An Ethical Dilemma in the Workplace

Confidentiality of information everything should be kept confidential from other children, teachers, parents unless needed to.

I also must check the pupils work, if necessary help them to catch up, encourage them to correct their own mistakes and provide them with support to learn independently. In order to do that I must develop a positive working relationship with the pupils. That can be achieved by listening to them, gaining their trust and confidence, always respecting and valuing them, knowing that children must be safe at all times.

This means keeping children safe from accidents (i.e. road safety), crime and bullying and actively promoting their well-being in a healthy, safe and supportive environment. It also encompasses issues such as pupil health and safety and bullying, about which there are specific statutory requirements, and a range of other issues, for example, arrangements for meeting the medical needs of children with medical conditions, providing first aid, school security, drugs and substance misuse.

It is essential to establish respectful and professional relationships with children and young people in the role of Teaching Assistant. There are certain strategies which enable such a valued and trusted relationship be established. A relationship in which a child trusts and respects their TA and feels comfortable in their company, allows the TA to offer a supportive and caring environment in which the child can learn and develop.

The school is “committed to doing all that we can to ensure that the children in our care are healthy, safe and enjoy emotional well-being. We also have a fundamental duty of care to the adults who work in and visit our school”.

Communicating with children, young people and adults in an educational environment is an important part of a professional relationship

• Confidentiality and when, for the safety of the child or young person confidentiality must be breached.

1. Watts is absolutely justified in recommending Ann’s dismissal. Ann was speaking on something that was a purely personal concern. She does not have the right to engage in hate speech against her superiors. She is free to disagree with them but she is not free to undermine their authority or disrupt the integrity of the school’s authority. If there are public concerns educators have received the opportunity to speak openly with respect.(U.S. Supreme Court, 1983). Racial slander or hate speech is very disrespectful. The administrators have a responsibility to give Ann due process (Essex, 2012) and recommending her termination affords her such.

I am expected to treat all members of staff and faculty with the upmost respect as well as fellow students. By carefully choosing my language and expression when communicating I demonstrate my regard to their feelings by avoiding any negative or demeaning words or phrases. These actions and responsibilities are not limited to verbal communication and are expected to extend to any correspondence in and out of the classroom and within virtual communication including email, social media, and websites. I will interact through email and forums with the same professionalism used within the classroom.

We are formally complaining about Ms Sanchez's supervisory actions in allowing perjured evidence to be put forth in expelling a student, Olivia Scales. We further complain that through her acceptence of perjured statements, and negligence in gathering statements, Ms Sanchez's has violated state law § 39-11-402 (3).

As principal of TWH, I feel it is vital to keep the urgency focused on academics. It is my belief that if we set students up for challenging and engaging classroom instruction, discipline issues will start to lessen. However, my teachers will feel supported and respected, and that will be communicated regularly to our students and school community. “…leaders treat others fairly, equitably, and with dignity and respect—and they establish the expectation that others in the school community act in a similar manner” (Murphy, 2006).

1. Discuss an ethical dilemma that you have had to face in the workplace. Ethical dilemmas

As the acting administrator, it would be difficult learning about the actions of Mrs. Wright. In my school I want my students to feel respected and safe and what she is accused of isn’t allowing Julie to feel that way. “We believe it is the function of the Franklin County Community School Corporation to educate our students for a life that will be satisfying and meaningful to them as persons and will contribute to the improvement of their community, state, and nation. The educational system shall be student-centered, addressing their needs and potential so they may be more adequately prepared vocationally, socially, intellectually, and morally” (Franklin Handbook, 2014, pg. 2). If the allegations are true then she is violating our mission as a corporation and should be punished accordingly. I think it is important that we investigate these accusations before jumping to conclusions, but this is issue is a serious matter and she has been looked at in a negative light from the school board. As the administrator, I will investigate to see if she is discriminating Julia and further investigate her attitude to her peers as well as myself. In Franklin County Community School Corporation we are given one year contracts so at the end of this investigation I will have to determine if we should offer Mrs. Wright a contract the following year. I will look into her evaluations and conduct with the staff to determine if she is the right fit for our staff. Having a

successively called A.I. and the principal, leaving messages for each one in their absence. Next, she called the pupil services administrator, who arranged for immediate consultative support upon receiving N.W.'s concern about A.I.'s and the principal's lack of availability and responsiveness. On January 14, the principal issued a written reprimand to N.W. for "taking it upon yourself to go out of process." In response, N.W. sent the principal and his copied administrators a detailed rebuttal, but she received no reply. In early February, she received another written reprimand after telling the pupil services administrator, upon her visit and question, that the administrative situation had not improved. Later that month, N.W. received two additional disciplinary memoranda for separate performance problems that she contended were spurious.

Ethical dilemmas are particularly sensitive issues in the workplace because the well-being of the individuals and the organization as a whole are at stake. Employees must feel as though they are being supported and not punished, and should not feel as though they were being put on display; their dignity should always remain intact. This paper examines how, as a high school principle, I would address the issue of one of the high school teachers becoming addicted to prescription drugs.