Decisions are a constant in administration. Principals and school leaders alike are faced with decisions all day every day. Decisions that not only shape and mold the school culture and climate, but the shape they students that attend our schools and their families. It’s critical that school leaders are aware of the ethical ramifications of the decisions they make and are cognoscente of the moral and ethical implications of their decisions. Educational leaders are not only leaders of schools, but leaders in the community. It’s critical that principals and school leaders analyze dilemmas utilizing ethical leadership theories and social justice constructs to ascertain the best course of action. I believe that these are skills that need to be practiced and nurtured. Educators need to exercise this …show more content…
The Ethics of Justice deals with moral choices in respect to the rights of the people involved and what they feel the solution should/could be. Also, a solution chosen through this lens, seems to damage the least number of people.
The Ethic of Critique is about the barriers to freedom and fairness. When schools or society leave out or unfairly benefit one group of people more than others the Ethics of Critique is often involved. The Ethic of Critique challenges the status quo. This lens forces administrators with rethink, redefine, and reframe ideas and the cultural norms that have been simply accepted thus far.
The Ethics of Professionalism constantly question equality for the needs of all students. School leader must consider professional codes and personal ethical principles as well as their standards of professionalism. This lens is all in an attempt to create a dynamic model that places the best interest of the students in the forefront! It’s critical that educators, school leaders and/or administrators refer to these 4 paradigms to make the best decision
The major concepts of this article relate to the ineffectiveness of school leadership programs. Arthur Levine found that a majority of the programs were inadequate. He noted four areas in which these programs lacked efficiency. These areas of concern were the rise in off-campus low quality programs, weak research-intensive universities that are working towards awarding doctoral degrees in administration, competition for students is causing lowered program quality and admission criteria, and the fact that state and local school districts are adding to the problem by salary incentives for advanced degrees. Levine noted several major issues that affect school administration programs. First, he revealed that many people who had finished these programs agreed that the curriculum was irrelevant; they said that it did prepare them to deal with "on-the-job issues." Second, the issues of low admission and graduation standards were addressed. The study illustrated how many schools lower their standards to increase admission and create tuition "cash cows." Third, he discussed the issue of these schools having weak faculties.
Americans have embraced debate since before we were a country. The idea that we would provide reasoned support for any position that we took is what made us different from the English king. Our love of debate came from the old country, and embedded itself in our culture as a defining value. Thus, it should not come as a surprise that the affinity for debate is still strong, and finds itself as a regular feature of the mainstream media. However, if Deborah Tannen of the New York Times is correct, our understanding of what it means to argue may be very different from what it once was; a “culture of critique” has developed within our media, and it relies on the exclusive opposition of two conflicting positions (Tannen). In her 1994 editorial, titled “The Triumph of the Yell”, Tannen claims that journalists, politicians and academics treat public discourse as an argument. Furthermore, she attempts to persuade her readers that this posturing of argument as a conflict leads to a battle, not a debate, and that we would be able to communicate the truth if this culture were not interfering. This paper will discuss the rhetorical strategies that Tannen utilizes, outline the support given in her editorial, and why her argument is less convincing than it should be.
Professionalism in the workplace in many professions can be simplified into general categories such as neat appearance, interaction with clients, punctuality, general subject knowledge, and likability. In nursing, professionalism encompasses a much more broad and inclusive set of criteria than any other profession. Nurses specifically are held to a higher standard in nearly every part of their job. Nurses are not only expected to uphold what it seen as professional in the aforementioned categories, but they are also expected to promote health, wellbeing, and advocate for patients, but also continually provide the highest standard of care, demonstrate exemplary subject and procedural knowledge, and abide by the Code of ethics set forth by the American Nurses Association. This Code of Ethics includes the complex moral and ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, fidelity, honesty, and integrity.
One of the first steps in of professionalism is dress; I make sure I am always dressed both professionally and comfortably for our classroom setting. For example if I know we are going to the Playscape, I wear either closed toed tennis or water shoes so I can get down and dirty and interacting with the children, really exploring the landscape. If I am wearing a dress I am conscious of how I sit or even go at step further and wear leggings underneath just so I don’t have to be worried. Another aspect of professionalism in the classroom is language. I always use appropriate language when speaking to the children, parents and my coworkers. Confidentiality is also a part of professionalism. Whenever I am taking notes or speaking of a child I am sure to keep it a confidential, I do not use names and am sure to only keep the information between the teaching team and I.
The Code of Ethic for the Education Profession does not just involve the schools staff with its student but with everyone that is involved with the school. A quote from the first code “educator values the worth and dignity of every person” (1), to be an educator one has to keep their colleges, boss, parents, student and community in mind. To be in the education profession one is signing up to be a trustworthy, knowledgeable, devoted, and understanding individual. They must guarantee equal opportunities for everyone. Their primary concern is to their students learning and potential. One has to “sustain the highest degree of ethical conduct” (1).
The occupations that I have chosen to analyze using the three elements for this assignment are paraprofessional, what I am currently, and a teacher, what I am going to college to become. Teachers and paraprofessionals work side by side, collaborate, plan, and share many of the same experiences. However, paraprofessionals are often not treated as equals and has created some ethical judgement regarding treatment of the paraprofessionals from other teachers and administrators in the business of education. I want to use this assignment as an opportunity to distinguish the true professional using the elements designed for this course.
Bosher, William, Kate Kaminski, and Richard Vacca. The School Law Handbook: What Every Leader Needs to Know. Alexandria: ASCD. 2003. Brown, Frank, et al. Key Legal Issues for Schools.
Kraft, M. (2007). Toward a school-wide model of teaching for social justice: An examination of the best practices of two small public schools. Equity & Excellence in Education, 40, 77–86.
Within the Code of Ethics and Principles of Professional Conduct for the Education Profession in Florida, I have been able to find several prevalent moral issues to discuss. Of these, I found the following five selections to be the most important issues to be discu...
Stories by school leaders in school context can reveal rich contextual information (Witherell, 1991) on moral decisions that lead toward equitable practices. In fact, personal narratives can reveal how research participants in morally complex settings—like schools—are social beings who are actively engaged in reshaping unethical “norms.” This paper aims to enhance and generate a new understanding of leadership. Also,
Standard 1 of the Florida Principal Leadership Standards (2011) describe the priority of the school leader as, “effective school leaders demonstrate that the student learning is their top priority through leadership actions that build and support a learning organization focus on student success”. Our number one priority and focus is and always should be our students. They are the reason behind our professions. It is the faculty the ones who should be supported by the administrators. The leaders should celebrate their success, encourage them, support their assertive instructional decisions, and motivate them each day to create the right conditions for learning. The principals must plan to project growth the most accurate possible, employing all the help that they could get for this challenging task. Students should not be affected because qualified teachers are not available. Strategic schools use the resources at had to relocate, and alleviate the human resources problems.
Learning by critical reflection creates new understandings by making conscious the social, political, professional, economic, and ethical assumptions constraining or supporting one’s action in a specific context (Ecclestone 1996; Mackintosh 1998). Critical reflection’s appeal as an adult learning strategy lies in the claim of intellectual growth and improvement in one’s ability to see the need for and effect personal and system change. Reflection can be a learning tool for directing and informing practice, choosing among alternatives in a practice setting, or transforming and reconstructing the social environment (Williamson 1997). Can critical reflection be taught in a classroom? Does the new knowledge created foster change? This Myths and Realities investigates the extent to which critical reflection can be taught to adult learners.
The controllers must also have invested in the success and welfare of the students, the educators, and communities. The school boards and teachers’ unions are the best suited to make important decisions related to the leadership, operation, academics, staffing, improvement, and teaching. The local school committees and school boards understand the education and stakeholders and can best make the decisions and implement them. The individuals are also closest to the parents, teachers, students, and most of the times live in the school community (Horn, 2002).
...1). Leadership and Ethics. In Working Through Ethics in Education and Leadership (pp. 9-20). SensePublishers.
Additional expected qualities that create the essentials of professionalism in relation to teaching are a high level of cognitive skills and social capabilities together with experienced personal qualities as stated by Marsh (2008) which include sensitivity, compassion, reflective and innovative thinking and commitment and dedication to the job. This support to facilitate such desired moral qualities as respect, caring, integrity, diligence and open communication as outlined by Groundwater-Smith (2009), the relationship of which is reinforced by Whitton (2009 p.47) in defining professionalism in teaching as being “…dependant of correct standards with the right conduct or practice”.