Ethical Teaching in Florida 1
Ethical Teaching in Florida
David Mangels
St. Petersburg College
Ethics Workshop
December 10, 2009
Ethical Teaching 2
Ethical Teaching in Florida
I Why It Is Important To Know the Code of Ethics and Principles of Professional
Conduct in the State of Florida.
It is important for Florida teachers to know the Code of Ethics and Principles for
several reasons. There are a few reasons for this. It is a requirement of the state to know
the code, but it is also beneficial for the teacher to know as well.
First, there are 12 Florida Educator Accomplished Practices (FEAPs) that all preprofessional teachers are required to know by the state. All certified education programs
are required to teach them. Ethics is one of the FEAPs, so the code of ethics must be
taught by every education program and each education student must be familiar with it.
Next, because it is mandatory to know the code of ethics, it is represented on the
Florida professional educator's exam. To pass this exam, students must know the code.
Third, because Florida is not a nexus state, teachers need to be more careful to
follow the code of ethics. In a non-nexus state, a teacher's private life is open to scrutiny,
and actions that are done in private can still end with the revocation of a teaching
certificate. For example, if a teacher is arrested for driving while under the influence
over a weekend, they still must disclose this information or risk losing their certificate.
Also, it is important to remember that actions that are legal and on a teacher's own time
can also lead to the revocation of their license. For example, if a teacher posts pictures
online from a party that involve sexual content, alcohol consumption, or other items that
paint them or the education profession in a negative light, they may endanger their
certificate.
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There are many examples of common sense that teachers must use at all times.
Teachers are held to a higher level of conduct, and if they are not aware of the ethical
code, may inadvertently break it and risk losing their certificate. Because a teacher may
inadvertently break the code, they should the part of the code that describes the process
for certificate revocation, teacher's rights, and which agencies are involved in it. The
manual given at the conference gave the example of a teacher who was not breaking the
law, but broke the ethical code. It is "Ms. Jones and Her Relationships", and involves a
young teacher who lost her husband and turned to a student for companionship (Code of
Ethics Awareness, 2009). The student was 18, but she broke the code. A teacher cannot
have a personal relationship with any students.
II Three Agencies That are Involved in the Revocation/ Review Process
There are three agencies that are involved in the revocation and review process in
the event that a teacher is accused of unethical conduct. It is important for teachers to
know the process and the agencies involved.
The first agency is the Education Standards Commission. They are responsible
for educational research to better the education system in the state of Florida. The
devised the FEAPs for that purpose to ensure that teachers did an acceptable job. It is a
24 member ad-hoc commission that also designed the state content standards, principles
of conduct, and the rules about reasonable force. Reasonable force relates to the fact that
sometimes it is necessary for a teacher to use physical force to subdue a student. Usually
this is acceptable in the event that a student is in physical danger or another extreme case.
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However, reasonable force does not grant a teacher to use physical force in minor
instances.
The next agency is the Education Practice Commission. The first responsibility
of this commission is to interpret and apply the standards that the Education Standards
Commission devised. The second responsibility of this commission is to provide
discipline when teachers break the code of ethics. It is a 25 member commission.
The last agency is the Professional Practice Services Commission. The
responsibility of this commission is to conduct investigations when allegations are
brought against a teacher.
III Code of Ethics
There are three main sections to the code of Ethics that an educator should know.
The first part states:
The educator values the worth and dignity of every person, the
pursuit of truth, devotion to excellence, acquisition of knowledge,
and the nurture of democratic citizenship. Essential to the
achievement of these standards are the freedom to learn and to
teach and the guarantee of equal opportunity for all.
This means that the teacher cares for every student regardless of background or behavior.
The teacher will strive to maintain truth and not mislead students. Every student has a
right to equal access of education.
The second part states:
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The educator's primary professional concern will always be for
the student and for the development of the student's potential. The
educator will therefore strive for professional growth and will seek
to exercise the best professional judgment and integrity.
This means that the teacher will always strive to help all students improve and grow. The
teacher will treat all students and family with dignity and respect as well and will not take
advantage of anyone in an immoral fashion.
The third part states:
Aware of the importance of maintaining the respect and
confidence of one's colleagues, of student, of parents, and of other
members of the community, the educator strives to achieve and
sustain the highest degree of ethical conduct.
This means that teachers will uphold the institution of the school and will not talk bad
about colleagues or the school district. The teacher will also apply this to students'
family and will maintain upright morality within the community on and off the clock.
IV Investigative Process
If charged with a violation of ethics, there is a review process that occurs. The
teacher has certain rights within this process and should be aware of the process.
If a teacher is accused of an ethical violation, the first step that happens is for a
complaint to be filed with the Professional Practices Services commission. An informal
conference convenes as well as a notice is sent to the educator and an investigation is
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begun. After the investigation takes place, a report is prepared and reviewed. Probable
cause or no probable cause are recommended to the commissioner. If there is found to be
no probable cause, the teacher and accusing party are contacted and the case is closed and
the results become public information.
However, if it was determined that there is probable cause, the commissioner
signs a formal complaint and notice is given to the Florida Education Practices
Commission. The teacher then has 20 days to respond. The teacher has the following
rights: they can request mitigation, contest the allegations, make settlement, surrender
their certificate, or if they choose not to respond, they will lose their certificate by default.
If the teacher fights the complaint, the Florida Education Practices Commission has
hearings to determine further action and the results may be appealed to the district court
of appeals.
The following effects may come from a hearing: the complaint is dismissed, the
certificate is revoked, a letter of reprimand is given, a fine of up to $2,000 per count of
offense, a limit is placed on the scope of practice, the certificate or endorsement is
denied, conditions are applied to issuance of the certificate, the teacher is placed on
probation, there is a settlement agreement, or the certificate is suspended. The certificate
can be suspended for different amounts of time, sometimes lasting for many years. If the
teacher surrenders their certificate, it is permanently revoked.
V Common Sense
While most educators do not try to act unethically, it is possible to inadvertently
break the code of ethics. That is why common sense and awareness are important.
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One technique of common sense is to maintain a distance from students. The
teacher is not a student. While the teacher should care about students as a friend would,
the teacher cannot be friends with students. The teacher should always remember that
they are in authority over students and it is inappropriate to socialize with students. This
involves dating and "hanging out" with any student, even if they are over the age of 18.
Another technique to remember is to always keep the classroom door open when
a student is alone in the classroom with the teacher. This is done primarily to protect the
teacher from false allegations that cannot be disproved if they involve being behind a
closed door. It is also done to avoid the appearance of unethical behavior even if none
exists. The teacher should never be alone with a male or female student with the door
closed.
Another technique of common sense is to never leave students unsupervised. If
the teacher needs to step out of the room for a minute, they need to get someone in charge
to watch the class while they are gone. Students can get out of hand very quickly if
unsupervised. If the teacher left the room and a student was injured, there would be
grounds for a lawsuit against the teacher and the school.
Another technique of common sense is to treat all students with respect. The
teacher can joke around with at student and embarrass the student. A harmless comment
can easily be taken wrong by a student, so it is the teacher's responsibility to guard what
they say and how they treat students.
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VI Reflection
It is very important to know the Code of Ethics and Principles of Professional
Conduct for the State of Florida. A teacher who strives to uphold their own code of
ethics may inadvertently break the Florida code. That is why it is important for me to
know it. Something as simple as joking with a student can hurt them. If I had not
learned this, I may have done this thinking that I was positively interacting with students.
Now I will be more careful.
It is also very important to remember that there is no boundary between home life
and school. If a teacher breaks the law while at home, then they must report this. I will
also remember to be very careful about what information is available on the internet. I
will strive to make sure that no pictures of me are posted that would put me in a
compromising position. In addition, I will strive to make sure that I live up an ethical
lifestyle at all times, which will ensure that there are no personal dangers waiting to be
exposed.
This will also help to make me a better teacher because I will do little things like
make sure that my classroom door is open and interact with student in an appropriate
manner. It is also good to know the procedures. The teacher should always know the
proper agencies that are responsible for each step of the revocation process. After 20
days with no contact, the certificate is automatically revoked so it is definitely important
to know which agency to contact and not ignore an allegation. The conference gave the
example of a man who was unaware that he broke the ethical code. "Under 21 – Twenty
Years Later" is about a principal that was in his forties. When he was 20, he was arrested
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for entering a nightclub and buying alcohol with a fake I.D. (Code of Ethics Awareness,
2009). The case was dismissed, no charges were filed, and he was told the incident
would be removed from the record (Code of Ethics Awareness, 2009). Years later he had
forgotten the incident, was working in the system, and had been fingerprinted multiple
times without causing any problems (Code of Ethics Awareness, 2009). However, the
arrest came up in the latest fingerprinting session and he received a letter demanding that
he explain the situation within 30 days or action would be taken against him (Code of
Ethics Awareness, 2009). If he had dismissed the incident as something that happened
years ago and he was not charged, he would have lost his certificate.
Lastly, it is important to know that it is safe to report a fellow teacher who is in
violation of the code. Even if the case is closed with no charges filed against the educator
that is in violation, the teacher that reports is safe from reprisals (Code of Ethics
Education Profession, 2009).
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References
A) "The Code of Ethics and The Principles of Professional Conduct: Awareness Training
Participant Manual". (2009) The Florida Education Standards Commission and
The Florida Education Practices Commission.
B) "The Code of Ethics and The Principles of Professional Conduct of The Education
Profession in Florida". (2009) Florida Department of Education, Bureau of
Educator Recruitment, Development and Retention: Tallahassee, Florida.