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Am I doing the right thing?
This document discusses several ethical dilemmas that may arise for educational leaders, including: 1) A situation where eighth grade boys at a middle school allege that their female science teacher has appeared in adult videos online. The principal must determine how to handle the situation and whether it merits discipline or dismissal. 2) Other potential scenarios like firing a principal without stating the reason, a school board member having sexual relations with staff, not properly reporting a child abuse allegation, or administrators cheating on state performance tests. 3) The document provides advice for navigating these tough ethical dilemmas, such as avoiding conflicts of interest, office pressure, and ethical debt. It emphasizes using fair and thoughtful processes, considering who is affected,
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Am I doing the right thing?
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- 8. Be a Communication Compass As a keysupport professional, your role is to help the leadership team to ethically answer tough questions
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- 10. What is “Ethics”? It isn’t morality; it’s about behaviors and choices Not just a checklist of applied Do’s & Don’ts Morality is defined by religion, world view, and philosophy so it can vary by cultural, social, and geographic variables It is a set of values, actions, beliefs and motivations What we ought to do, when we should do it, and why Who we ought to do it for Ethics is a process of engagement with other people that relies on communication to reach synergy on what “ought” to be done in a given situation
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- 13. Finding your ethical center CODES OF CONDUCT MANDATED REPORTING FOIA You need to navigate through laws, policies and common sense REGULATIONS WHISTLEBLOWER FERPA COURT CASES The trick is balancing PUBLIC RECORDS ACT CONFIDENTIALITY BOARD what you must do with CONSCIENCE POLICIES what seems to be most: CONFLICTS OF INTEREST Effective Use mentors and advisors Appropriate to help with your decisions Expected WWJD? (What Would Jim Do?) Least Damaging
- 14. Practice “Practical Wisdom” Can you guide your team toward well‐reasoned decisions? The precise “right time” when action and deliberation meet You can miss the mark when – • Premature action without enough deliberation occurs • Over‐processed decisions without action misses the moment of truth
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- 19. Ethical Codes of Conduct They function asexpressions of shared ideals and identity De Dicto De Re • As school systems, are we consistent and uniform in what we preach? • As professionals, do we all practice what we preach?
- 20. It’s not going to be easy “With great power comes great responsibility “ (Spiderman) Are your prepared to make ethical judgments? Many would say it isn’t an ethical debate if it isn’t complex! If you want a place at the table you better be ready to play!
- 21. Avoiding Conflicts of Interest Pay Raises or Perks Bribes or Gifts Discounts or Tickets Promotions or Evaluations Access to the boss; friendship
- 22. Avoiding Office Pressure Taking Sides in Conflicts Politics & Campaigns Scheduling the Boss Philanthropy requests Plagiarism & Cover Ups Withholding Information Nepotism & Favoritism Sexual Harassment By taking an action will you be under someone’s thumb or under their boot?
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- 24. A crisis is a test Your response in a high profile incident or situation can be your finest hour or your worst nightmare It becomes a teachable moment about the ethical character of you and your schools The Chinese character for “crisis” is a blend of the characters Weifor Danger, and Ji for Crucial Point
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- 30. Question #1: Are we unbiased ? How can we disengage our world, philosophical or religious views from our management decisions? You have to in order to avoid pre‐judging situations, motives and facts That doesn’t mean your personal values and beliefs aren’t very relevant to the decision, it means they cannot start out as the basic architecture of the decision
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- 32. De‐Personalize the Situation De‐Personalize your assessment This removes your natural bias that may cloud your judgment about how to respond Good people can do bad things Familiarity can lead to cutting them slack Try to look at the situation objectively not subjectively at first Your actions involve actual human beings that contribute to the overall reputation and effectiveness of your schools. Be charitable.
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- 34. Question #2: Is it legal? Having a legal loophole doesn’t mean it’s right to use it The spirit of the law counts so going by the book might not be your ideal standard of ethical due diligence You can get forgiveness in the court of public opinion, but maybe not in a court of law
- 35. Under your legal control? Laws you can’t change Laws you can change Ethical decision aren’tachieved simply by adhering to a bad policy or practice
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- 37. Question #3: What do we know? Be sure you have corroboration from at least two independent sources Resist jumping to conclusions or presuming allegations are true People can see a set of facts and come to differing ideas based on how they screen the facts through their own values and preconceptions (i.e.‐ Trayvon Martin Shooting) Don’t try to fill in gaps yourself –let testimony and data do that for you Highest priority is to get as many facts straight as you can before even trying to form a meaningful response
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- 39. Rumors = Mis‐Translation LEVELED Details get stripped down Supporting data eliminated SHARPENED Details are misconstrued out of context to fit a point of view or the current environment ASSIMILATED So a misinterpretation that fits into preconceptions and expectations reinforced by faulty examples is spread
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- 42. Approaching ethical decisions Utilitarian Approach which action results in the most good and least harm? Rights‐Based Approach which action respects the rights of everyone involved? Fairness or Justice Approach which action treats people fairly? Common Good Approach which action contributes most to the quality of life of the people affected? Virtue Approach which action embodies the character strengths you value?
- 43. Balancing the greater good A trolley breaks loose and is barreling down on an intersection Choose any set of potential victims The President or Pope A play group of little kids Your mother or grandmother You are the conductor and can only turn one way to avoid hitting someone What do you do? What is the ethical decision and why? Maybe we need to do a good job so we avoid the Runaway Trolleys altogether!
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- 46. Be Pre‐emptive & Proactive Break your own bad news Frame the issues Create and stick to Talking Points Create and enforce Non‐Talking Points It’s best to be Keep track of fast‐breaking the one who developments flips the switch Get a sense for when you are out to illuminate the issue of the loop
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- 48. Trust your instincts Look in the mirror to see if your actions and decisions are a good reflection of/on you Let your conscience be your guide, but it may try to trick you Watch for shifting situational ethics Don’t get bullied or cowed Group think can stampede the herd It’s hard to disagree with friends Revenge is a poor rationale for taking action Seek out advisors who’ll tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear
- 49. Cover ups don’t stay covered It goes to your credibility and core values It has lingering effects that last far longer It raises concern about collateral issues It damages reputations A smoke screen will only delay the inevitable. Better to clear the air from the outset
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- 51. Communicate good choices Your job is to ask the right questions and question the right answers Your reasons for doing something should be a reflection of defensible prioritizing of values How you communicate that decision means everything There may be no escaping from having to choose between two bad alternatives
- 52. Does the sentence fit the crime? Conviction is theverdict or ruling you make. Sentence is the penalty you exact. Have you exercised ethical decision‐ making and appropriate actions in reaching your conclusions on both? Does the penalty meet an ethically defensible standard for satisfaction? If it looks like these two aren’t in sync stakeholders will protest that you’re too harsh or too lenient
- 53. My teacher’s a porn star! Scenario (continued): The district investigation reveals she is guilty of three infractions of standards for credentialed teachers in state codes: She lied to her employer about something that impacted her teaching ability/career Courts ruled that judges, police and teachers are held as moral examplars and their private conduct does impact their ability to maintain a position of authority and respect by the public Her reputation will interfere with her ongoing capacity to do her job; it will be a permanent recurring distraction Should the porn star teacher be fired immediately before her appeals process ends? Does her termination fit the crime?
- 54. Brace for reactions Unintended consequences Denial Push back Retaliation Re‐Direction making you the problem Displacement to shift attention
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- 56. When to blow the whistle Be prepared to be punished for your honesty Think ahead to set your limits so you’ll know when you reached them Watch for ethical cancer signs Bunker Time & Private Meetings Rolling Deadlines & Stalling Failure to Launch Communication Blindsides & Editing Text At a certain point you’ll have to decide: Can I continue to be a party to this?
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- 58. Some final thoughts Having a well‐grounded sense of ethics isn’t intrinsic – it’s acquired through trial and error Have WWJD moments when you read the newspaper (ie –John Edwards trial, BP oil spill, Penn State) Use a lifeline – Phone a Friend Try not to get caught off guard; watch your ethical weather vane What are the key concepts you’ve carried away?
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