Week 28.
Critique and address issues of ethics, law, regulations and policy in practice using a reflective model. (activity 4)
This week I am going to analyse an ethical dilemma in my practice using Rolfe’s (2001) model of reflection and Erlich et al. (2011) ethical decision making model.
Step 1: (What) - I have two social media persona’s - both professional and personal. Many of my friends are in education and there are blurred lines between the two. I have noticed that parents of our children are trying to connect with my personal Facebook page and some of the parents wanting to connect are parents of my own children’s friends at school but I have wonderings around how this sits ethically.
Ehrich et al. (2011) presents an ethical decision-making model (Figure 1) that helps to explain decision-making processes when teaching professionals encounter ethical dilemmas.
Figure 1. A model of ethical decision-making
Step 2: (So What): When critically evaluating this dilemma using Ehrich’s (2011) model, I was able to analyse this incident through more than one lens. I needed to consider Professional Ethics - Education Council (2017). What does the teacher’s code of practice state? I also looked at it through the lens of Public Interest. What would the other parents and whanau think? I needed to consider the Institutional Context eg. what would others do so after having conversations with colleagues I was directed to the Education Council’s (2018) guide for Teachers and Social media. I then questioned whether having a professional ‘friendship’ on Social Media was an acceptable platform.
Step 3: (Now What): To support the Education Council’s (2018) guide for Teachers and Social Media there is also a website available at: https://teachersandsocailmedia.co.nz/ which has a series of thought provoking videos with scenarios and question prompts, these would be very useful in our staff meetings especially with growing numbers of millennial who see social media as an integral part of their being. I particularly related to this quote which I felt would make online interactions more transparent. “Engaging in ongoing discussions with colleagues can help when you are unsure whether you should share, reuse or respond to content. Talking to colleagues about your activity on social media platforms means you aren’t acting in isolation and exposing yourself to a potential ethical dilemma.”
I plan to use my own ethical dilemma as an ignitor for conversation around this topic and to bring the resources discussed to our teachers attention. I could also host a parent/whanau hui to set clear guidelines for our community as to how we intend to use social media.
References:
Education Council. (2017). Our Code Our Standards. Retrieved 10 March, 2018 from: https://educationcouncil.org.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf
Education Council (2017) Retrieved 11 March, 2018. https://teachersandsocialmedia.co.nz/guidelines/commitment-profession
Education Council (2018). Guide to Teachers and Social media. Retrieved 11 March, 2018 from: https://www.educationcouncil.org.nz/content/teachers-and-social-media
Ehrich, L.C., Kimber M., Millwater, J. & Cranston, N. (2011). Ethical dilemmas: a model to understand teacher practice, Teachers and Teaching: theory and practice, 17:2, 173-185, DO1: 10.1080/13540602.2011.539794
Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., Jasper, M. (2001) Critical Reflection Model. Retrieved from: https://my.cumbria.ac.uk/media/MyCumbria/Documents/ReflectiveModelRolfe.pdf
Thank you for sharing this dilemma, Kim. I think that it is a dilemma that would be widely shared by others in the profession. I certainly agree that it is the case for me. I am reminded of a statement that I once heard at a teaching conference which went something along the lines of, ' A plumber is what you do. A teacher is who you are." With that in mind, if who we are differs morally, ethically and professionally from who we are as professionals, then the significance and consequences of the dilemma increase. I agree with you that perhaps we should not have a personal social media profile given that nothing on the internet is private. Somehow though, that does not seem fair because surely we are entitled to a private life. For those of us who have family overseas and who use social media to connect with them, the unfairness of not having a media presence is acutely felt. A dilemma indeed.
ReplyDeleteThis is certainly a good point that you raise. I do remember having PD with Tony Birkin and the questions he posed about having a Facebook profile. It certainly shows that although our digital world is racing ahead, the 'human' problems that can arise from this are many and varied. I wonder whether other professions are faced with the same dilemma - nurses, doctors, physiotherapists, beauty therapists? A question to put out on Facebook?
ReplyDeleteI think it is also worth considering, as part of this dilemma (which is not going away any time soon), is that we are at a point at which digital natives are not just the people we are expected to teach, but are also now the teachers.
ReplyDeleteThe reliance on, and more so the constant use, of digital technology and social media platforms is quite simply the way they do things.
Whereas it is rather simple for us to avoid making some of these connections, that is not the way digital natives operate. The dilemma is greater as we are asking teachers to change the way they have approached all aspects of their life to date.