Ethical Leadership in dealing with Complex Dilemmas 1

Ethical Leadership in dealing with Complex Dilemmas

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Introduction

What is ethical Leadership Why does ethical leadership matter? Who decides what’s “ethical?” Applying Ethical Frames.

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Ethical Leadership

What ethics do leaders model?

Ethics are the principles, values and beliefs that define what is right and wrong behavior. Leadership is the process of influencing others to achieve goals. Ethical leadership is the process of influencing people through principles, values and beliefs that embrace what we have defined as right behavior.

Jane A.Van Buren, Vermont University

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Ethical Leadership as Relationship Building

The ethical leader understands that positive relationships are the gold standard for all organizational effort. Good quality relationships built on respect and trust, not necessarily agreement, are the single most important determinant of organizational success.

Desmond Berghofer and Geraldine Schwartz, Institute for Ethical Leadership

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Why does Ethical Leadership matter? Civic mission of schools

“For democracy to flourish, public education must play a central role in promoting responsible moral action that serves the common good.” –Charles Haynes, First Amendment Center

“To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”–Theodore Roosevelt

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Why does Ethical Leadership matter?

Dealing with ethical issues in education leadership is not necessarily a legal issue but a necessary approach for several reasons

1. Governance It provides a consistent approach in dealing with ethical issues as a

critical part of good governance

2. Upholding an organization’s mission and values Putting the institution’s mission and values into action and effectively

monitor their success

3. Guidance for Staff Ensuring that all members of staff are aware of how they are expected

to conduct themselves

4. Legislation Helps to interpret educational laws by focusing on the letter and the

spirit of the laws

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Why does Ethical Leadership matter?

5. Risk and Reputation

By Addressing ethical issues, this can help to identify potential risks, prevent future problems and safeguard the reputation of the institution.

6. Recruiting Staff and Attracting Students

Establishing a clear ethical stance will contribute to the quality of staff and students that the institution attracts.

7. Encouraging funding, sponsorship and business involvement

Companies are interested in institutions that are committed to ethics and transparency and by addressing ethics it may result in the institution being more appealing to potential business partners

Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE)

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SummaryWhy does ethical Leadership matter?

Part of our leadership code

Standard 5: An education leader promotes the success of every student by acting with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner.

Source: Educational Leadership Policy Standards: ISLLC 2008 as adopted by the National Policy Board for Educational Administration (NPBEA) on December 12, 2007.

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SummaryWhy does ethical Leadership matter?

Make us more effective as leaders

“Ethics is ultimately about relationships. …No matter what definition of ethics you examine, ethics is not primarily about standards, rules, and sanctions in isolation from society. Ethics is about people and their relationships with one another.”

“What brought down Anderson [Accounting] was not law. It was ethics…or more exactly, a lack of public trust. When Anderson could no longer be trusted to resist unethical behavior… it effectively lost its most important resource: credibility. …Negative ethics equals negative business.

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Who decides what’s ethical?

Educational leaders come to the job with personal values that they have developed because of different influences. The challenge has always been how to balance these values with those existing in the institution.

Rushmore Kidder’s research identified 5 core moral values Honesty Respect Responsibility Fairness Compassion

Rushmore Kidder, in Shared Values for a Troubled World: Comversations with Men and Women of Conscience (1994 ) and Moral Courage (2005)

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Applying Ethical Frames

The use of ethical frames provide an opportunity for educational leaders to examine their ways of thinking about complex dilemmas.

To consider actions outside their normal way of thinking and behaving

These frames give a holistic approach to resolving issues and engaging in reflective practice

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Ethical paradigms Ethic of Justice

Ethic of Critique

Ethic of Care

Ethic of Profession

Personal Code

Shapiro & Stefkovich, Ethical Leadership and Decision Making in Education, LEA 2005

Shapiro & Gross, Ethical Educational Leadership in Turbulent Times, LEA, 2008

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Multiple Ethical Paradigms13

Ethic of Local

CommunityEthic of Critique

Ethic of Care

Ethic of Justice

Ethic of the Profession


Ethic of Justice Rights Policies Law Ethical dilemmas resolved by rules,

fairness, equity, and justice Equity and Equality Right vs Right What circumstances justify exceptions Individual rights vs. community good

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Ethic of Critique Awakens educators to inequities in society. Who makes law? Who benefits? Who has power? Who is silenced? Ethical dilemmas resolved by asking how all

children can be enabled to overcome past inequities to grow, learn and achieve.

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Ethic of Care “The first job of schools is to care for

our children.” Noddings, 1992 Who is hurt? What are long-term effects of the

decision? Caring, concern, connection Decision-making requires leaders to

consider multiple voices.

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Ethic of Profession Education, unlike law, medicine, dentistry

and business, require little or no formal training in ethics.

Codes of Ethics authored by professional associations have filled that gap somewhat.

Eg. JTA Code of Ethics and The Jamaica Teaching Council Draft Bill

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Ethic of Local Community What does the community think about

the particular issue that affects the institution?

How does the community feel about the issue?

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Case #119

An assistant principal in a rather conservative town completes a teacher performance appraisal on one

of the school’s master teachers. The only part of the evaluation that concerns the AP is the fact that this

staff member has never taken part in any of the schools extra curricular programs. The AP assumes that

her teacher’s family life must be taking up his spare time. Conflict arises when the AP decides to

purchase a gag gift from an unpopular adult fantasy store. In her hast while shopping, she notice her

master teacher emerging from the back room of the Adult Fantasy store. As it turns out, he and his wife

run the lucrative business and have preferred to keep their business enterprise a secret. They operate

the business so that they can afford to put their children through university as well as afford the extras in

life.

Multi-paradigm questions to ponder:

1) Are teachers role models? If yes, then is it acceptable for a teacher to be part owner of an adult

centre?

2) Could the teacher’s decision to take on this particular job be justified when one considers that his job

as a teacher is valued so little by society that he is unable to earn enough from it to support his family?

To educate his children?

3) What should the teacher do? What would be in the best interests of the students? Would you see this

decision differently if the principal were male? If the teacher were female?

Case #220Coach Alex and his wife were excellent substitute teachers who committed themselves to their jobs. Coach Alex eventually obtained a permanent teaching position and his career was looking up. As time passed, the community developed deep regard for such a visible and successful coach who helped many young athletes gain scholarships and professional sport membership. On the home front, Coach Alex was much different however. News began to spread that Coach Alex was arrested twice for beating his wife and placing her in hospital. Both times his wife dropped the charges and let her husband off the hook. As the news spread, many parents became outraged and wrote letters to the board and signed petitions to have coach Alex fired. At the next board meeting the oversized crowd became irate and shouted out commands for the board to take action. After the president of the Parent-Teachers Association spoke on behalf of the crowd, she turned toward Superintendent Brown and said, “What are you going to do about this?”

Multi-paradigm questions to ponder:

1) What is the fairest choice Superintendent Brown could make? The most caring?

2) Could it be argued that spousal abuse is a disease as alcoholism is a disease? Why or why not?

3) What advice would you give to Superintendent Brown?

Case Sharing21

Questions and Answers

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Final Words

The importance of having an ethical administrator…is inherent to the success of the school as a social entity:

Society or we do not invent principles; they are the laws of the universe that pertain to human relationships and human organizations. … To the degree people recognize and live in harmony with such basic principles as fairness, equity, justice, integrity, honesty, and trust, they move toward either survival and stability on the one hand or disintegration and destruction on the other. –Covey, 1992

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Ethical Leadership in dealing with Complex Dilemmas 1