The football coach comes to you and asks you to raise the grade of one of their players that has become ineligible.

You smell alcohol on the breath of a fellow teacher.

Which one is an ethical issue?

Which one is a legal issue?

The difference between Ethics & Law Learn the characteristics & the sources

of ethical teaching Three ways teachers influence students

ethically Teacher and the law Teacher’s Liability & Precautions Consequences of our actions

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT We need to act and respond as a

professional, as a teacher Parents want their children to be taught

by ethical people We as Teachers need to aware of what

we are liable for, and . . . The potential consequences of our

actions

ETHIC

Ethics

Refers to a system or a code of morality embraced by a particular person or group

May be invisible obligations that we perceive

Ideas that are less tangible and observable

Laws

A written rule that a member of a given community must follow

Created by legitimate authority of a particular community, state or nation

Can be judged, and often penalize the actual behavior of individuals

Concrete, made by people written down for the public to see

SIX CHARACTERISTICS OF ETHICAL TEACHING Appreciation for Moral

Deliberation The complex moral

dimension of the problem and be aware that care must be taken to protect the rights of all parties

Empathy The ability to mentally “get

inside the skin” of another person. We need to feel what the other in an ethically troublesome situation are feeling

Knowledge Must remember the facts

that will enable us to put Issue into context

Reasoning Move through an issue step by step

and draw conclusions or compare to a particular event or action with some mortal principle and come to a conclusion

Courage To feel, to know and to reason are

not enough. To be ethically correct often requires the willpower to act in what we perceive to be the right way rather in the comfortable way

Interpersonal Skills Requires sensitivity and courage.

Requires communication skills to deal sensitively with issues that demand delicacy. Have to have the ability to use the right words, with the right feeling and tone, and address the issue at hand openly and honestly

SOURCES FOR GUIDING CODE OF ETHICS Human Example

What should I do? We learn from the

example of others Spiritual and Religious

Code Bible, Koran

Secular Guides Everyday life

Reason What are the

consequences? Moral Compass

Mental Magnet

THREE WAYS TEACHERS INFLUENCE STUDENTS ETHICALLY Personal example

The way you treat your students & do your work demonstrates your ethical value

Classroom climateCreating an environment of safety and trust

lets students learn Ethical dialogue

Discussing core ethical values, helps students build their own ethics

TEACHERS AND THE LAW In Loco Parentis

In the place of parents Teachers are required to be much more

deliberate and cautious to prevent an infringement of student’s rights

Attitude has changed past few decades over the authority of adults and teachersMany students are more fixated on their

rights than on their responsibilities

TEACHERS Liability

means blame It implies that a teacher behaved

negligently or intentionally in a way in which injuries occurred because of their actions or negligence

Teachers are responsible for safety & well being of students in classroom, work space and activities they oversee

LIABILITY

Courts have not found teachers liable for student injuries when they can demonstrate they have taken reasonable precautions They made a reasonable attempt to anticipate

dangerous situations They provide proper supervision They took precautions They established rules They gave a warning to minimize the chances of

students getting hurt

WHAT IS YOUR LIABILITY? If you suspect that a child is being abused any

form, are you legally bound to report it? YES! To protect a teacher from reaction of a

incorrect report or from angering an offending parent, the reports are kept confidential.

You break/stop a fight and a one of the students suffer a injury. Could you be held liable? Typically the courts would find the teacher not liable

If you see a fight happening and do nothing to stop it and a student receives an injury. Could you be held liable? Yes, you could be held liable Level of potential harm to teacher considered

WHAT IS YOUR LIABILITY? You leave your emotional/behavioral

disordered (EBD) class in the gymnasium for a game of basketball. You leave to go take a phone call and in your absence a fight broke out and a student is bleeding. Could you be held liable? A lawsuit and liability would be a definite

possibility in this scenario. Whether liability would be found by a court, however, would depend on variables such as the length of time the class was left unattended, the history of the students, and what a "reasonable" person would have done in a similar situation

WHEN CONSEQUENCES AGAINST TEACHERS ARE CONSIDERED Due Process must be followed

Fairness should be rendered and teacher’s right as individuals should not be violated

Two Types of Due ProcessSubstantive Due Process

Has to do with the issue itself Is this matter substantive enough to deny a

teacher employment?

Procedural Due Process Concerns the fairness of the process followed Exists so individual teachers are protected from

random acts against them

Teachers need to know what their ethical beliefs are and how they are going to incorporate that into their teaching.

They also need to know what they are liable for and the consequences they could face for their actions.

WORKS CITEDRyan, K., & Cooper, J. (2013). Those who can, teach, pp. 230-280. Wadsworth Cengage Learning.Yell, M. L. (March, 1999). Teacher Liability for Student Injury and Misconduct. Retrieved March 19, 2013, from Beyond

Behavior: http://cecp.air.org/interact/authoronline/february99/1.htm