There are two major ethical theories which teachers should be aware of when determining the course of action regarding discipline, and other student affairs. There is the consequentialist theory, and the non-consequentialist. These ethical theories have been put to the test in the case study involving Ms. Jones (the teacher), Johnnie (the student) and, Mr. Pugnacious (Johnnie’s father). In the scenario described, Ms. Jones is having an ethical dilemma. She has witnessed Johnnie starting a fight with his classmates, and wishes to speak to his father regarding his behaviour. Mr. Pugnacious arrives to the meeting, belt in hand, and states his desire to “teach that brat to fight in school” while smelling of alcohol. To keep Johnnie from being hurt, Ms. Jones lies to Johnnie’s father and says it was not his son who started the fight and that he should not be punished. A teacher coming from a consequentialist standpoint is more likely to see the lie told by Ms. Jones as acceptable, because she was keeping her student out of harm’s way. A teacher coming from a non-consequentialist standpoint is more likely to believe the opposite, that lying to a parent is unacceptable and should be avoided. In this essay, I will analyze both the positive and negative effects of assuming each perspective, and finally will provide my own opinion about how the case should have been handled.
A consequentialist teacher would have reacted the same way Ms. Jones did in this situation. Ms. Jones
In addition to these standards, rights, and responsibilities, all teachers need to be consciously aware of possible problems dealing with students on an individual basis. In their mission of providing for the safety and welfare of all students, teachers can sometimes find themselves in situations that may be detrimental to themselves and their students. In practice, knowing how to avoid these situations is key. Dr. Troy Hutching’s presentation (Developing an Ethical Framework for Teacher Student Relationships: A Continuum of Responsibility, Nov. 1, 2011 Northern Arizona Univ.) was an eye opener. He provided the following startling facts: Shakeshaft (2004) reported 9.6% of grade 8-11
In the case study Appropriate Punishment Versus Political Expediency, nine African American male teenagers were severely punished for their involvement in a violent altercation at a high school football game. Some people in the local community; especially the African American population became outraged by the school board’s ruling. Other community members, including many white residents, and school board officials thought the punishment was just. This situation exposes many controversial issues occurring within the educational system. Topics such as race relations and appropriateness in student discipline were prominent. With strong political and social context associated with these subject matters, there are complexities in addressing these types of situations. In any event, educational leaders and district representatives should aim to handle matters by considering the child’s best interest. They should also use the principle of subsidiarity to deal with challenges that may arise. School executives ought to implement effective solutions
Often times it’s the student’s needs and the school being unable to meet the student’s needs that lead to the student being disciplined. Kids who are behind academically, and unable to perform at the same level as their peers often act out in frustration or humiliation (Noguera, 2003). Once these students are labelled as difficult, incorrigible, and unteachable they tend to believe these things about themselves and act out more in class which leads to a cycle of discipline that can ultimately lead to permanent expulsion. For some of these students, these continued rule violations lead to run-ins with the police and the criminal justice system. School administrators who are at times frustrated themselves from failed attempts to steer children from a “bad path” don’t realize that in throwing their hands up and giving up on these students, are in a way helping shuttle students from school to the penitentiary (Noguera, 2003).
Initially I define the two concepts of mistaken behavior and misbehavior, the first as error in judgment and action made in the process of learning life skills. Mistaken behaviors occur at three levels experimentation, socially influenced, and strong unmet needs. Teachers who use guidance see democratic life skills as difficult to learn, and they recognize that children are just at the beginning stages of a lifelong process of learning these skills. In the process of learning any difficult skill, children, like all of us, make mistakes. These teachers recognize that when children experiences conflicts it is because they have not yet developed the cognitive and emotional resources for more mature responses. The second Misbehavior. - The conventional term applied to conflicts that the child is involved in, resulting in consequences that often include punishment and the internalization of a negative label such a “naughty”. The complexity of teaching democratic life skills leads some adults to the misconception that young children know how to behave, they just choose to misbehave. When conflicts occur, teacher who focus on misbehavior tend to label the child’s character and attempt to shame the child into better behavior. Because of a lack of development and experience a child may internalize the negative message and act out even more. (Gartrell, 2014).
Ronald Morrish notes that, “we have to teach students how to behave properly because many of them do not learn how to do so at home” (Charles, 2014, p. 72). This means as educators, it then becomes our duty to not only foster a supportive environment, but also teach students about self-control as well; which goes hand-in-hand with Morrish’s phase theory of “Managing Student Choice” (p. 81). Establishing authority is extremely important in this case, meaning that the teacher must be consistent with their disciplinary actions and use this opportunity to produce desirable results. For example, Chris and his teacher can review homework assignments together and go over questions that Chris might struggle
A classroom is a very dynamic and spontaneous place. Every classroom is comprised of a diverse combination of individuals who all contribute to the unpredictable nature and uniqueness of the class. The reality that no two students are alike and no two classes are ever alike, contributes greatly to the difficulty of establishing a realistic and effective classroom management plan. It is important that teachers realize that a classroom is an unpredictable place and that it is much more reasonable to strive to manage their classroom as opposed to trying to control it. I see my role as a managing teacher as
In a travesty such as this, it goes further than the school board’s foolhardy decision and into the mindset of high school students. Ever since these students were very young, they have been told for every action there is a consequence. Nevertheless, the students of Piper Kansas committed these acts knowing very well what the consequences were. In such a circumstance offering a band-aid solution such as this greatly impedes moral decay. Only fundamental change equivalent to major surgery can improve the morals of these students, a change that could possibly
Authoritative teachers will often “try to catch their students being good” and will reinforce the good behavior, rather than focusing on the bad. (Iannelli, 2004). It is critical that teachers praise their students for their efforts. A teacher can teach the entire classroom by recognizing one child’s positive action. Children desire praise and they will learn appropriate behavior when their fellow students receive praise. When teachers focus on bad behavior and make an example of a particular student to the entire classroom, it only makes the child that is being reprimanded feel alienated, ashamed, embarrassed, or possibly revengeful.
Many people today are getting arrested for simply disciplining a child. But, in older times disciplining a child set good moral standards and taught that child on what that child was supposed to do and what not to do. There is a fine line between abuse and discipline. So what is child abuse? Child abuse consists of any act of commission or omission that endangers or impairs a child’s physical or emotional health and development. Child abuse includes any damage done to a child which cannot be reasonably explained and which is often represented by an injury or series of injuries appearing to be non-accidental in nature. There are also different kinds of child abuse; which include physical, emotional, and sexual. But, discipline does not
There are many times in a setting where you work with other adults that something will come into play that provides a conflict that could potentially create a clash of ideas. Sometimes something that one person may think is the correct way to go about things, could be wrong in the eyes of the other adult. When this conflict comes into play the two people that come into problems with one another need to make adult decisions to come to an agreement on the conflict that has arisen. Conflict management is about calming discussing the situation in order to brainstorm on the problem (Watson, 2012). My paper discusses a current dilemma, ethical ideal/principles that relate to the dilemma, as well as future approach.
Code of ethics act as a promise to protect and support the safety of individuals in society, supports as a leading light it help the supporters of an occupation, resolve ethical problems and act as a protector the community. A code of ethics discloses and conserves the current viewpoint professionals on in what way to make ethical decisions. It stresses importance on obligation to moral values and vital beliefs. Application of a code of ethics helps us to guarantee that members of the profession will be accountable for their actions. It helps us to learn about the responsibility we have for ourselves, our colleagues and to the social structure of the profession. It is essential that the present and future psychologist should be
A teacher must deal with disruptive classroom behavior throughout their career. To do so, they must not only develop their skills in handling these situations but also develop ethical standards for their classroom. These standards set forth by the teacher will help them deal with their students, those students’ parents, the school administrators and their community. There are numerous articles written that could help a teacher when researching any legal or ethical issues that may arise during their teaching career. This paper summarizes four
Discipline plays an important role towards the formation of students’ character. It is one of the important components in a system where closely related to the discipline, nature, morality and decency. The word discipline is one thing that is synonymous in daily life. The word discipline is so broad meaning either meaning negative or positive sense. However, the negative meaning that often become the focus and is becoming an issue that is popular if it involves individual or group meetings with the community.
Preventing misbehavior is widely preferable rather than dealing with it after it has occurred. A Preventive discipline plan involves steps taken in a classroom to avoid disciplinary problems. Potentially this discipline deals with the distractions in the classroom and how a classroom environment can be modified so it is more compatible with the learning needs of its children (Edwards, 2004). Preventive discipline plan refers to the strategies that can be implemented to inhibit inappropriate behaviors from occurring in the first place (T.L.Musy, Personal communication, October 10th, 2006). Kounin’s concepts of withitness and overlapping skills of a teacher help in preventing discipline problems (Evertson, Emmer, and Worsham,
“Ethics are defined as a set of principles of right conducts; the rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession” ( Dictionary of the Human Language, 2000). Teachers are often put in situations that require more than just knowing the basic school rules. It is within these situations, that the ethical dilemmas occur. There is not always a right way to deal with many daily problems that face educators, but there are ways to handle situations that are better then others.