In this lesson we were required to take The Georgia Ethics Test. We had to describe what was on the test and how we did. We had to describe the codes of teaching and give our own philosophy of teaching. We were given three case videos of different teachers and answer the required questions about the videos and then research a question pertaining to this lesson.
EDUC 2110 – Lesson 9 – Teacher Ethics
Evaluation
The Georgia Ethics Test Questions
What was your score on this 20 question test?
I scored 100% on the Georgia Ethics Quiz.
Describe what you discovered by taking this test. For example, did anything surprise you? Write at least one full paragraph.
The scenarios that were given on this test surprised me the most because I know that some teachers would do these things (the ones that shouldn’t be done). I found the Georgia Ethics Quiz rather easy. The scenarios that were given were common sense to me.
General Ethics Questions
Who was your favorite teacher? Why? Identify the ethical dimensions inherent in the reasons you cite.
My favorite teacher is someone that I had in my kindergarten and first grade years. Yes, I remember that far back and still talk to her today. The reason why she was my favorite, and still remains today, is because she treated everyone equal, whether they were boys, girls, African American, Caucasian, Hispanic, or Chinese. She treated everyone the same and she made sure we knew at the end of every day that she loved us as we got on our buses. Not many teachers are like this now days, at all. I think that if younger children in the elementary grade levels could have a teacher as caring as I did in kindergarten and first grade then they would have the motivation to keep their head up and keep moving throughout their years of school ahead of them because they knew at least ONE teacher was always going to be there for them. A teacher-student relationship is very important to me. Some children may not receive that love that they need at home, so they come to school seeking it, and my teacher was there to give it to all of us. My favorite teacher had a strong bond with all of her students, but she also kept it on a professional level. She taught us not only about school lessons, but also things that we needed to know in life (even at such a young age). She was loving and caring, but also got stern with us if we needed it.
Think about your philosophy of teaching – How does this communicate your personal ethical code?
I want to be a teacher that my students know they can come to. I want to treat everyone with fairness. Not only in my classroom do I want to have fairness, but I want to teach my students honesty and show them what it’s like to have someone that cares about them and to have that teacher-student relationship, while also keeping things on the professional level. I want to be able to have a bond with my students that makes them want to come to class every day and learn something new. A teacher-student relationship is very important in the classroom to me, but while also making sure your students know that you can be stern when need be.
Why are teachers held to a higher standard of conduct than other professions?
I think teachers are held to a higher standard of conduct than other professions because teachers are responsible for the education of others. It’s up to the teachers to teach the required material and if it’s not done, it’s blamed on the teacher.
Why do these conduct expectations apply to a teacher’s personal life as well as his or her private life?
Teachers go to school and grow bonds with their students, which causes them to get attached to them. Not only do teachers have their children and spouses at home, but they have their “children” at school too. Teachers who have strong relationships with their students start to love them like their own and when something goes wrong in their lives, they want to help try to fix it, but sometimes can’t because they’re their teacher. When teachers want to be a part of their students’ lives but can’t, it starts to affect their personal lives. I grew up in a small town where all students’ parents knew teachers personally, and students would even go to their teacher’s house for fun. This is a way that it could affect a teacher’s private life.
Does this teaching profession need a code of conduct? Why?
The teaching profession definitely needs a code of conduct. There are just some teachers out in the teaching world that just don’t know what their boundaries are and need a step by step guide on what is and what isn’t okay.
Which of the areas of the Code might be the most challenging for a new teacher? Why?
The code that I think that might be most challenging to new teachers would have to be Standard 6: Remunerative Conduct. This standard is mainly focused on integrity and how to handle certain situations in a professional manner whether it coming from students, colleagues, parents, patrons or businesses. I say standard 6 because it may be hard to handle things in a professional manner when you want to do it “your way”. New teachers may have trouble adapting to this, and will have to learn the right about of integrity to get through some situations.
Case Study Video 1 Questions (The Ethical Teacher)
What could Daphne have done differently? If you were in Daphne’s situation, what would you have done?
This is a tough situation. Daphne was stuck between two jobs. But after thinking about it, I think Daphne would have been better off if she would have went to her boss and explained the situation and asked for his or her opinion on the matter. However, Daphne did sign a contract with her current school, so her boss more than likely would have not done her the favor of letting her go. I think if Daphne wanted to move to Nebraska with her boyfriend, she needed to put in a notice and look for another job opening elsewhere, near her boyfriend. If I were in Daphne’s situation, I think I would have tried talking to my boss first of all if it was sudden, but if nothing could be done, put in a notice and look for a job elsewhere. Like I said before, this is a tough situation.
Although the video mainly focuses on the professional repercussions to Daphne’s actions, her decisions also had an effect on her personal life. Identify all of the areas of Daphne Hartford’s life that were affected.
After Daphne’s ex returns to her town after months of not seeing him, she said when she saw him it was like he had never left. She was excited to spend every afternoon with him after not seeing him for many months. While all of this was going on, she was teaching high school physics. She told her students from the beginning that she was going to be there for them and help them understand/learn to love the subject that she loves the most. But after Daphne and her ex get back together, he returns to Nebraska (where he lives) and asks her to move in with him, and there just so happened to be a job opening for a physics teacher. When Daphne found out about this her professional life, plus her personal life was affected. She quit her job on short notice, she didn’t go through with her contract, and the school in Nebraska that had a job opening found out about her terminating her last contract. Daphne didn’t realize that this was such a big deal, but they threatened to take away her license for a year, or permanently. After this whole ordeal, Daphne lost her job, and I’m not positive if she ever moved to Nebraska with her boyfriend.
Immanuel Kant proposed the concept of “universality” as a test when considering whether an action is ethical or not. In Kant’s view of universality, people should act only in a way that would be acceptable if it was the moral standard for all to follow. Would it be acceptable for everyone to act the way Daphne Hartford acted? How would that affect schools and students’ learning?
It is NOT acceptable. If teachers quit on short notice like Daphne did, schools would be without teachers, or would be switching teachers all the time. Students don’t learn well when their teachers are constantly changing. Students’ grades would start to suffer and chances are, not many would pass, or barely pass.
Do you feel that Daphne Hartford’s actions were unethical or unprofessional? Why or why not?
Yes, I do. I think her situation might have been tough on her trying to decide what to do at last minute, but what she done was unethical and unprofessional. She could have approached the situation differently than she did.
Case Study Video 2 Questions (Relationships with Students)
According to the Georgia Code of Ethics, what are the professional expectations of teachers with regard to their relationships with students?
The Georgia Code of Ethics mentions that teachers need to be friendly to their students, but not their friend. This sounds kind of harsh if you ask me. I don’t fully agree. Sometimes all a student needs is a friend and sometimes the only person willing to be their friend is their teacher. There is a way to be friends with a student and keep it professional, you just have to know your boundaries.
How can a teacher foster positive, professional relationships with students?
Teachers can have positive, professional relationships with students without getting into their personal lives. What “Robert” did was very unprofessional considering he was trying to date his student. Teachers who want a positive, professional relationship with their students don’t have to text, call, email, send flowers, and write notes to their students. All a teacher has to do is let his/her students come to them and be there to talk and listen about anything.
How is the appropriate teacher-student boundary defined?
The appropriate teacher-student boundary I think is when teachers put their students’ needs before their own. They’re respectful towards and treat each student equally. They don’t get personal with their students, and always make sure that their students have someone to talk to when needed.
This is actually a very good question, and very difficult to answer.
In many students where teachers have inappropriate relationships with students, traditional teaching boundaries are crossed and the teacher-student relationship becomes blurred. What events led to the boundaries becoming crossed? How did the teacher-student relationship become blurred? What was the impact of the relationship on the student?
In this case, the boundary starting being crossed when he would invite her to stay after school to practice her lines with him. Late practices led to flowers, notes in her locker, text messages, calls, emails, etc. When Kim seen that he was “hitting” on her, she was disturbed and tried staying away. She didn’t know what could have gave him the idea of her liking him more than just a teacher.
Do you agree with the action that Kim’s mother took to protect her child?
I definitely agree with the action that Kim’s mother took to protect her daughter because I would have done the same. I agree with what Kim’s mother said about how he was very unprofessional and should have not been doing any of what he did.
If you suspected a colleague of committing this type of behavior, what would you do? Do you feel that you have a duty to report the misconduct of colleagues? What factors inform your conclusion?
If I ever suspected this type of teacher-student relationship, I would feel like I would be in the wrong also without reporting it to the head. Teachers shouldn’t be acting in ways like that towards their students, no matter what vibe students may give off to them.
Case Study Video 3 Questions (Fostering and Ethical School Climate)
Teachers have a fiduciary responsibility to act in their students’ best interest and protect them from harm (physically, emotionally and psychological). Is the discipline policy implemented by this teacher consistent with this expectation? Explain.
No, the discipline policy isn’t implemented by this teacher since he commanded his students to beat up tardy student after refusing to do sit-ups or pushups for his punishment.
The teacher could argue that doing sit-ups and pushups is acceptable considering these are activities that students would be asked to do in their physical education classes. Do you agree with this argument?
No, I do not agree with the teacher’s argument. Students should not be told to do sit-ups or pushups as punishments in a classroom that isn’t PE related. This teacher was doing this out of hate and aggression towards his student because he was tardy.
How is this case different from school corporal punishment?
School corporal punishment is a form of physical punishments, such as spanking, slapping, or pinching, that is delivered by teachers or school administrators. (http://study.comm/academy/lesson/corporal-punishment-in-schools-definition-consequences.html). In this case, a teacher demanded his class to beat up a child whom was tardy. He didn’t actually physically beat him up himself, which isn’t defined as corporal punishment. It’s closely related, but is different in this case.
What type of classroom culture does this discipline policy create?
A classroom with this type of discipline policy creates a classroom of hate. A teacher that’s okay with any type of physical punishment is sending the message to his or her students that physical violence is okay. A teacher that is sending this type of message to his or her students is asking for trouble from parents, administrators, the Board, and even police if it goes far enough. A classroom full of hate isn’t going to get much done because there’s going to be fussing and fighting going on constantly. Students would be more focused on what kind of bullying they could get done today rather than being focused on the lesson for that day.
Summary
This lesson was very interesting to me. The three videos that were required really shocked me. It’s interesting to find things that other teachers have dealt with and how they handled the situation themselves. While watching the three videos, I thought to myself how I would have handled the situation, whether I be the teacher, the parent or the student on the other side. Overall, I found this lesson very interesting.
Research Question
What happens when a teacher breaks his or her contract?
Reference(s): http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2000/12/13/15teach.h20.html , http://education.findlaw.com/teachers-rights/teachers-rights-contracts.html
Research Analysis
I chose this question not because I plan on breaking a contract in the future, but because I was interested in all the things that could happen if a teacher breaks his or her contract before it is up.
The law of contracts is between the school system and the teacher who signs it. If a teacher were to sign a contract given to him or her saying that he or she is hired for the job, the school district has finalize the contract. Either a teacher or a school district can breach a contract, depending on the case. When the school district breaches a contract, it terminates the teacher’s employment, even if the teacher hasn’t violated any terms on the agreement.
If a teacher were to breach his or her contract before it is up, it could put their teaching license to a hold for up to a year. Who decides if your license are taken away for a year? The school board.
Research Summary
I didn’t find out as much information as I wanted too about this subject, but I do know that if a teacher breaches their contract before it is up, they have a chance of their license being taken away for up to a year. Do I think this is fair? Yes. Teachers don’t need to get up and leave a school system once the students get comfortable and happy around them. Students get attached to great teachers, and it’s not fair to the administrators at the school, nor the students if teachers could break their contracts and not get punished for it ever.