The Comenius’ Oath is an ethical guideline that supports teachers’ work and serves as a reminder that ethics are the foundation of the teaching profession. The oath can be compared to the Hippocratic Oath for physicians and the Archimedean Oath for engineers.
The main principles for teachers’ professional ethics are recorded in the Comenius’ Oath drawn up by the Ethical Committee for the Teaching Profession. The oath can be taken by any qualified teacher regardless of the education level: it is intended for all teachers from early childhood education to higher education.
The objective of the Comenius’ Oath is to strengthen the professional ethics and identity of teachers. It underlines the need for teachers to act fairly and equally in all situations. The oath additionally emphasises the expertise of teachers and creates solidarity among teachers.
Taking the oath
OAJ’s regional associations and FSL annually organise an opportunity for teachers who have not yet taken the oath to do so.The oath can be taken, for example, as part of the associations’ World Teachers’ Day events, the associations’ annual meetings or as part of some other annual celebration. The associations inform their members about oath-taking events. In addition, OAJ organises annual oath-taking events at the Educa fair.
It is recommended that a single person reads the entire text, after which the oath-takers say “I swear”.