The Ethical School

Conflicts often arise between regulations, making it difficult for school management teams and teachers to resolve situations with appropriate dignity and respect for all concerned. This book discusses provocative actual case studies to help teachers to reflect on their own ethics, guiding them to make more reasonable decisions in their schools, and thereby gradually transforming schools into more cohesive and caring communities. A model of consequences, consistency and caring, each aspect based on traditional ethical theories provides a scientific base - a rational and a responsive base for ethical decision-making. This work covers such everyday problems as censorship, inclusivity, school uniform, punishment, personal gain and confidentiality, and argues that care and respect for others, equity, rational autonomy and concern for long-term benefits are more important for a school community than short-term power and control.

Typically, educational leadership is not considered a moral-ethical undertaking. But educators face a dismaying array of moral-ethical challenges from academic dishonesty to sexual harassment every day in our nation's schools. Ethical School Leadership provides a systematic approach to resolving these school-based moral-ethical issues. It offers real world moral-ethical dilemmas, alternate theories of ethical decision-making, and differing philosophies of leadership. Present and future school leaders will find knowledge, dispositions, and performance criteria by which to evaluate case studies of moral-ethical leadership. This book provides an up-to-date treatment of the subject without arcane terminology or abstract argument. Its aim is to provide encouraging, practical thinking about the moral-ethical problems facing our school leaders today and will be of interest to school principals, teachers, school board members and students of education.

Conflicts often arise between regulations, making it difficult for school management teams and teachers to resolve situations with appropriate dignity and respect for all concerned. This book discusses provocative actual case studies to help teachers to reflect on their own ethics, guiding them to make more reasonable decisions in their schools, and thereby gradually transforming schools into more cohesive and caring communities. A model of consequences, consistency and caring, each aspect based on traditional ethical theories provides a scientific base - a rational and a responsive base for ethical decision-making. This work covers such everyday problems as censorship, inclusivity, school uniform, punishment, personal gain and confidentiality, and argues that care and respect for others, equity, rational autonomy and concern for long-term benefits are more important for a school community than short-term power and control.

The author argues for much greater attention to ethical education and responds to sceptics who say that it can't be done in the face of a pluralistic secular society badly fragmented over values. Seeking always for themes and issues that unite rather than divide, the author provides a conceptual foundation for ethical education broad enough for building consensus among teachers and parents, yet focused enough to provide guidance for highly specific learning activities. The second half of the book takes the reader through a carefully devised series of steps by which a school community might proceed in building their ethical school. The final chapter reminds of the many difficulties to be met along the way, but offers encouragement to strengthen the resolve of the school community. The book concludes with two helpful appendices: the first provides detailed information on exiting initiatives already underway in ethical education, the second offers an annotated bibliography of books and essays which are available for those educators who need or want to read more on the topic of ethical education.

This popular text features a rigorous yet practical approach to the difficult dilemmas that so often arise in school administration. Using case studies to illustrate particular ethical issues, the authors cover such topics as: standards • assessment and evaluation • equal opportunity • multiculturalism • religious differences • due process • freedom of expression • personal liberty • and authority. Updated to address today’s emphasis on meeting standards and raising test scores, the Third Edition features: Cases that discuss such current issues as zero tolerance policies and integrity in reporting data. A revised chapter addressing the difficulty of focusing on standards while also dealing with competing demands, such as respecting the professional judgment of teachers, turning schools into learning communities, and engaging parents and members of the larger community in school life. Additional material that refocuses the discussion of legitimate authority and democracy on accountability and personal liberty. Praise for the First Edition! “This text has much to recommend [it] to educators in general and school administrators in particular….encourages inquiring educators to explore the complexity of their decisions, thus improving the likelihood that decisions will be more ethical.” —NASSP Bulletin “Just like ethical practices, this book isn’t easy, but it’s good for you—and education.” —The Executive Educator “The text can be used both for courses in educational administration and by practicing administrators.” —School Law News

This text combines teachers' beliefs and practices with a discussion of the connections between the moral dimensions of schooling and professional ethics applied in teaching. It presents the concept of ethical knowledge as it is revealed, as it is challenged, and as it may be used in schools.

Conflicts often arise between regulations, making it difficult for school management teams and teachers to resolve situations with appropriate dignity and respect for all concerned. This book discusses provocative actual case studies to help teachers to reflect on their own ethics, guiding them to make more reasonable decisions in their schools, and thereby gradually transforming schools into more cohesive and caring communities. A model of consequences, consistency and caring, each aspect based on traditional ethical theories provides a scientific base - a rational and a responsive base for ethical decision-making. This work covers such everyday problems as censorship, inclusivity, school uniform, punishment, personal gain and confidentiality, and argues that care and respect for others, equity, rational autonomy and concern for long-term benefits are more important for a school community than short-term power and control.

Addressing the many ethical issues that arise daily in school, this volume is a hands-on guide for all K-12 practitioners, an excellent teaching tool for preparing future teachers, and an essential resource for anyone who wants to create a caring and supportive school environment. This book features: realistic, provocative, and ethically challenging case studies that can be adapted to both private and public school settings, ideal for generating discussions about how to resolve given issues; a range of encounters educators are apt to experience, such as between teacher and teacher, teacher and student, parent and teacher, and parent and administrator; an array of ethical dilemmas and issues encountered at different grade levels on topics such as: racism, teasing, cheating, plagiarism, anorexia, free speech, violence, religion, and much more; and appendixes listing ethical standards for each member of the school community and overviews of student understandings of right and wrong, presented according to grade level.