Ethics Case Study

Camille Fulbright
EEX 4070

This case study revolves around James, a 5 year old kindergarten student, at
Mitchell Elementary school. James is a white student from a low SES family

and has been placed in a class for students with disabilities after being
diagnosed with a communication disorder.

This case study showcases

several ethical dilemmas that arise based on the actions of: Connie, the
school counselor, Ms. Alton, the diagnostician, Ms. Knight, the principal, and
Diane, James' kindergarten teacher. Connie has been a school guidance
counselor for 6 years, primarily working with students with special needs,
Diane is a Hispanic woman who has taught at Mitchell Elementary for 3 years
and prior to that taught in Puerto Rico for 10 years. James was placed in
Diane's kindergarten class after he was diagnosed with a communication
disorder. James was known to have an affliction towards any physical contact
from others unless initiated by him. Diane refused to respect James in the
aspect that he did not like being touched. At the beginning of the school year
Diane repeatedly and forcefully pushed James down into his seat, James
retaliated by kicking Diane. Diane reported the incident to Connie, the
counselor, in order to seek advice, Diane told Connie that she continues to
"ask" James to stay seated but he refuses. Connie happened to see how the
incident actually occurred and suggested Diane not touch James, in order to
get a better reaction and response from him, and she also recommended
that Diane also give more clear directions. Diane did not attempt to follow
the advice given to her and her behavior actually escalated; there was one
incident were Diane was so rough with James he nearly hit his head on a
brick wall.

Diane continued to reach out to Connie for guidance, and Connie would
observe Diane's class and offer recommendations in order for James and
Diane's whole class to be more successful. Connie's advice, which was
always received well by Diane, was never actually implemented. Diane
continued to initiate physical contact with James, which in turn caused James
to retaliate. Diane ended up talking to the principal about James' behavior,
which led to the principal's request that James be sent to an EBD class at
another school upon Diane's recommendation. Ms. Knight called a meeting
to discuss which steps should be taken next. In this meeting Connie
protested against James being moved to another class claiming that it would
not be best for James at all, Ms. Alton agreed with Diane that James should
be moved, but not because she had diagnosed or believed he had an
emotional disability, but because it was away to remove him from Diane's
classroom. At the end of the meeting they all agreed that Diane was a big
part of James behavioral issues in the classroom. And eventually came to an
agreement that they would keep James in Diane's classroom but provide
Diane with additional support. Unfortunately over the next few weeks no
positive changes had been made, if anything Diane's actions towards James
worsened significantly and she continued to be aggressive towards James
and set him up in a way that would cause him to act out negatively.
1. What are the ethical issues present in this case? (Consider all
characters in the case study)

There are many ethical issues throughout this case study, Connie's
actions were very disappointing throughout the whole case study. She did
not protect James to the full extent and instead protected Diane. Connie
did attempt to help Diane in order to help James but when Diane didn't
respond to her advise Connie should have reported Diane for misconduct.
The moment Connie saw Diane nearly slam James' head into a brick wall,
she should have removed him immediately and reported her through the
proper channels. Connie made excuses for Diane and her behavior by
justifying that Diane is usually good with students with special needs and
maybe since she believes this student has emotional issues that is the
cause of her conduct. The other issue is Connie had given lots of advise to
Diane in order for her to help James, and Diane didn't change anything
about her approach. Even though Connie noticed this trend when asked
about it, she lied and said that Diane had been receptive to her advice
and had been modifying her approach with James and it was becoming
more and more successful; when in actuality Diane's behavior towards
James was getting worse. Connie noticed how Diane treated James and
how she constantly put her hands on him and provoked him to get
physical back. She saw this time and time again and did nothing to
protect James from this type of abuse. Diane, James' second grade
teacher, had many ethical issues in her conduct. Diane continuously
aggressively touched James inappropriately, such as grabbing him by the
wrist and dragging him down the hall, pushing him down in his seat, and
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being so rough with him he nearly was slammed against a brick wall.
Diane also lied about her efforts in trying to change her approach with
James by saying she had tried to implement the techniques Connie had
recommended but clearly did not. Diane also created a story that James
has an emotional and behavioral disability in order to move him out of her
class knowing that Mitchell Elementary doesn't have a EBD class. Diane
constantly provoked James to act out by touching him and doing things
she knew would make him upset and act out, in order to build a case that
he

had

behavioral

issue.

Ms.

Alton

was

ethically

wrong

for

recommending that James be moved to an EBD class because she wasn't

basing his removal from Diane's class off of a diagnoses of an emotional
or behavioral disability but because she believed Diane was a contributor
to James' behavioral issues and thought he would be better off in a
different classroom. Instead of Ms. Alton going to the principal and stating
her opinion she opted to protect the teacher Diane instead of the student
and his best interest. Ms. Knight, the principal, her ethical issue revolved
around the fact that she never stepped in and observed Diane and never
attempted to get down to the root of the issue . The principal never took
any steps at all to protect James, and didn't set up a structured plan in
order to create a safe environment for James.
2. Describe

and

critique

Dianes

instructional,

classroom

management and disciplinary procedures and how they may have

affected Jamess progress with his learning. What about the class
as a whole?
Diane's instructional strategies were very ineffective and inappropriate for
a kindergarten classroom. She had her morning circle time last over 25
minutes with no student interaction, it was teacher directed only. During
reading time the students were expected to stay at their desk as Diane
would read a story aloud without showing them the pictures. as she was
reading students were working on a worksheet that shouldn't have been
passed out until after the story was read because it was distracting
students were working on the work sheet when they should have been
listening to the story. The worksheet had many of the students frustrated
and struggling because it was a picture matching worksheet, yet
throughout the story they were never shown any of the pictures to make a
reference to.
Diane's classroom management was not well thought out, her transitional
changes from different lessons were not structured which caused chaos in
the classroom , and created confusion amongst the class. Also she needed
to have a structured management plan for each of her students in order
to understand what would help them focus and not be distracted by
others. A prime example of her failure to do this was prevalent in the
seating assignment of James. She had him sitting in the middle of a group
of students during a calendar lesson which was very distracting for him. if
Diane were to adjust her lessons and procedures based on the students
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needs she would realize he would do better sitting closer to the front of
the calendar.
Disciplinary procedures were not effective because she was not consistent
with the usage of the color chart. She threatened her students with
changing their charts to red without going through the steps of changing
to yellow and so on and so forth. She didn't have a proper disciplinary
plan set forward which is why she would be frustrated constantly. And
worst of all she put her hands on James and continued to handle him
roughly to get him to behave which didn't work.
James

was

affected

by

Diane's

lack

of

classroom

management,

instructional routine because it was inappropriate for his age the length of
time the lessons were, the way the lessons were taught which were
teacher based and not interactive, and he was definitely effected in a
negative way by Diane's discipline through being roughly handled and
scolded constantly. The class as a whole was affected because her
teaching instruction causes cause and confusion amongst the class, and
her lesson are hard to follow and do not have structure which is why all
the students were having difficulty during the read aloud while working on
a worksheet that wasn't properly explained or modeled.
3. What efforts, if any, were made to protect James from harmful
learning conditions? Who, if anyone made efforts to protect
James from harmful learning conditions? (Consider all characters
in the case study)
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I don't believe anyone put that much effort into helping James get out of a
harmful learning environment. I believe everyone involved had the power
to help him but no one actually did anything. the only person being
protected was Diane. The only thing Connie did to help was give good
advice to Diane on how to handle James and how to help him. The
problem with that was Diane didn't utilize the advise and actually became
more physical with James as time progressed. Connie just sat back and
watched it happen and would occasionally step in and take over dealing
with James when Diane was getting to frustrated with him. Ms. Alton
thought if James moved schools it would protect I'm from Diane, which it
would, but that wasn't academically the best move for him. If anyone
needed to be moved out of the classroom it was Diane. The principal Ms.
Knight was no help at all because in the end she has the ultimate decision
on what should be done and she chose to protect Diane instead of help
James escape the treatment he was receiving by an abusive teacher.
4. Analyze the effectiveness of Connies method of consulting with
Diane about her instructional and disciplinary procedures.
Connie was not effective at all when consulting with Diane about her
instructional and disciplinary procedures because Diane would pretend
like she would listen but would continue to do the same thing she had
been doing prior or use what Connie instructed her to do but use it in a
negative way. One example of this is when Connie told Diane to go for a
walk with James to talk to deescalate certain situations, which Diane did
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but instead of just walking with him she provoked him to get upset by
holding his hand, grabbing his wrist, and dragging him out the room.
James felt threatened by Diane and she used that to her advantage.
Connie explained to Diane that she should not put her hands on James or
be in his personal space because it upsets him prior to this incident as
well. Another example of this is when Diane sat directly behind James
during story time, because she thought he might misbehave if she wasn't
near him, but because she was right behind him it made him very
uncomfortable and upset and he ended up scratching her. Connie tried to
help Diane by observing her class and how she handled James, so she
could later give feedback but Diane's approach was getting so out of hand
Connie had to step in often with her dealings with James, and then consult
over what happened and what could be done to help afterwards. That
seems like a good way to help a teacher who doesn't know how to handle
a situation but Diane was not receptive to the feed back in her actions.
which clearly meant Connie's methods were ineffective with helping
Diane's instructional and disciplinary procedures. Once Connie realized
that the child's well being and safety was in jeopardy she should have told
the principal and removed that child from her class immediately.
5. Evaluate Connies role in this case study. Include her response to
James, and her contribution to the cycle of conflict.
Connie has a major role in this case study because she had the ability to
help James get out of the harmful situation. Connie does step in and
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deescalate situations between him and Diane when she is observing

Diane teach but when Connie was not in the room she did nothing to
defend him or help him get out of that situation. She was a main
contributor

to

the

cycle

of

conflict

because

she

misrepresented

information, she didn't report Diane the first time she saw her push James,
and she even over heard Diane lie about James biting her when that never
happened. Connie pushed and manipulated her way which lead to James
staying in Diane's room, when really she should have insisted he be
moved out of Diane's room immediately. he shouldn't have been placed in
an EBD classroom but not in Diane's class for sure. Connie just sat back
and watched Diane mistreat a 5 year old and did nothing to help him
other than give advice to a teacher who wasn't willing to make any
changes.
6. Identify and elaborate on possible barriers that were created as a
result of the conflict between Diane and James that may have
impacted Jamess participation in the general curriculum.

What

strategies would you recommend to address those barriers?

(Consider the classs access to the curriculum and additional
services)
I noticed several barriers and these are the 5 that stood out to me the
most
1. lack of communication between school and James' parents- Diane, Ms.
Alton, Connie, or Ms. Knight ever attempted to reach out to James'
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parents and inform them what was happening it their child. No incident
reports were ever filled out or given to James' parents. A strategy to fix
this would be to have procedures in place for incidents like these such as
parent teacher meetings, a parent conference with Connie to get her
professional option, or a meeting between all parties involved.
2. Lack of professionalism amongst school staff- No one in this case study
showed any form of professionalism the meeting that was held to discus
James' , on whether or not he had a behavioral disability was gossipy and
was full of lies. The meeting was un professional, and ended up being
unproductive because at the end of the meeting nothing changed Diane
was still teaching and James was still suffering in her classroom. Diane
was very un professional through her inability to take constructive
criticism and feedback and also based on lies that she told about James in
order to get him removed from her class. A strategy to fix this would be to
put Diane through training on how to handle difficult situations. Also if the
principal and the diagnostician actually went and observed Diane's class
they would be better able to make informed decisions on what steps
should be taken to help this situation.
3. Diane being physical with James- This is a huge barrier Diane could not
control herself for whatever reason and continued to touch James
inappropriately no matter what Connie or Ms. Alton or the principal said
she continued to put her hands on him. This was obviously a huge
deterrent form James ability to stay focused and want to participate in
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class. A strategy to resolve this issue would be to suspend Diane until she
had the proper training on how to handle children, and move James to a
different class.
4. Diane not catering her lessons for kindergarten- Diane had to long of
lessons, they were not interactive with the students, her transitioning
from lesson to lesson was unorganized and caused confusion amongst the
class. A strategy to resolve this would be for Diane to go through proper
training on how to model lessons, and learn new techniques for her age
group of students that would engage them and help them be more
successful in the classroom.
5. Lack of accountability- Diane was not held accountable for any of her
actions. She was being extremely aggressive and bullying a single student
and never was reprimanded or have to go through any disciplinary action,
which is why she continued to ignore Connie's suggestions. A strategy to
fix this would to simply hold Diane accountable for her actions through
suspension, counseling, additional training, removal from the classroom,
or termination.

7. Discuss if and how Diane or Connie may have misrepresented

information regarding the situation with James.
Connie misrepresented information about her progress she made with
coaching Diane on how to deal with James and her class as a whole.
Connie told the principal that Diane had been receptive to her
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suggestions and seems to be committed to modifying her approach so

that James will be more successful in the class. But, that was not true at
all Diane had done none of those things and actuality had continued her
same approach and continued to do things she knew would upset James
in order to get a negative response from him. Connie also never shared
with the principal Diane's aggressive and violent behavior with towards
James. Connie made the situation sound far less dangerous than it was by
just saying Diane's approach with James needed help in order for him to
be helped when really Diane was violent with the child and needed to be
removed from the class because she was incapable of keeping her hands
to herself. I believe leaving out information is the same thing as lying, and
Connie not sharing that Diane nearly slammed James head in the wall was
something that should have been told immediately among other things.
Diane misrepresented the whole situation with James, making herself out
to be a teacher struggling to handle a student with a behavioral issue and
that she has been reaching out for assistance without receiving good
results from the child. She asked Connie for help with the student and
would agree to use her advise and nod as though she understood what
Connie was telling her was good for the child and her, but would
immediately go back to her aggressive ways that continue to make James
act out. She lied to Connie saying she has been trying all the techniques
she recommended to her which she clearly was not. Diane also lied to the
principal, telling her that James had bit her, when he did no such thing.
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She lied and told the principal that she believed James had an emotional/
behavioral disability in order to have him removed from her class, and
continued to provoke the child to act in ways that reflected that type of
disorder.
Ms. Alton misrepresented information during a meeting between her
Connie and the principal stating that she recommended James be put in
an EBD class. which was on the surface level true but as a diagnostic
specialist making that statement has power behind it. She made this
recommendation but not from a diagnostic prospective but because she
felt Diane was a threat to James and though he would be better out of her
class.
8. Do you think that James should be placed in a classroom for
students with emotional and/or behavioral disabilities? Why or
why not?
I don't believe James should be placed in a classroom with emotional or
behavioral disabilities because I don't think he has any of those
disabilities. I just believe he needs to be in a classroom that is nurturing
and provides a stable and well organized classroom with a teacher who is
ethical in her dealings with her students. He needs a teacher who has a
structured classroom management plan, and caters her lessons, and
activities appropriately for students at different learning leaves and
appropriate for the proper age group. Diane was a huge contributor on
why he misbehaved and acted out the way he did because she would
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continue aggressive approaches that she knew would upset him

repeatedly.
9. How

did

Connie,

Diane,

Ms.

Knight,

and

Ms.

Alton

use

institutional privileges for their personal benefit?

Everyone involved used their institutional privilege for their personal
benefit in this case study. Diane used institutional privileges because she
knew what behaviors would qualify a student as having an emotional or
behavioral issue. Diane would continue to bait James to act out in
aggressive ways by provoking him, which in turn made it appear as
though he had a behavioral issue.
Ms. Knight used institutional privileges by quickly siding with Diane
requesting that James be removed from her class without consulting with
the counselor or Ms. Alton. Ms. Knight being the principal has the power to
actively change certain situations. This situation could have been
changed in a way that would benefit the child but instead the principal
protected a teacher who was physically abusing a child in her class.
Connie used institutional privileges by manipulating the situation. Connie
knows everyone at the school and used that to her advantage to change
people's minds to what outcome she wanted to happen. She also mislead
people by leading them to believe that Diane was attempting to follow her
advise and was improving her interactions with James.
Ms. Alton used institutional privileges by using her title as a diagnostician
to label James as having a behavioral disability and recommend he be
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moved to an EBD classroom. She did this without any evidence at all. she
used her power to persuade the principal to move James out of the class.
10.

What are Connies ethical responsibilities in this situation? Do

you think she met those responsibilities?

Connie's ethical responsibilities in this situation is to be honest and
truthful and protect James from conditions that are harmful to his
learning, his mental, and physical health or safety, and not use
institutional privileges and I believe she didn't fulfill any of these ethical
responsibilities to the full extent or to any degree in many cases. Connie
was supposed to have the best interest of James, but instead she didn't
protect him. Once she realized Diane was a danger to James, and her
instructional methods, and classroom management was poor she should
have intervened in a more impactful way. No teacher should put their
hands on a student and the minute they do it should be reported
immediately. I believe Connie should have informed administration so
professionals other than her could observe Diane's classroom and do
some type of investigation on the happenings in that classroom.
11.

If you were in this situation, how would you approach Diane

and facilitate a resolution?

I would observe Diane and give her feedback similar to Connie's feedback.
If she wasn't receptive I would recommend she get training on how to
handle a class without being physical. Even though I would provide this
type of guidance I still would have reported her for nearly slamming
15

James' head into the wall. I would also document all instances of physical
contact between her and the student, and build a case for that student
based on her behavior. James is in kindergarten and can't protect himself
from her or even explain to an adult what is happening. As public servants
and as a teacher it is our job to protect these students, and I would do my
very best to get Diane suspended removed and best case scenarios
retired from teaching. When a teacher loses the best interest of a child
they become a danger to the sanctity of what other teacher have worked
so hard to create. As teachers we have a moral and ethical responsibility
that has to be upheld, because without that we lose the trust with in our
community and become a spectacle in front of the media. It only takes
one teacher to change the perspective a student may feel about school
and their education for the rest of their lives.

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