Week 28 - PRACTICE - Influence of Law & Ethics in Practice - Activity 4

As teachers we are often held up to be pillars of communities, role models, as examples of good social behaviour. We need to be mindful of how we conduct ourselves ethically and morally, especially in these times of social media.

When I think of ethics and morals I think of the relationship to our values and virtues, our beliefs, our principles. The New Zealand curriculum has sections on values and principles.

Schools often have their own examples of virtues and values, my own school has formulated a statement that encompasses the values that we, as teachers, encourage in our students.

Aberdeen School Values

We have a strong school culture at Aberdeen with students demonstrating our core values of respect, co-operation, responsibility and determination. These values are fostered across all aspects of school life. We empower our learners to be confident, connected, actively involved lifelong learners.

And of course there is the code of standards for teachers, which looks at our commitment to society, the teaching profession, learners, and families and whānau.

So what about when we come across an ethical dilemma in our lives? I am pleased to say that I have yet to encounter anything that I think applies to this weeks task, but it is something that I am very aware of as I bring my students into the digital world.

In this digital day and age, our lives are often more public, more available than they were in the past. I talk to the children in my BYOD/eLearning class about being mindful of our digital footprint and how what people see of us on the internet can influence others’ perception of us.

But what about when the line blurs, and you receive friend requests from existing parents and/or students? Let’s apply the Preston and Samford with Connors' model (2002):

1. assessing the situation - what are my personal views about who my friends are on social media?

2. considering dispositional factors - am I comfortable with what I will be sharing?

3. making a comprehensive assessment of the alternatives - Will not friending offend?

4. making a judgement - No, not while I am teaching them.

5. documenting the decision and being able to justify it. - explaining to the parent/child that you are not comfortable to friend them at this stage.

I do have past parents and students as friends (the students are all in their 20s and it is more their posts that I block from my newsfeed, Hmmm) however, I am confident that my posts are innocuous and infrequent so am comfortable with that decision.

References

Education Council. (2017). Our Code Our Standards.Retrieved from: https://educationcouncil.org.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf

Kia ora - NZ Curriculum Online. (2018). Nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz. Retrieved 10 February 2018, from http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz

Cranston, N., Ehrich, L. C. & Kimber, M. P. (2004). Towards an understanding of Ethical Dilemmas Faced by School Leaders. Principia, Journal of the Queensland Secondary Principals' Association, 1, pp. 1-3. Retrieved from: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/732/2/Ethical_Dilemmas.pdf

Preston, N., & Samford, C. with C. Connors (2002). Encouraging ethics and challenging corruption. Sydney: Federation Press