Employee code of ethics is an important policy statement for the teaching professionals. It guides the employees by describing the generally acceptable conduct at work in relation to how employees in the school district and especially teachers should relate to the students, as well as how the teachers should interact with the general public and the local community. The code of ethics spells out how teachers are supposed to behave in professional matters and in the process of executing their professional duties.
The code of ethics also determines and lays down the accepted way professionals in the teaching field should relate with their colleagues and superiors. In addition the code of ethics is designed so as to clarify the expectations of the teachers from the school district. Teacher-student relations are very important. How teachers and students relate determines the kind of learning environment in the school, after I interviewed my colleagues, they were all in agreement that, poor relations can cause dismal performance for the students and put at risk the teacher’s job.
Good teacher-student relations are beneficial to the student and the teacher alike and where the relationships are positive, an empowering learning environment occurs leading to the achievement of learning goals. In cases where the relations are poor, performance is likely to go down, some students may fail exams as a result and the teacher may lose the job if found to have violated the code of ethics. In sharing their concerns about teacher student relations, my colleagues recommended that, the existing code of ethics has helped to keep relations positive and healthy.
Poor teacher student relations if not controlled leads to tensions in the whole school something which negatively affects learning. The code of ethics for California requires that teachers maintain appropriate relationships with students at all times whether in the classroom or away from the classroom. Teachers and other employees in the school district are required to avoid any impropriety which can harm either party. Teacher-student relationships are required to be positive, beneficial according to professional conduct and non-exploitive to the students.
It is worth noting that, students’ tender age makes them vulnerable to employees who may want to take advantage of them. To protect students, the school district has put in place a comprehensive structure of reporting improper conduct where victims of negative employee-student relations can launch complaints. There are elaborate laws which guide the disciplinary process once these disciplinary cases have been reported. The California code of ethics stipulates the required manner in which employees are supposed to relate to the public.
According to the code of ethics, educationists are required to appreciate the importance of the public to the education system and to recognize the special roles the public plays especially given the fact that it is the public whose taxes support the education system. After interviewing my colleagues on the matter, there were mixed feelings with some teachers arguing that, the public puts a lot of pressure on teachers which results to misconduct in some cases.
It also emerged that, it very difficult for teachers to fail to interact with the public on personal level given the fact that, teachers are members of the community and away from school; teachers interact a lot with the public. My colleagues were in agreement that, reputation of the schools and the education system very much depends on the public perception. If the public perceives the schools and the teachers negatively, chances are that school’s reputation is damaged. Therefore, the public becomes unwilling to take their children to the same teachers they have negative perceptions about.
The public is also very important to teachers in that, the teachers are also part of the public and any negative perception of the teachers can negatively affect the teachers’ public and private life. The code of ethics provides that, the employees of the school district should be role models by serving in excellence, integrity and in a responsible manner. The code of ethics lays basis on avoidance of conflict of interests especially in regard to income generating activities.
Employees are supposed to desist from financially benefiting in the course of serving the public or taking improper advantage of their position to extort money. Employees are also expected to carry themselves in a proper manner in regard to procurement process which the public often has an interest in. The same case applies to the contracting process which again the public can have an interest in and can lead to the temptation of collusion. This is forbidden and is punishable under the code of ethics.
The colleagues I interviewed felt that, this section of the code of ethics should be amended to differentiate between taking gifts and take bribes. Teachers feel that, it is not improper to take gifts the only wrong doing is to demand or solicit for it. As it exists today, the code of ethics discourages taking of gifts. The code of ethics forbids employees in the school district form using their public position to get preferential treatment. The code of ethics also forbid the improper use of public resources and proposes appropriate punishment for such behaviour.
Interaction amongst professionals in the school district is supposed to be that of respect for colleagues at work, so as to achieve team building and collective responsibility. Those who violate these rules are subject to punishment and can face fines, transfer or demotion. My colleagues were in agreement with this provision with many noting that, cases of employees using their positions in the school district were on the increase. Employees in the school district are required to provide an environment of trust, respect and non-discrimination in the schools.
The school district has elaborate measures of dealing with the disciplinary cases if and when they arise. Employees are supposed to act according to the school or district code of ethics and conduct themselves in accordance to the schools and districts rules and regulations. The teachers I interviewed were in agreement that, the learning environment in a school is widely determined by how effectively the teachers play their roles. Conclusion Observation of the rules and regulations in the school district as provided for in the code of ethics is necessary for the professional growth of a teacher.
Violations lead to heavy fines and can negatively affect a professional’s career life. Therefore it is important to internalize and carry oneself as a professional in the school district always. From my interview with the teachers, the teachers view the code of ethics as a tool for making their working environment more conducive and would want the code of ethics amended often to address some concerns which emerged during the interview.
Reference Personal Interview with teachers/colleagues on 3/03/2007 http://www. teachinla. com/new_teacher_resources/pdf/EmployeeCodeofEthics0203. pdf Accessed on 26/02/2007.
