must be solved when there are proper understandings between the two parties. Hence, yoga ethics enable the teachers and students to create relations that are healthy and thrive towards students’ success and discipline.
When setting boundaries on how to relate with students, teachers must be aware of the most appropriate time to be friends and how important friendship with students can be. The context of this yoga relationship should be more physical, emotional, or psychological in nature to ensure that both parties assist each other. The yoga relationship changes depending on the context and applicability. For instance, it is common that individuals cannot to allow strangers to have prolonged contact with them in public places due to the yoga feeling in people.
In a yoga classroom setup, it is considered good to receive a touch from a stranger as long as he/she is a teacher and not the student next to the one who has been touched. Hence, the feeling of touch and physical contact guides the interaction and relationships in yoga ethics. In another setting, yoga teachers can be allowed to grab hips while lengthening their spines or spiral their inner thighs in the right direction when dealing with students (Valente, Monteiro, and Lourenco). This practice, however, is considered personal and unique in its context since the applicability may differ from the actual relationships.
How Teachers Can Maintain Healthy and Ethical Relationships with Their Students
A healthy student and teacher relationships are where the teacher honors the trust and responsibility of the students in maintaining their ethical boundaries. A higher trust level in this relationship is related to the doctor-client relationship, where there is complete loyalty and full responsibility of both parties. Hence when this trust is not honored by the teacher, there is potential harm to the students. Harms can arise in cases such as personal, sexual, or financial exploitation of either teacher to the students or vice versa. Through yoga ethics, it provides a framework and guidelines for associating with each other and maintaining the healthy relationship which exists between teachers and students.
Due to the higher vulnerability of the students, the teachers are responsible for setting high ethical standards than what the laws and morals require of them. An example of a code of ethics that exist is the KRI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. This code protects both students and the integrity of the teachers in dealing with students (Telles et al. “The impact of yoga on teachers’ self-rated emotions.”). A teacher, therefore, may lose his/her certification when they violate this code or its policies, and this binds them to carefully carry themselves in a proper manner and in a way that is more dignified and respectful in society.
There are several policies and offices of ethics and professional standards which are committed to upholding this code of ethics. These policies ensure there exists a safe and respectful environment that is free from discrimination and harassment for all the students who practice yoga. In addition, the students and other yoga participants are encouraged to guide and practice their deep critical thinking abilities and skills and also to have their deep listening to the body’s feelings.
The existing boundaries between teachers and students can become confusing hence there is a need to understand when one party’s rights have been violated. When the student experiences any sign of exploitation or a teacher has crossed his/her ethical boundary, it is recommended that they report ensuring that proper action is taken in advance. In addition, there is a need to have familiarity with the signs and symptoms of these harms and exploitations to reduce the future challenges that exist in this relationship.
Summary
In conclusion, various laws and policies guide and protect the welfare of the students when they are in yoga relationships. In this kind of relationship, each party is treated to be aware of his or her rights, and they need to be protected. When there is a violation of the policies existing, action is taken by the teachers since they are aware and have the knowledge of the key requirements when interacting with their students. Yoga ethics assist in building a mutual relationship between the teachers and students and also reduce the occurrence of potential exploitation of the students. There is a need to uphold ethical values and morals when dealing with students to maintain a strong and lasting ethical relationship.
Works Cited
Telles, Shirley, et al. “Increased mental well-being and reduced state anxiety in teachers after participation in a residential yoga program.” Medical Sciences Monitoring Basic Resource, vol. 24, 2018, pp. 105-112.
Telles, Shirley, et al. “The impact of yoga on teachers’ self-rated emotions.” BMC Research Notes, vol. 12, no. 1, 2019, p. 680.
Valente, Sabina, et al. “The relationship between teachers’ emotional intelligence and classroom discipline management.” Psychology Schs, vol. 1, 2018, pp. 1-10.