Task 5c: Professional Ethics

 

Following my thoughts and research on the ethical code of conduct within my line of work, I have studied the course reader and reflected upon the issues raised.

So, what exactly is ‘ethics’? Why does it play such a large role in not only the way inquiries are gone about, but the way people live their lives?

The reader tells us that the word ‘ethics’ is believed to derive from the Greek word ‘ethos’ meaning character. This shows that they believed that the concept of ethics is imbedded in a person – part of their natural character. Philosophers were very interested in the notion of good and bad; what leads a person to carry out certain actions? What is within them that makes them act in different ways?

Ancient thinkers such as Aristotle were continuing to be interested in what makes up and persons character – what makes them good and what actions may that incur? He discussed the issue of people making moral decisions throughout their lives or simply when they feel it is necessary. As with a lot of things, religion has played a large part in helping people to make decisions. As people have been raised with very strong beliefs in a certain religion they may not be able to distinguish between the morals that have been taught through religious teachings and those that they would naturally believe to be wrong. This also introduces the law. When many laws were created Britain was a Christian country so many rules were created around the Bible. This may not have had any issues at the time but as time has passed things changed and religion and law began to stop fitting together so well. The cases of abortion and gay rights seem to be the most obvious – issues that seem to cause a lot of anger between many people. As Britain has become more culturally diverse, it has had to adjust to the views of many people from many different backgrounds and, I believe, that is gradually making the law become more associated with moral as opposed to religion. This, of course, depends on your views upon religion. Hobbes (1651) believed that ethics is a practical solution to social harmony. If that is the case then what is the law for? If an action is ethically and morally wrong then consequently it should be enough of a deterrent to prevent any wrong doing? Does this mean criminals have no moral conscience or do they know it is the case that their actions are immoral but would prefer to do it anyway?

How do ethics impact on life nowadays?

The first thought was that ethical actions and views can be split into 4 main categories, personal, professional, organisational and social. Whilst these can intertwine and work well together, they also can be 3 separate ways of steering ones actions.

Firstly, personal ethics. This is based upon a person’s family background, religious beliefs and natural conscience of right and wrong. This brings up the age old nature/nurture argument – is one born with a moral conscience or are they taught it from birth? Either way, this can dramatically effect a person’s attitude towards all aspects of life including how they deal with others, whether colleagues, clients, friends or family. Many can have many strong views with regards to decisions that they feel are ethical however these often oppose the ethical code of conduct of their organisation. This, I believe, is the issue in Case Study 2: The Ethics of Photography (BAPP Reader 5, Page 10). In this case, Kevin Carter, a photographer who took a photograph of a Sudanese girl struggling to crawl towards water. The stunning photo won a Pulitzer Prize however the controversy sounded the fact that Carter took the photo and left, leaving the girl still struggling for water. The girl died raising the issue of should he have tried to help. From a professional point of view, Carter and the other photographers he was travelling with were specifically asked to not touch, to prevent spreading diseases however, from a personal point of view people would have expected someone in that situation to try and help. This is a particularly strong example of the differentiation between personal and professional ethics. The case can be compared to those who film wildlife documentaries – the have to stand a watch the cruellest acts in nature but professionally cannot intervene. Personally I could not do this, I can’t even watch the wildlife programmes, but I guess it takes a special sort of person to be able to put their personal morals and ethics to one side to be able to do a job. They must have enough reasons to justify that what they are doing is for the good of the job to be able to be content with their actions. Unfortunately Kevin Carter wasn’t. I find that very sad.

Professional ethics are often hard to separate with organisational ethical conduct as they often have to link together in order to work well within a business.

The profession that links all aspects of ethical practise together is medicine. To want to become a doctor, for example, you must be personally a morally strong person. You must want to commit your life to helping others. Professionally you must be able to work hard and always think of the welfare of the patient, constantly keep up to date with the latest medical findings and treatments and always act in a manner that is professional and honest. Most doctors work for the NHS, a huge nationwide organisation that has the responsibility of looking after the health of the UK, this means that an individual must conform to the organisations procedures an ethics in order to give the best care for so many people, ensuring fairness and consistency across the board. Finally the role of the doctor has a major role in being socially ethical- they are dealing with people’s health and potentially can be saving lives. The general public trust the medical profession and they have a duty to act in their best interest. All doctors sign the Hippocratic Oath to promise this. The case of Harold Shipman proves the public lay all their trust in doctors and if they are let down it is a huge problem. Case Study 1 (BAPP Reader 5, page **) “Mid-Staffordshire inquiry: Unhealthy System” proves that when such an enormous mix of ethical views and actions are combined, often it can go wrong and be a very complicated job to unravel.

With regards my professional inquiry, I will need to ensure that I follow that code of conduct within my school and also maintain my personal and professional ethical beliefs. When conducting inquiries I must always maintain a professional attitude and consider the wellbeing of others involved.

5b: Codes of practice within my professional communities

I work in a few different settings however mainly within one Primary School as both a teaching assistant and also leader of extra-curricular dance and drama lessons. As this is the case, for task 5b I have been to the school website to see what their codes of practice may be. The first quote I came across was the school’s mission statement.

 

‘Our school community aims to provide an education that develops children to their full potential within a safe, happy and creative environment.

We aim to maintain a Christian ethos that encourages curiosity and life-long enthusiasm for learning and fosters mutual respect for people of all faiths and cultures.’ (www.highamstjohns.com/mission_statement)

 

This briefly encompasses all the school’s ethical framework without having to go into individual policies. It shows the aims of the school and what it prioritizes as important in the development of all pupils at the same time as reminding all staff what our focusses should be.

 

In order to discover more detailed regulations for ethical codes of practice within a school setting, I came across the ‘NUT Code of Professional Ethics’ (www.teachers.org.uk/files/active/0/NUT-Code-of-Professional-Ethics.pdf‎). This is a specific, thirteen point list in which all of the aspects of teaching are covered. Some points are more appropriate to more senior members of staff due to their increased responsibilities however it highlights the key attitudes that should be used when working within a school.

 

From a dancing perspective, I have looked for something similar to refer to in my freelance dance teacher capacity. As I do not teach in line with any dancing examination body, I wanted to find something more appropriate for my type of classes. I found a company called “The Foundation for Community Dance” which seemed to be more appropriate to my job. Their Code of Conduct is:

 

Code of Conduct

This Code of Conduct translates the core values of community dance into standards of ethical and responsible practice to which community dance professionals adhere. It enables them to be clear and upfront about how they go about their work, their ethical stance on how they approach their work, and the expectations people can have of them in terms of their professional behaviour, actions and attitudes.

The Code covers five areas:

1.     Professional competence

2.     Responsibility

3.     Safety

4.     Working with people

I believe this covers all the bases with regards important areas of ethical conduct. I really like this companies attitude to ethical regulations and believe they have been able to show all the important aspects of ethically running a business. My personal favourites include:

 

Professional competence: As a community dance artist, teacher and/or leader,  I believe that I have a responsibility to myself, the profession and the people whom I work, to do the best I can. I aspire to bring quality to everything I do and commit to investigating in my own continuing professional development to ensure the relevance and quality of my practice and uphold the standards of the profession within the relevant and legislative frameworks and government directives.

 

Safety: As a community dance artist, teacher and/or leader I believe that every participant has a right to enjoy their dancing in an environment that provides for their personal safety, and that I have a responsibility to act in the best interests of their physical and mental wellbeing in the work that I do. I am committed to ensuring that my practice is informed by, and complies with, relevant statutory or legal requirements that safeguard my own and others’ legal, civil and human rights.

 

I have picked these out as I feel they cover so much in so little words. I believe in these principles very strongly and feel they are essential in running dance classes that are morally and ethically sound.

Task 5a: Ethical work within dance teaching

Without looking into the reader and researching the meanings of ethical working, I am aware of the important role it plays in ensuring quality work, safe practice and the safeguarding of both pupils and teachers.

Ethics isn’t about what work we do, more HOW we do it. How I, as a dance teacher, can ensure that my pupils are learning dance safely and enjoying the lessons that their parents have invested time and money in.

I have thought about what it is my moral responsibility to do within my job. Here are a couple of key areas:

Safeguarding: ‘The process of protecting children from abuse or neglect, preventing impairment of their health and development, and ensuring they are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care that enables children to have optimum life chances and enter adulthood successfully.’ Safeguarding Children / Ofsted - Ofsted. Safeguardingchildren.org.uk.

It is my responsibility to ensure all children are safe at all times in my dance lessons and in the transition periods before and after the lessons. It is also my responsibility to assess the wellbeing of the child and notice any changes in their health and emotional development.

Confidentiality: Some aspects of working with children must be kept confidential – their personal details being the key one. The children and parents must feel they can trust you with personal information, particularly if it is anything that may affect their behaviour, dancing and how they should be dealt with (for instance if stressful events may be happening elsewhere in their life at the time). However, confidentiality rules must always come with the clause that if someone discloses something that needs passing on for their safety this always should be made clear. It is my job to know when this is appropriate to do so.

Plagiarism: This is my sole responsibility. Ensuring that the choreography I teach and the shows I put on are all my creative property and not that of any one else.

Standard Policies: With many people attending classes, policies need to be created to protect both the school and the parents. So to prevent favouritism and ‘one rule for one, another for others’ type situations policies confirming procedures including children’s behaviour management, payments, uniform and general running of the classes can be created to make sure everything is clear and above board – helping to create an equal environment. Holding lessons within a school setting means that my policies must line up with that of the schools and so to prevent confusion. It is my responsibility to keep these policies up to date and relevant.

Responsible Adult: As a dance teacher, much like lots of other professions, I become a role model to children of many ages. It is my responsibility to ensure I do not set any bad examples and help guide the children to making correct choices. I cannot expect respect if I don’t show it to them.

It is my responsibility to, through these areas, ensure each child is happy, safe and learning. It is as important as the dance steps they are there to learn. Their wellbeing is key to their learning but also my business – why would a parent pay to take their child to a school that ethically is not sound.

Ding Ding! Round 2! Module 2, Task 4a (so far)

Welcome back one and all! I have to say, I have had a wonderful summer off and now am ready to get back into the world of BAPP! Having had 6 weeks off work altogether (2 of which on a beautiful beach in Jamaica!) It has been a bit of a shock to the system to get back to full time work so I am glad I have had a few weeks settling back into my routine before module 2 has kicked into gear!
So back to the usual routine - download the latest reader and panic. Leave it a few days and come back to it feeling a little less alarmed. Go away again and find my brain starting to think about issues raised, stew on thoughts and come up with new ideas. Research some of my thoughts and then let the penny drop ready to get on with it!
I'm still not fully there however would like to share a few ideas in order to begin developing questions to go towards my professional inquiry.

As I work full time in a very creative school, a lot of my time is spent with children teaching dance, leading morning exercise sessions, creating routines for songs to go in many performances and running extra curricular clubs. For this reason, I would like to keep my inquiry around the topic of children and education. I have a few ideas for which angle to take and don't want to make my mind up yet - I will do a little more research before then.

I am particularly interested in encouraging and engaging boys in dance, helping them to understand how broad a subject it is and how many different benefits it can bring.

How can boys education be enhanced through dance?
How can I, as a dance teacher, engage boys in many styles of dance, throughout all ages?

On the other hand I would like to look into the influence dance can have upon young children - the ways it can impact on their development and approach to learning and life skills.

How can dance impact the initial stages of a child's education?
Why should young children be introduced to dance?

Maybe looking into the short term and long term benefits of dance - how it can impact their education and life skills both immediately and then in the long run. This could include the obstacles they may face and how they might be overcome through dance,

What impact can regular dance lessons have upon children within education?
How can dance aid children improve their learning, across the curriculum?

Please help me by commenting on this post. Am I on the right track or being to specific with my lines of inquiry? These are all areas that I am already very passionate on and so I am finding it quite difficult to get a balance between a good open question and one that is too vague!

Thank you, and happy thinking!