Professional Ethics and Teaching Standards
What this domain tests
Whether you can apply the National Teachers' Standards (NTS) and the GES code of conduct to concrete dilemmas: conduct, fairness, child protection, record-keeping and conflict of interest.
The National Teachers' Standards
Five domains: professional values and attitudes; professional knowledge; professional practice; professional relationships; professional development. Each is elaborated through standards and sub-standards covering planning, assessment, inclusive practice and ethical conduct. The NTS is the reference framework for teacher licensing through the National Teaching Council.
Legal and policy anchors
- Education Act 2008 (Act 778): free compulsory basic education; prohibition of corporal punishment.
- Children's Act 1998 (Act 560): best interests of the child; protection from abuse and neglect.
- Labour Act 2003 (Act 651): conditions of service.
- Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843): handling of learner records.
Professional conduct
Punctuality and regular attendance; impartial marking and promotion decisions; no sexual or exploitative relationships with learners; no examination malpractice; no paid private tuition for one's own pupils; confidentiality of records; respectful relationships with colleagues, parents and the community; commitment to continuing professional development.
Worked example
A parent offers a teacher money to raise her son's end-of-term mark from 48 to 60.
Reasoning: this is a conflict of interest and a breach of assessment integrity and the NTS. The teacher declines clearly, explains the criterion-referenced basis of the mark, shows the marking scheme and recorded scores, records the offer in the assessment file, and informs the head. Accepting would corrupt the validity of the assessment and amount to professional misconduct.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating ethics as applying only during lessons.
- Confusing a code-of-conduct breach with a criminal offence - some acts are both, many are only the former.
- Citing confidentiality to conceal abuse or malpractice.
- Describing continuing professional development as optional.
- Ignoring the head and formal reporting channels when a matter is serious.