Activity 5: Legal and ethical contexts in my digital practice

I think when considering an ethical dilemma that I am likely to face in the further, the use of social media is the one that springs to mind.  The dilemma  in the Teacher Ethics Video (2016) by Cenelearning,  I think is all too real.  I agreed with Hall’s ideas that teachers need to conduct themselves in ethical ways and they need to be accountable for their actions.  I think the challenge is that we communicate digitally and publicly. That’s ok, until... it isn’t.    So here is the issue: a staff member posts images of themselves intoxicated on facebook with the comment needed a blow out after a tough week at school, they have parents of the school as friends who see the images.  The questions to consider are: Is it ok for teachers to have parents as friends? Is it ok for teachers to post intoxicated images on facebook?  However, on the other hand, teachers have a right to a private life, and the drinking was outside of school hours.   
When thinking about stakeholders:
  • Children - If children view their parent’s facebook page.  What message is it sending? Also, if the photo is liked it could end up being visible for students.  At school, we are focusing on learning about healthy choices and this is sending the opposite message.  
  • Whanau - I think that this is tricky, some parents would not think anything of the image but other may care deeply about it.  I think is comes down to teacher’s being the moral compass of their students (Hall 2001).
  • School - As a school, principal and board expect teachers to behave in a responsible way.  Their Facebook profile includes that employment details.   The comment leads me  consider the board’s responsibilities as a good employer - Does the teacher need support?
When looking at the Code of Professional Responsibility (Education Council, n.d),  part of the code states that teacher need to act with integrity and professionalism in all that they do. I think that the last part of this is important, in all that they all. So I infer from this that this is everything that you do including your personal life.  Furthermore, part of the code states that need to have professional and respectful relationships with whanau.  Also,  I think you need to consider to what extent is your facebook professional.  However, in a small community, friends and parents can because intertwined.  
Possible Actions  could be:
  1. Ignore it
  2. Hold a staff meeting about social media communications and review the school’s procedures about social media.  Being clear about the expectations of staff on their use of social media.
  3. Have an individual meeting with the teacher about this.  
My course of action would be to have a whole staff meeting about communicating on social media to ensure that everyone has the same message. As I think this is an issue that will keep recurring; have this as part of your induction from new staff and part of your beginning year staff meetings.  Having an individual meeting with the teacher would not work as well, I believe that all staff need to have this shared understanding and as younger teachers have larger digital footprints this is a need to know for everyone.  Ignoring this issue, will not change it.  Possibly, the teacher will continue to post images that are contrary to the messages that we are sending at school.  
With the changing nature of our digital footprints being cybersmart is a ongoing issue that schools need to be exploring.  
Cinelearning. (2016, August 17). Teacher Ethics Video - Social Media Dilemma. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGQbLSEPN5w
Hall, A. (2001). What ought I to do, all things considered? An approach to the exploration of ethical problems by teachers. Paper presented at the IIPE Conference, Brisbane. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Developing-leaders/What-Ought-I-to-Do-All-Things-Considered-An-Approach-to-the-Exploration-of-Ethical-Problems-by-Teachers
Education Council. (n.d). The Education Council Code of Ethics for Certificated Teachers. Retrieved from https://educationcouncil.org.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf

 

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