Melinda Hammond
ADMS 633
Moral Dilemma Essay
At my school, we have block scheduling and we see our 5th block class every day. The class
period is broken down into four 30 minute sessions and assigned to different lunches (A, B, C, and D
lunches). My 5th block class was assigned to C lunch, so they would be in class during A and B lunches,
break for C lunch and return during D lunch. Within the second marking period, a young lady named
Mary was switched into my class because she was unable to get along with her previous math teachers.
She was very vindictive and always played the role of a victim. She had gotten other students in trouble
and/or instigated several incidents around school. Needless to say, her name was well known in the
school especially by the administrators and the SRO.
One particular class period Mary asked to use the bathroom before the tardy bell. I told her
that she could go, however if she did not make it back before the bell rung; she would be tardy. Mary
came back 15 minutes after the bell. Since being more than eight minutes late to class (without a pass)
is considered skipping, I wrote a referral on Mary.
We continued class as usual and towards the middle of B lunch, she asked to use the bathroom
again. I said, “No, you need to wait and go during lunch”. After huffing and puffing she settled down
and began to complain about the assignments. After lunch, she asked again and I said no. Mary then
told me, “You need to stop tripping and do your job. You can’t hold students from using the bathroom”.
I ignored the comment and continued teaching. About 15 minutes later, I received a phone call from the
nurse and she asked me to send Mary down to the clinic. The nurse then proceeds to tell me that I may
want to take the student’s cellphone because she texted her mom during class. In the midst of my
conversation with the nurse, Mary sat in the back of the class with a smirk on her face. I asked her for
the cellphone, she refused and said, “I was not texting on my phone”. So, I asked, “Why did your mom
call the school”. Mary replied and said she didn’t know. I immediately explained the cellphone policy
and informed Mary that she would suffer consequences if she did not turn in the phone. She said, “You
didn’t see me so you can’t take my phone”. Since she did not give me the phone, I wrote another
referral because it’s an automatic day of in-school suspension for refusing to give up cellphone when
they’ve used it during school hours.
Since I was off during the next period, I contacted mom and explained what happened in class
including the referrals. Mom was very angry and felt students should be able to use the bathroom
whenever requested. After the mom began to use profanity and inappropriate names, I disconnected
the call. Within minutes, I received a call from the secretary with the mom on the line. I refused the call
and discussed the situation with my assistant principal.
When I returned to my classroom there was an email from my principal requesting a meeting
the very next morning. I already knew what it was about so I clicked “accept”. The meeting with the
principal also included Mary’s mother. Since the parent was irate, we met in the main conference room
which was directly across the hall from one of the SRO offices. I assumed mom was coming in to discuss
the phone call but mom came in to discuss Mary’s grades. Unfortunately, the child was going to fail the
class if she did not increase her overall grade during the fourth marking period. Mom wanted me to go
back to the beginning of the marking period and give her child a copy of everything she was missing and
to allow her to retake assessments she had failed. Mom expressed her concerns and believed I gave her
child too much work and unreasonable deadlines. She also believed her child would benefit more from
working on the assignments until the end of that year. My principal asked if she if having the same
issues in other classes. She stated no, just my class because she felt as if I did not like her child. After a
few more questions, my principal looked at me and said, “Ms. Hammond, how do you feel”. I informed
them that I would not give the child the assignments. It was unfair to the rest of the students. I told
them that Mary wasn’t incapable of doing the work, she just refused to do the work and that I would not
cater to the request. Mom became livid and started accusing me of causing her child to fail and have
seizures. The principal then asked if it was mathematically possible for her to pass the class. I told him
that it was if she did well on the remaining assignments and pass the SOL. Needless to say, the student
did not pass the SOL and she failed the class.
Is it equally fair to give additional opportunities at success despite inappropriate and underserving
behaviors or should we ignore past behaviors and do whatever to help students succeed?
Melinda Hammond
ADMS 633
Discovery Essay:
Mary had been either suspended or assigned to PEP (in-school suspension) throughout the
entire year. She was very vindictive and always played the role of a victim inside and outside of the
classroom. Mary was switched into my class because she was unable to get along with her previous two
math teachers. She often bullied her peers and maintained involvement with several incidents
concerning disciplinary actions. Needless to say, her name was well known within the school. One of
my main goals as a teacher is to make sure all of my students make progress within my class and pass
the course. Therefore it was very important that Mary passed the course and the SOL but it was also
important to treat each student fairly without showing favoritism. I did not want other students to think
it was ok to consistently act inappropriately in class and still get chance after chance to pass the course.
The underlying issue lies on treating all students equally and fairly while demanding respect.
Therefore, I believe this dilemma lies within the ethic of care and the ethic of profession. Children are
constantly learning in school whether or not it’s related to classroom instruction. Students may learn
how to develop social life skills such as mannerisms and respect throughout the day. As educators it is
our job to ensure that students learn those basics skills in order to be successful after high school. Most
students do not have the resources or the family members at home to help instilled those skills. So, not
only does the educator have to instill them but they have to reinforce them as well. I was raised in a
household where we were treated fairly and equally. I have nine other siblings and my parents would
not buy one child something without buying for the others. They would also make sure we did not
receive special privileges and items to make the other sibling feel superior or inferior. My siblings and I
were expected to treat each other the same way. Respect was a big deal in our household; being
disrespectful was like committing a crime. Simple words such as “ma’am” and “sir” were used on a
consistent basis.
I believe treating students differently and showing favoritism lowers the moral of the class and
undermines authority. Students would begin to ignore classrooms rules that were set forth for them in
the beginning of the year. Students that feel like they are not receiving special attention will begin to
feel ostracized and neglected. Then they will begin to do inappropriate things in the classroom to gain
attention. Eventually, the teacher would have to deal with more discipline issues and focus on
classroom management. It would create a domino effect of negative things in the learning environment
which is why I believe it is important to maintain equality and an expectation of respect in the
classroom.
At the beginning of the school year, Mary was removed from one teacher’s class because she
began to bully some of the other classmates. She would often walk around the classroom hitting her
peers in the back of their heads with her elbow. It was very clear that Mary did not respect her peers
and for some reason she felt superior to them. Parents would often call to the school complaining
about Mary and requesting that she be switched out of the class. In the beginning, the staff tried to
create a plan to help her become a model student in the classroom. It backfired when she was involved
in a physical altercation with another student over a homework assignment. The other student accused
her of cheating and she decided to retaliate with violence. After her ten day suspension, she returned
to school to a new schedule.
Mary was switched to a different math class and immediately began to pick up where she had
left off with the inappropriate behaviors. However, this time it was more directed towards the teacher
showing that she did not have respect for the teacher. Upon the mother’s request, she was removed
from the new class about two weeks after her return. Mary’s mom felt the learning environment was
not feasible for her child. Therefore, she was eventually switched to my class. After a couple of class
periods, it was clear that Mary was very talkative and followed her own set of rules. She would
constantly try to get other students in trouble and she loved to instigate negative incidents in the
classroom. Since Mary was very chatty, I often put her outside in order to facilitate instruction. She
became a major distraction to other students. Students would often complain and become overly
excited when she was absent from school. One day on the way to lunch, another student (very quiet
and shy) stayed back and asked if he could move his seat because she was cheating off of his paper and
texting throughout the class.
In my classroom, I have a strict policy on cellphones. If they were caught with them, not only
did they have to turn them in, but I made the students who played sports do pushups and I kept their
phone during school hours for a week. They had to bring their cellphone to me once they arrived to
school and pick it up at the end of the day. Everyone knew that this was one of my rules, including the
parents because it was stated in my personal contracts for my students. Students and parents signed
the contracts at the beginning of the school year.
Mary also knew the rules in the classroom, but she continued to ignore them and find ways to
get out of trouble. When the nurse informed me that she used the cellphone to contact her mother, I
felt it was necessary to follow the rules that I had set forth in the classroom. When she refused to give
up the cellphone, I wrote the referral for cellphone violation and insubordination. I did not think twice
about the situation because I did not want her to think that it was ok just because she contacted her
mother.
Instead of immediately blowing up and writing the referral, I could have pulled Mary aside
earlier to discuss the situation. Would the situation have been different if it was not discussed in front
of the class? Mary had an image to portray and confronting her in front of the class was the perfect
opportunity to show her peers that she followed her own rules. If I had pulled her outside of the
classroom, she may have responded differently. Would a private conversation give me an opportunity
to discover the true source of the inappropriate behaviors? Was it something that she was not getting
from home, me, or any of her other teachers? It could have been the perfect time to build a
trustworthy relationship. A reliable and dependable relationship would have prevented the phone call
with the mother followed by the meeting with the principal. I believe if such a relationship was
established with Mary, then she would not be at risk for failing the class.
In conclusion, I did not allow Mary to retake assessments and turn in missing work from the
beginning of the year. In the syllabus it clearly states that students would only receive one additional
week after the due date to turn in assignments. In Mary’s case, some assignments were seven to eight
months overdue. Mary did not have special privileges or accommodations preventing her from
completing the assignments. She made the choice to ignore due dates and develop inconsistent and
ineffective studying habits. It was definitely not fair to the other students who were in similar situations
who actually deserved the opportunity to increase overall grades. Honoring the request for Mary would
not help prepare her for the real world. She would continue to think she could follow her own rules and
complete things upon her convenience.
Moral Dilemma:

Is it equally fair to give additional opportunity at success despite inappropriate and underserving
behaviors?
Values Order of Importance

Ethic of Care – Educators should instill and reinforce basic social skills in the classroom including
mannerisms.

Everyone should treat others how they want to be treated.

Everyone should be respectful at all times in and out of the classroom.

Educator’s number one goal should focus on preparing students for the world outside of school.
My Moral Judgment

Students should not be given several chances at success if they do not deserve it because it is
not fair to the other students who really need it.
My Moral Judgment is based on:

Principles of Benefit Maximization (decision producing the most good for everyone)

Ethic of Care

Ethic of Justice

Ethic of Profession
Melinda Hammond
ADMS 633
Justification Essay
One day during class, Mary continued to ask to use the bathroom. She had originally asked
before the tardy bell to start class. I told her that she had to make it back in time to avoid a tardy and
she returned 15 minutes after the bell. Since being more than eight minutes late to class was
considered skipping, I wrote the referral for the infraction. The class was 5th period and it was broken up
into four 30 minutes lunch sessions. Mary’s class went during the 3rd session. During the 2nd session,
Mary asked to use the bathroom again. I denied the request and told her to go during lunch. After
returning from lunch she asked to use the bathroom for the third time. The request was denied again
and Mary decided to text her mother during class. The mother called a meeting and expressed her
concerns while additionally making a request to have missing assignments provided to her child from
the beginning of the school year in order to pass the class. The mother became vividly angry when I
chose not to give Mary the missing assignments.
Some days Mary came into the class focused and ready to learn. However most days she liked
to create major disruptions and act inappropriate throughout the class period. Since Mary had
moments of modeling the ideal student, I assumed she know the difference from right and wrong. I also
believed that she was aware of the classroom rules and regulations set forth in the beginning of the
school year. Although she did not start the school year within my class, I pulled her aside after class to
explain everything to her. I also read over the syllabus with her and required her to bring it back signed
by a parent. Just to make sure we were all on the same page, I made Mary signed the syllabus as well.
The signed document was just that; a signed piece of paper. Mary continued to ignore the rules and
regulations. Therefore the ethic of justice helped guide my decision especially since Mary understood
but choose to ignore the expectations.
As I continue to reflect on the situation, I often wonder if the needs in the Maslow’s Need
Hierarchy Theory were satisfied for Mary. Students often try to impersonate others and act
inappropriate to gain attention because other needs were unfulfilled. I believe the social needs level
was not satisfied for Mary. The social needs level included love, affection, building relationships, and
having a sense of belonging. In order to satisfy the level, Mary may have thought acting in such ways
would get her the attention she desired. I’ve worked with several students in the past pertaining to this
matter. Kids often act out in class and when research was done on their past, it was often exposed that
the student may have been homeless, experiencing death of a loved one, dealing with a divorce in the
family and etc. Whether or not Mary was trying to seek attention, she was doing it in a negative
manner.
The esteem level of the theory may have been affected as well. Since this level may have been
lacking fulfillment, Mary probably liked to bully her peers in order to feel better about herself. Bullying
could have been the only way to gain a sense of belonging. Many external factors could have
contributed to this level. Each student is different and you can never really determine what and how
things will affect them as an individual.
My decision not to give Mary an opportunity turn in work from the beginning of the year was
impacted by several personal principles of ethics. For example the principle of accountability; teachers
should make students accountable and responsible for their work. Since Mary was not incapable of
doing the assignments, it was very clear that I had to deny the parent’s request to provide missing
assignments and allow her to retake assessments from the beginning of the year. Mary made the
decision not to complete the assignments. Giving into the request would have led to other
complications within the class involving other students. The other students would have made
complaints and possibly have their parents to make the same request. In order to maintain fair grounds,
I would have felt obligated to agree to the request. In a sense it would have made me evaluate my
ethic of profession. As educators, our overall goal is to prepare students for the world outside of school.
Honoring the request would actually set them up for failure. In the real world, people aren’t given
chance after chance without proving that they deserve additional opportunities. In my future classes,
students would just wait until the end of the year and make such a request to pass the class. They
wouldn’t need to do the work throughout the year if they didn’t want to. There would be a lack of
motivation in the class and more students would act inappropriately.
Considering the principle of benefit maximization; I believe my decision was appropriate for
everyone including Mary, the other students and myself. It was the best decision for me because it
allowed the continuation of practicing the principle of equality. It would have been unfair to the other
failing students if Mary was able to receive the work. Mary did not receive special accommodations
affirming that she needed additional time for the material. Maintaining a level of fairness in the
classroom avoided accusations of favoritism and complaints from parents as well. It was the best
decision for my students because they were being prepared for the world outside of school. They were
able to understand the importance of working hard and following rules and expectations. Although the
decision could have a negative impact on Mary, it was time to help her understand the consequences of
her actions. It was also time to hold her responsible and accountable for those actions.
Many other people including other educators would have disagreed with my decision. Some of
them believe students are purely innocent and we should go above and beyond to help them gain
success. On the other hand, I believe we should go above and beyond when students have shown an
interest in their success. If they are truly struggling because they do not know the material, then it is our
job to provide resources in and outside of the classroom to close the gap of achievement. If the student
continued to ignore deadlines, refused tutoring, and play throughout the school year; then I felt it is not
an obligation to bend the rules and policies to accommodate the student. It wouldn’t teach the kids
anything if they was given a cake and allowed to eat it. Students would go out into the real world not
knowing how to own up to their actions. They would expect their peers and other individuals to cater to
them and give the additional opportunities as needed. Unfortunately, the world is not that simple
especially in a working environment. Students will quickly learn success comes for dedication and hard
work not slacking and manipulation.