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The ethics of tapping into the same school community as freelance yoga teachers
By Joanna Bertzeletos, 4 June 2022
Introduction
Recent events have caused me to reflect upon the ethics of tapping into the same school community as existing freelance yoga teachers. In particular, imagine a scenario in which there is an established yoga teacher at a school and a new kids’ yoga company approaches the school community with a new offer of yoga. It could also be the other way around where said school approaches the new kids’ yoga company. In both scenarios neither the school nor the new kids’ yoga company have communicated or collaborated with the existing teacher of the opportunity for further work.
Obviously, we cannot dictate how a school manages itself, nor offer advice on what external providers it should work with. We also recognise that as kids’ yoga teachers we will often be tapping into the same school community as each other. This introduces the possibility of conflict and competition as well as the opportunity for collaboration and sharing with each other. We also acknowledge that nobody owns the yoga work in schools.
So, exactly what are the ethics that are at play here? What business model should we follow? The capitalistic patriarchal competitive model of supply and demand (a model based on using resources without consideration or sensitivity)? Or do we develop and use a model that is more in line with yoga ethics (which is more concerned with respecting and valuing resources and communities)?
Existing research into this area
I took to searching the net to find out what other articles have been written on this topic. I found loads of articles on the ethics of using other teacher’s lesson plans, taking students away from studios, using sequences learnt on courses/workshops, copying a teacher’s style or language they use and so forth. Granted there are many parallels that can be drawn from these articles, and which can be adapted to thinking about yoga in schools but nothing really specific to this area. I did, however, find the following article - “The Ethics of Sharing Another Yoga Teacher’s Work”, by Kara-Leah Grant* - which I thought was relevant to this topic and will help us develop ethical sensitivity as yoga teachers.
Competition vs collaboration: whose responsibility is it?
Let’s begin by considering who is responsible for communicating that there is an upcoming teaching opportunity to the inhouse yoga teacher. Is it the school? Granted the school does bear some of the responsibility but we as yoga teachers study the principles of ahimsa, asteya and aparigraha, from the yamas of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and as such have responsibility to do our best to uphold them. These are the principles of non-harming, non-stealing, non-greed or making sure what we do and how we do it is in harmony rather than harm, not taking what is not offered or more than we need.
Does this then mean that the majority of responsibility lies with the new yoga company to communicate and collaborate with the established teacher so that they feel valued and on-board with sharing the work? This is potentially a sensitive area that requires tact and transparency. Therefore, how can our business models uphold yoga’s moral and ethical codes and reflect an overall policy of respect, honour, and acknowledgement? How do we demonstrate as yoga teachers that we are always contemplating along the lines of ‘right action’?
Ethical and moral considerations
So, exactly what should we reflect upon before accepting work from a school or approaching a school where there is an established yoga teacher? Below we will explore some questions that have been adapted from Kara-Leah Grant’s article, and then beneath the questions Kara-Leah helps us to reflect upon how our response to these questions may feel in our body and what this means.
What is my true intention in taking on this work?
Am I hoping that from this initial contact that the school will offer me more work?
Am I under-cutting that teacher by offering a fee which is less or by offering free promotional work or in any other way?
How would I feel if another teacher was to do this to me?
Do I need to consult with the established school yoga teacher before accepting the work?
How do I acknowledge and/or honour the established teacher?
How do I ensure that my working in the school supports rather than undermines the established teacher?
How do I collaborate and share with the established yoga teacher any future opportunities that arise within that school?
Is it my responsibility as a trained yoga teacher to share my professional ethics with the school?
What business model am I using? Is it similar to the current societal paradigm or I am using one which is following the ethics of yoga?
Is this work really mine to take?
“When we reflect upon these questions, listen deeply to the answers that come through – not just to the words but also to the tone and vibe of those words.
If we catch ourselves defending, rationalising, or explaining it’s likely that our answer is coming from the conditioned mind – which suggests there may be more to look at. Truth has no need to defend itself, nor to rationalise and explain.
This is why, with practice, we can learn to feel truth in the body, because the moment we go into defence, which is a function of the ego or conditioned mind, the body contracts or shuts down in some way. Often, it’s very subtle… but it’s always there.” Kara-Leah Grant
Conclusion
When we acknowledge the established yoga teacher, by communicating with the teacher about the work we wish to share in their school community, we may find that we are not taking anything away from that teacher, that the established teacher feels honoured, a mutual understanding is paved, and boundaries, including fees are shared and discussed. We may even find that the established teacher is happy to share work with the other yoga company and vice versa. Thereby offering a diverse and broad experience of yoga to that school community and children within it.
We also will find that we are enriching that community because that small yet very thoughtful and caring gesture of giving the established teacher a heads-up means the energy is one of mutual support, respect, and honour. This vibration can be felt subtly across many different levels and this means that the good work we do across the school community will expand and grow in ways we could never imagine.
Looking at the bigger picture, what business model we adopt and what values we choose to align ourselves with will have an impact on the possibility of yoga being used as a powerful tool for social change and if in time a more yogic framework of living can be offered as an alternative paradigm. As a yoga community and predominantly a community of women it is our obligation to uphold yoga’s moral and ethical codes by living and embodying them; by demonstrating a different way of being; by applying them through the interactions and relationships we build as we promote our business; by running our businesses with integrity, compassion, sensitivity, and care.
I do hope this article helps other people who are on this path.
