Ethics of Teachers Essay

Teachers are ultimately viewed as â€Å"perfect† in the eyes of their students; therefore, their demeanor should exemplify a high standard of ethical reasoning and protocol. Teachers are part of the educational world and should not participate in unethical behaviors which may deter the method of analyzing and reasoning of students. The personality of teachers is crucial when they may impact the future career goals and educational path of their students. Although teachers may not be significantly aware, they are held to high standards by their students and they are extremely important individuals that may impact the foundation of a student’s educational success. The positive behavior that teachers vibe to their students impact their motivational trends which promotes them to excel. However, often times teachers may display negative emotions that may detour a student’s path and leave them feeling unworthy, unappreciated, and the desire to give up on their future goals. Students spend the majority of their life in the classroom, which concludes that the overall organizational culture and ethics that teachers exemplify in the classroom will ultimately affect the mindset of students. The focus of this paper will be to compare and contrast the overall culture in the classroom of students surrounded by positive and negative teachers. I will explicitly outline the factors that will cause a student to excel or fail due to the organizational culture that is embedded within them. I will further conclude the paper by implying that teachers are more important than the subject courses they may teach, but are the educational leaders that have a significant impact on the lives of their students. Introduction: The interaction between teachers and students is critical to produce high-level student learning and achievement. The teaching styles of teachers may be related to moral management; they display respect and fairness in their teaching environment. In relation to Stakeholders, teachers may be viewed as a key stakeholder in the field of education since they are the primary key holders that lay the foundation of the future of the students. In order for teachers to effectively influence their students in positive directions, they will have to demonstrate strong ethical values. Being an individual of high ethical values, two basic questions are involved, â€Å"What is the right thing to do and why should you do the right thing? † (Bowie and Schneider, 2011). Teachers have the moral obligation to maintain their character to a higher standard in the presence of their students. The teacher as a stakeholder is expected to possess the professional knowledge to lead the students in instruction. However, It is challenging for teachers to transform the culture and have a positive view in the eyes of their students without parental support. Parents are the educational stakeholders that provide parental guidance for the students and the support for the teachers Literature Review: The empowerment of teachers will facilitate the empowerment of students† (Short and Greer, 2002). As educators, teachers have to embrace the ethical standards that enjoin virtues of honesty, compassion, and loyalty. â€Å"And, ethical standards include standards relating to rights, such as the right to life, the right to freedom from injury, and the right to privacy. Such standards are adequate standards of ethics because they are supported by consistent and well-f ounded reasons† (Bowie and Schneider, 2011). Teacher have to continuously be involved in the moral beliefs and conducts and strive to ensure that they shape the future of their student’s lives under a solid foundation of ethnicity. Relating to the Domains of Human Activities, teachers may relate to the triads of Moulton’s continuum into the categories of Positive Law (Codified Ethics Regulation), Ethics (implementation of moral values, requiring integrity and practice, and Free Choice (liberty, allowing creativity, self-realization and license). Positive Law would refer to the Code of Ethics have to abide by to ensure equality to their profession of teaching. The professional educator accepts personal responsibility for teaching students character qualities that will help them evaluate the consequences of and accept the responsibility for their actions and choices (Campbell, 2006). † All teachers have a Code of Ethics that they are morally responsible for upholding. The foundation to the success of teachers is their ethical and moral reasoning that is their guide of â€Å"doing what is right† in their classroom and teachers with high integrity respect the values of their Code of Ethics. The National Education Association (NEA) has created a code of ethics for the different needs of the teaching profession, which are: ? Access to varying points of view ?Do not distort subject matter ?Protect students from harm ?Do not embarrass or disparage ?Do not discriminate ?Do not use professional relationship for private advantage ? Do not disclose confidential information Teachers of high integrity, have an intrinsic awareness between ethical and moral principles. They display ethical knowledge which includes a sense of right and wrong, treating others with respect, being objective, patient and compassionate. Embodying ethical knowledge gives the teacher the ability to practice their teaching skills with morals and ethics and not just viewing their job as being teaching only (Campbell, 2006). † A teachers’ rationale to success may be based on the motto of Winston Churchill, â€Å"Mountaintops inspire leaders but valleys mature them† (Pockell and Avila, 2007 ). Teachers should give their students the freedom of choice and self-realization which will promote a sense of unity with the teachers and students. However, with regards to liberty, it should be limited to protect the ethics within the classroom. Ethics in the classroom should be valued to a high standard to maintain the organizational climate in the classroom. â€Å"Each pupil graduating from the elementary, secondary, or higher grades of education should receive personal advice and direction regarding further education or employment (Horne, 1970). † An excellent example of how teachers with high ethical values can impact student achievement is prevalent in a School System where elementary students where behind in their current grade level. The Elementary Alternative Education Program was established to help students become motivated to excel in their educational venue. The program was targeted at students that were two-three years behind in their current grade and was over-aged for their grade level. The teachers that committed to educate the students had a high level of moral and ethical responsibility to motivate their students and transform their students to become students of higher academic success learning. The table below depicts the improvement in academic of students from the 2007 – 2008 school year till the 2010-2011 school year. The data below indicates that the students enrolled in the program with the assistance of their teachers are now on the pathway on Graduation from high school. The students were deemed unreachable to teach due to their classroom behavior and other factors, but with the determination of their teachers they have increased their academic level. The National Bureau of Economic Research has indicated that â€Å"Good Teachers† raise Student Achievement. Although there is no silver bullet that guarantees that every student will be successful, now more than ever research provides guidance about the characteristics of effective schools and effective teachers that, if followed, can help maximize school and ultimately student performance† (Horne, 1970). According to Post, Preston, and Sachs, â€Å"The stakeholders in a corporation are the individuals and constituencies that contribute, either voluntarily or involuntarily, to its wealth-creating capacity and activities, and that are therefore its potential beneficiaries and/or risk bearers. In comparison with this model, teachers are the stakeholders that voluntarily work to improve the success of their students through motivation and determination. However, the primary impact of teachers whether they are successful in improving academic success or not is to educate the students. Every student has the ability to learn, however, they need a teacher that has a passion for teaching to educate the students. In regards to the Stakeholders Analysis, teacher has to identify the needs of their students and execute a plan to approach the problem for face-value. As teachers, it is important to understand that all students are different and they should utilize different methods to attempt to reach their students. The â€Å"big picture† that teachers normally use to motivate them to help their students is the graduation rate. The success of student cannot be done alone. Teachers have to reach out to the parents to unite as one to help the students since their common goal is the success of their students. Often times students are unfortunate to be enrolled in the classroom of a teacher that lacks integrity and the culture of the classroom is detrimental to the learning process. The culture of the classroom is set by the teachers and the students. If the overall organizational culture of the classroom is disorientated, then the students will be ineffective in performing their daily tasks. Teachers must be able to present their material, effectively manage their classrooms, facilitate maximum student involvement, and ultimately, enhance student learning. â€Å"The vision implementation of teachers affects the performance and many attitudes of many of their students. (Kirkpatrick and Locke, 1996). Teachers have to ensure the classroom climate is has a positive effect on the students and that the motivational factors are supportive in the overall success of the students. â€Å"As with many aspects of classroom management, the most important factor in creating a positive classroom environment is the teacher, and this is where the process must start. † The climate in the classroom is of course more than the physical classroom environment. It is a process that builds the psychological framework for all activity that happens in the classroom. The classroom climate is not just about motivation and student well-being, it is a major ingredient of the context for successful learning. Real learning cannot take place in a negative classroom climate. According to the Jones’ Issue Contingent Model, teachers that have negative impact on student achievement fail to utilize ethical reasoning while attempting to teach their students. The failure may arise from attempting to teach all the students in the same process with utilizing Differentiated Instruction to reach all students. If they would have used the Synthesis of Ethical Decision-Making Model, then they would have realized the different stages of Differentiated Instruction and had a positive impact on their students. Teachers that fail to differentiate their teaching is modeling immoral management, meaning they are they are displaying minimal ethical reasoning with the students. As teachers, they have the responsibility to educate the children as a moral obligation to the students, parents, and themselves. By failing to address the needs of the students, they are depicting low moral intensity. Moral intensity of the issue itself does have a significant role and could influence teachers in their ethical decision-making process as their attention to the issue are being directed by the embedded intensity level of the respective issues. â€Å"The primary goal of ethical reasoning is to help individuals act in morally responsible ways (Weiss, 125). † While natural rights are the basis for justice, rights cannot be realized nor does justice become operative without power. The interaction between one’s ethical philosophies can influence the ethical decisions that an individual can make. Teachers are liable to treat each student in their classroom with an equal right to the most extensive basic liberty compatible with a similar liberty for others, which in their case is their education. Teachers have the moral obligation to treat all students in the classroom equally. They have the right to receive an education and the teacher’s highest level of knowledge that may displayed to them. Teachers are faced with many trials and tribulations in the classroom, but they have the moral obligation to provide students with a environment conducive to learning. For students to achieve, it is the responsibility of teachers to provide a classroom culture that will increase a student’s motivational factors. Feedback, where positive or negative can promote student achievement. Teachers are viewed as teachers are more important than the subject courses they may teach, but are the educational leaders that have a significant impact on the lives of their students. Leadership is a reflection on modeled behavior that is learned. Students learn from the teachers and adapt themselves to their leadership demeanor. Leaders within an organization, have vast types of leadership styles. Teachers, however, are viewed as individuals with more personal ethics. Transformational leaders produce students that will be effective leaders and impeccable role models for their fellow peers. They have the ability to empower, coach, and lead their students to success. The theory of transformational leaders is based on the theory of James Burns. The type of leadership style is moral because it increases the humanities of students and their aspirations. True leadership, defined by its ethical core, is transforming for the leader and the follower alike. Transforming leadership transcends other forms of leadership because it is committed to doing the right things as opposed to doing things right (Anderson et al, 2006). Teachers assume the ethical responsibility to transform the culture of their students and are responsibility for the in adverse effects it may have on their students. â€Å"Transforming leadership also assumes that the transformation is mutual and reciprocal in which a follower can assume a leadership role and the leader a follower role. Teachers are more than classroom teachers; they are role models to their students. Students often mimic the behavior of their teachers because they admire their leadership style. Often times teachers that possess high integrity and ethical behavior are called â€Å"mean. † Teachers push their students to work harder than anticipated so they can excel in academic achievement. When students have to work harder than normal, they respect the morals that their teachers require them to uphold. Culture is another factor that is critical in transforming the culture of students. Conclusion: Leadership is a reflection on modeled behavior that is learned. Students learn from the teachers and adapt themselves to their leadership demeanor. The success of students not only start with the parents, but it is the teachers that the parents have entrusted with their children to teach them the skills they will need to become successful professionals once they leave the reins of their teachers. As with many aspects of classroom management, the most important factor in creating a positive classroom environment is the teacher. Real learning cannot take place in a negative classroom climate. The classroom must be conducive and inviting for parents, staff, and most of all children. The relationship between parents and teachers, like every other relationship, depends on trust. Above all, teachers must not compete with parents; what teachers have learned about their students is different from what parents know, primarily because they observe, interact with, and experience the students in group settings. While our observations and experiences are different, they are not necessarily more valid than hose of parents. Teachers, students, and parents are all key stakeholders within the educational organization. The ultimate goal for all stakeholders is to achieve a high school diploma and then proceed to their career goals. â€Å"Teaching is designed to result in action† (Schaefer, 1990). Teachers, student, and parents will â€Å"act† as a unit of one to maintain the culture of the classroom environment to motivate the students to excel at their highest academic level.