TOPIC 2

BY

KALIAMAH A/P RAMASAMYMARIAL SUJATHA R. SELVAM

“attributes concept” of a “profession”Elite socio-economic statusThe existence of high academic ability and a long period of

education and trainingThe existence of a corpus of theoretical and specialized knowledgeThe autonomy to conduct its affairsThe promotion and maintenance of standards to ensure qualityThe existence of an organized professional associationLegal and public recognition of its professional statusThe existence of a service principle based on the ideal of collective

altruism

The ethical basis of educational

management

PROFESSIONALISM

The quality of practice describing

PROFESSIONALIZATION conduct within an occupation -how The process by which an members integrate their

obligationsoccupation becomes a with their knowledge and skill

in aprofession and the changes context of collegiality and

contractualin status that are implicit in that and ethical relation with clientprocess

Is the professional (in the status sense) behaving as a professional should (in the sense of practice and its standards)?

Mengapa Etika Penting?

Conceptual Analysis: Education cannot be separated from judgments of values; Schooling is moral education. Moral considerations are imbedded in practically every administrative action, decision, and in organizational and education policies within the institution.

Goal: To prepare students to assume the roles and responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society

Mengapa Etika Penting?

The Students: Most have little choice about whether or where they learn and have small voice in determining either the quality, content or purpose of the curriculum they experience in their role as students.

Society: The activities of educational institutions have consequences for society, therefore, educators being responsible for the processes and outcomes of schooling is also obliged to the larger community.

Moral considerations are embedded in practically every administrative action and decision, as well as in organizational and education policies within the institution

Educational administrators experience ethical dilemmas on a daily basis as they perform the duties and responsibilities of their office, and that they often experience frustration and conflict in resolving and managing these dilemmas

“…“…the ‘roots’ of the ‘roots’ of academic leadership is academic leadership is about connecting about connecting people morally to each people morally to each other and to teir work” other and to teir work” (Sergiovanni, 1994)

Individuals will ignore ethics if “they see Individuals will ignore ethics if “they see major breaches” of, for example, codes of major breaches” of, for example, codes of conduct “routinely ignored by the conduct “routinely ignored by the management”management”

(Whitton, 2001) ““Leaders must be the center of gravity in Leaders must be the center of gravity in

developing and sustaining a culture of developing and sustaining a culture of integrity (ethics)… Leaders must be the first integrity (ethics)… Leaders must be the first to step up and serve as the personal to step up and serve as the personal exemplar of integrity… from which exemplar of integrity… from which subordinates learn” subordinates learn” (Jacocks & Bowman, 2012)

School principals experience ethical dilemmas on a daily basis as they perform their duties and responsibilities, and they often experience frustration and conflict in resolving and managing these dilemmas.

Types of Ethical Dilemmas Experienced by School Principals

Dilemmas of choice among competing standards of good practice rooted within the profession of education

Dilemmas associated with the implementation or consequences of decisions attendant to an ethically preferred choice among alternative courses of action

Dilemmas of choice associated with conflicts between system-level organizational rules or policies and consideration at the institution-level

Dilemmas which stem from idiosyncratic beliefs or concerns of individual educators regarding the consequences of their actions and decisions

Dilemmas of choice rooted in fundamental ethical principles of conduct

Other dilemmas – matters related to teachers’ work; morality of pupils’ behaviour regarding school and work; common rules in school; and rights of minority groups

AGEN MORALAGEN MORAL

~ is a moral exemplaris a moral exemplar

~ is devoted to standards ~ is devoted to standards of best practice and of best practice and

conditions of competence conditions of competence to be maintained and to be maintained and

promoted promoted

AGEN MORALAGEN MORAL

~ has a special responsibility to be a has a special responsibility to be a conscientious moral actor, to conscientious moral actor, to

deliberately make decisions and take deliberately make decisions and take actions in a distinctly moral manneractions in a distinctly moral manner

~ reflects upon and considers the ~ reflects upon and considers the moral consequences of his decisions, moral consequences of his decisions, actions, as well as the policies and actions, as well as the policies and

practices of his institutionpractices of his institution

AGEN MORALAGEN MORAL

~ has the capacity to reflect has the capacity to reflect successfully on conflicting successfully on conflicting matters (problem-setter), matters (problem-setter), i.e. developed informed i.e. developed informed

and responsible judgments, and responsible judgments, and choose the best among and choose the best among

defensible optionsdefensible options (problem-solver)(problem-solver)

~Legal issues about teacher morality centre on two statutes:

* the denial or withdrawal of certificates from individuals who are deemed not to be persons of good character

* teachers may be discharged for immorality~Two crucial points about the enforcement of

the above statutes * teachers may not be discharged for

exercising their constitutional rights (privacy, civil liberties)

* teachers may have significant rights of due process that must be respected in attempts to pursue a charge of immorality (extensive hearing on the matter)

Sexual misconduct involving students

Physical abuse of studentsHabitual public drunkenness and drug use

Felony convictions

THE LAW FAILS TO DEAL WITH ALL MATTERS PERTAINING TO TEACHING, THE LAW FAILS TO DEAL WITH ALL MATTERS PERTAINING TO TEACHING, NAMELY: NAMELY:

Standards that are to govern the characteristic activities Standards that are to govern the characteristic activities of teachingof teaching

~ ~ intellectual activity or freedomintellectual activity or freedom ~ intellectual honesty, tolerance or respect for ~ intellectual honesty, tolerance or respect for

appropriate diversityappropriate diversity ~ due process in such matters as discipline and ~ due process in such matters as discipline and

grading, fairness in punishment and equity in the grading, fairness in punishment and equity in the distribution of educational resources such as the distribution of educational resources such as the teacher’s timeteacher’s time

Ways that respect the values and mores internal to Ways that respect the values and mores internal to subject mattersubject matter

Connect the characteristics and behaviour of educators Connect the characteristics and behaviour of educators with the aims and objectives of education with the aims and objectives of education

Codes are imperfect. They overstate. Codes are imperfect. They overstate. They understate. They distort. They They understate. They distort. They leave out. They address only issues that leave out. They address only issues that are already part of our consciousness. are already part of our consciousness. They are necessarily limited by the They are necessarily limited by the modes of thought of the era. They modes of thought of the era. They reflect systematic and personal biases. reflect systematic and personal biases. They say nothing about situations that They say nothing about situations that have never arisen.have never arisen.

(Burstow, 1992)

Although codes…are very Although codes…are very important and useful, like important and useful, like any set of rules, they do not any set of rules, they do not cover every situation, they cover every situation, they often conflict and they often conflict and they require considerable require considerable interpretation.interpretation.

(Resnik, 2010)

““Publishing a code of ethics by Publishing a code of ethics by itself, will achieve little…itself, will achieve little…”” it it ““is an insufficient effortis an insufficient effort”. ”. Other Other effortsefforts are essential if are essential if codes of conduct “codes of conduct “are to be are to be worth more than the paper on worth more than the paper on which they are printedwhich they are printed” ”

(Whitton, 2001)

Sejauh manakah anda akan menggalakkan kebebasan intelektual murid?

Adakah anda mengamalkan kejujuran intelektual, toleransi atau menghormati kepelbagaian dalam kalangan murid?

Apakah tahap keprihatinan anda terhadap pertimbangan tentang perkara seperti disiplin dan pemberian gred, keadilan dalam dendaan dan ekuiti dalam mengagihkan sumber-sumer pendidikan seperti masa anda?

Dalam keadaan bagaimanakah anda sepatutnya tidak memaklumkan sesuatu perkara tentang murid kepada penjaganya?

Adakah anda bermasalah dengan hal-hal kerahsiaan dan isu-isu sensitif?

Apakah sepatutnya cara-cara anda melindungi right to privacy murid daripada penjaganya?

Patutkah anda menghormati tanpa menyoal hak rakan sekerja bertingkah laku sesuka hati di dalam kelas?

Apakah garisan pemisah antara kesetiakawanan dan toleransi terhadap rakan sekerja yang kurang profesional?

Patutkah anda menjadi model dan contoh teladan kepada murid?

Kebertanggungjawabanpentadbir

(accountability)

Perihal sifat…yang sempurna berteraskan

nilai murni seperti jujur, benar, amanah, adil,

telus, cekap, kebertanggungjawaban,

dan bijaksana

…accountability, accuracy, adherence, allegiance, balance,

certainty, chastity, cleanness, clearness, coherence, completeness, consistency, constancy, credibility, decency, dignity, directness, duty, entirety, equity,

ethicalness, exactness, excellence, fairness, faithfulness, fidelity, finality, fortitude, forthrightness,

goodness, harmony, honesty, honor, identity, impartiality, impeccability, incorruption, independence, innocence, justice, lawfulness, loyalty, morals, merit,

modesty, nobility, oneness, openness, order, peacefulness, perfection, precision, principle, probity, purity, reliability, right, righteousness, self-respect,

simplicity, sincerity, soundness, steadfastness, temperance, togetherness, totality, trustworthiness,

truth, truthfulness, unity, uprightness, veracity, virtue, wholeness, worthiness…

answerablegive

reason/explanation for a particular action

willingness to accept culpability for one’s

own action

1st An agent’s responsibility is to a

provider (beneficiary) and measured by the

results produced through the agent’s

skill in handling resources. The agent

may have customers/clients,

but to none the agent is accountable except

to the provider

2nd The accountability of the agent is not only to the provider but also to client beneficiaries and professional peers for results achieved and for the quality of standards maintained through occupational practice

Contractual accountability – to provider or employer

Intellectual accountability – under a discipline imposed by the intellectual criteria and the structure of the subject taught

Professional accountability – to oneself and colleagues

Moral accountability – to clients

The administrator/manager has multiple constituencies to whom

an account is due, and this context implies a difference of

demand,therefore, he is a

moral agent.

WHY?

what the public interest may

demand is not necessarily reflected in private wants or

individual rights

Public Control(overregulated and restricted classroom functionaries)Distrust of teachers by the publicProfessional incompetence among teachersNeed to cap public expenditureSubscribe to bureaucratic theme/model regarding the moral

responsibility of school

Professional Autonomy(empowered and deregulated professional teachers entrusted with

greater autonomy in school-based management)Bring improvement to the status and power of teachers related to the

professionalization of the occupation of teaching.

The school and the teachers must be seen as accountable agents. Therefore, must construct an accountability system where a professional is behaving as a professional should.

There must be one particular condition – TRUST

Trust hasan outside: clients have the opportunity to trust the system or have

the confidence in the system – can predict about such things as individual attitudes, reactions, technical competence, consistent role behaviour, and perceived agreement about ends is also necessary through clear formal procedures.

on the inside: a relational condition of the inside life of a school, between individual teachers and pupils, among colleagues, between the head and staff, etc. – an active and meaningful interplay of people and their roles inside the school.

The educator is to contribute to creating trust in the system (the outside) by working at trust inside the school. How can this condition (trust) be described? Only in terms of virtues that constitute trust, namely, fidelity (strict observance of promises, duties, etc., loyalty, faith), veracity (honesty and an absence of deception, truthfulness), friendliness and care.

It is a known fact that some teachers do not encourage intellectual activity and freedom in the classroom. Some of them do not practise intellectual honesty, tolerance or respect for appropriate diversity. There are also some who do not adhere to the due process in such matters as discipline and grading, fairness in punishment and equity in the distribution of educational resources such as their time. All these matters pertaining to ‘bad’ teaching in the classroom are beyond the arms of the law. There are also teachers who are unable to instill the respect for the values and mores internal to their subject matter, or to connect their characters and behaviour with the aims and objectives of education. In short, the law fails to deal with issues related to the standards that are to govern the characteristic activities of good teaching.Hence, the limited influence of the law on the conduct of teachers in the school, particularly in the classroom, has necessitated school principals to act as moral agents. How would school principals sort out cases of unethical acts (that cannot be handled by the law) among the teachers?

It is not wrong to say that the bureaucratic theme is more dominant in Malaysian schools. If this view is right, then school principals who are in favour of the professional or fairness model will inevitably, in certain situations or cases, face dilemmas when they disagree with particular policies of MOE related to, for example, teacher recruitment, teacher training, continuous professional development programmes, the school curriculum, and such like. These school principals, being moral agents, have to set, and then solve, whatever problem or issue that they have with MOE. The dilemma for these school principals is whether to obey administrative (or ‘political’) directives and accept without complaint policies and procedures they find morally objectionable. However, school principals who subscribe to the bureaucratic theme regarding the moral responsibility of school will definitely have few dilemmas as they will support the government policies on education. Be that as it may, some examples of moral dilemmas that may arise from having different views as to the moral responsibility of the school are as follows:You are on whose side if there is a conflict between MOE and the parents or your teaching staff?Should pupils be given the right to determine courses or activities, outside the curriculum, which they want to pursue?Would you allow two of your staff to pursue a part-time Masters course knowing very well that it would disrupt the running of your school as presently you are facing shortage of staff?

Quite often school principals will face situations which pose issues and conflicts, and in resolving these dilemmas, school principals may find the work ethics and code of conduct are brief and general in nature; hence, they cannot be utilised as standards that can function for cases that are not clear cut or grey in nature. Indeed, there are situations where references to work ethics or code of conduct cannot provide school principals with the answer or solution. Such a situation arises when there is conflict between duties, or when there are competing values in a situation. The following questions reflect such situations:Do you, as the school principal, feel stressful if you are forced to choose between the obligations to take of your pupils’ interests and the pressure to ensure loyalty towards your peers or staff if these two collide?Under what conditions that you should not inform something (relted to confidentiality, sensitive issues or right to privacy) regarding your pupils to others (parents or other persons of authority)? Do you have problems with confidentiality and sensitive issues?What do you do when you see your colleagues or staff doing something unprofessional?

Based on the explanation regarding accountability in education from the ethical point of view, (and the tatasusila profesion perguruan), the implication would be that school principals have multiple constituencies to whom an account is due, and this context implies a difference of demand, and therefore, school principals are moral agents. Why is this so? What the public (provider or employer, that is, MOE) interest may demand is not necessarily reflected in private wants or individual rights. In other words, there may be conflicts of interests between the provider (MOE) and the other beneficiaries (clients), as well as among the beneficiaries themselves (for example, between colleagues and parents, between parents and pupils, and between colleagues and pupils). Hence, school principals have to play the role of a problem-setter and a problem-solver. The following questions, for exmple, illustrate the kind of dilemmas faced by school principals related to accountability in education:Have you faced a dilemma arising from conflict between the values of MOE (the provider) or your institution and those external values brought along by your other beneficiaries (pupils, parents or other stakeholders)?Are you willing to give prime consideration to pupils above all else?

is a moral exemplar is devoted to standards of best practice and

conditions of competence to be maintained and promoted

has a special responsibility to be a conscientious moral actor, to deliberately make decisions and take actions in a distinctly moral manner

reflects upon and considers the moral consequences of his decisions, actions, as well as the policies and practices of his institution

has the capacity to reflect successfully on conflicting matters, i.e. developed informed and responsible judgments, and choose the best among desirable options

Hence, a problem-setter and a problem -solver