Ethics and My Practice - Reflection
My ethics impact on all my decisions and are informed by my belief system, life experiences, my parents and friends and are a foundation upon which I live and practice. Ethics drive my personal and professional choices. The code of ethics and the professional guidelines of my school are now incorporated into those processes.
The Code of Ethics for Certified Teachers in Aotearoa is not a set of rules but rather guiding principals that should be used to inform ethical decision-making. It exists to:
- promote the ethics of the profession
- inspire the quality of behaviour that reflects the honour and dignity of the profession
- encourage and emphasise those positive attributes of professional conduct that
- characterise strong and effective teaching
- enable members of the profession to appraise and reflect on their ethical decisions.
At my school ethical and moral decisions are also guided by the ethos of a Sacred Heart school and personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom is one of the goals. Students are encouraged to think about the effects of their actions and to take responsibility for them. Our curriculum includes Religious Education to a senior level and students explore issues relating to conscience, ethics and morality. For instance my Year class considered how beliefs about life after death in different religions may influence how people behave and the choices they make. Recently my Year 10 class have been examining concepts of reconciliation - Te Houhou Rongo, Ifoga
and Hu Louiti and repairing and restoring broken relationships. It has led to many interesting discussions on decision-making and what drives our choices.
As teachers must navigate the increasingly complicated terrain created by social media and an increasing propensity to 'share'. For myself as a parent and a teacher at my school I am frequently faced with situations and decisions that challenge me to consider what is appropriate and/or ethical considering my position. I frequently interact with parents of students in a social environment and have my daughter's friends who are students in some of my classes stay the night on weekends or holiday with us.
I am extremely careful not to engage or share in conversations regarding other teachers and avoid mentioning anything to do with school work. When at Training College we were asked to search ourselves on Facebook to check on how our public profile may be viewed. I am not an extensive user but always hold this in mind when adding or sharing. I'm aware that any posts I make on my daughters' feeds will be viewed by many girls I teach and have also had conversations with my daughters regarding sharing any photos of myself.
Being questioned about what I think about a new teacher at the school, the direction the school is taking on certain issues, its focus on academic standards and what I think of the leadership at the school were all questions I have been asked recently in social situations. I have at times avoided going out if I know a lot of parents will be there as I find this tiring and not a little boring - it seems that informal 'parent-teacher' interviews are considered ok by many. I have learnt to politely shut these conversations down or deflect them to safer territory. Though of course I can comment as a parent I am conscious of my responsibility to my school community. I don't believe it is ethical of me to partake in these chats while at a party and where things may possibly be misconstrued.
My common sense to guides me - what would I be happy with being repeated to others? am I sharing 'inside' or private information? Am I being indiscreet? My own personal ethics and morals guide me at these times. However, I was really interested to read Hall's article outlining steps for exploring ethical problems and can see how these can also help guide me in any future issues. Considering and including the Code of Ethics for Certified Teachers will add more 'points' to my personal moral compass and help guide the right choices as I continue on my career path.
References
Education Council. (nd). Code of Ethics for Certificated Teachers. Retrieved from https://educationcouncil.org.nz/content/code-of-ethics-certificated-teachers-0
Hall, A. (2001). What ought I to do, all things considered? An approach to the exploration of ethical problems by teachers. Paper presented at the IIPE Conference, Brisbane. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Developing-leaders/What-Ought-I-to-Do-All-Things-Considered-An-Approach-to-the-Exploration-of-Ethical-Problems-by-Teachers
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