To Advise or Not to Advise?

That is the Question:

Ethical Dilemma Faced in Secondary School Practicum

Nicole Rocha

EDST404 302

Ashenafi Alemu Aboye (PhD)

Friday June 21, 2019

 During my practicum, I was faced with an ethical dilemma surrounding a particular student

in my French 12 course. My student, who was a female and over the age of eighteen, came to find

me during my planning time to speak to me about a personal matter. I had been in the department

staff room and came out to speak with her in the hallway in order to assure that our interaction was

conducted in a public place. The student went on to explain to me that her younger brother (who

was also a student at my practicum school) had been arrested and was currently being detained.

She was visibly upset and as she continued to explain her situation, she began to cry and asked for

a hug from me. In this moment I needed to decide whether I felt it would be ethical or not for me

to have physical contact with the student by giving her a hug. This posed to be both an ethical and

moral dilemma for me, as I felt empathy and the need to comfort the student, while being afraid

there could be negative repercussions in doing so.

Ultimately, I decided to first ask the student “would it be okay to give you a hug?” before

hugging her, even though she had already asked for one. As Ehrich, Kimber, Millwater & Cranston

(2011) explain, “As a profession, teachers are expected to uphold a duty of care, acting in the best

interested of their students” (p.175). In this particular moment, I felt that it was in the best interest

of th student to comfort her and that in rejecting her request for a hug, I could be doing more harm

than care. In the teaching profession, we need to remind ourselves that it is important to show

empathy and compassion for those when they need it. In this particular circumstance, it was more

than reasonable to decide to give a student a side hug which was done so in a public space within

the school; this ensured that I was being supportive of my student, yet ensuring that I had also

demonstrated my professionalism and intent to follow school and district policies.

When I reflect on this particular dilemma, I believe that my choice was the right one that

is also in line with my teaching practice and philosophy. As teachers, we are not only shaping our

students’ minds, but we serve as role models and examples of what values we aspire for future
generations to have and uphold. In this particular circumstance, I felt that my hugging and

comforting of my student demonstrates character education; not only for my student, but for any

other student and/or colleague that may have walked by in the hallway and witnessed our

interaction. As Howard, Berkowitz and Schaeffer (2004) note, “Character education, a vital tool

for preparing our young people in schools, had had to confront political issues and challenges of

its own” (p. 189). Although the social climate in our current society frowns upon student-teacher

physical interactions, it needs to be noted that there is an appropriate place, time and manner in

which such behaviour and compassion can be demonstrated. The idea behind character education

is to “prepares individuals to make ethical judgments and to act on them, that is, to do what one

thinks ought to be done” (Howard, Berkowitz and Schaeffer, 2004, p.189). It would be

unreasonable to expect teachers to impart character education onto students without demonstrating

it ourselves. If want to create students who demonstrate empathy, compassion and who listen to

others when they are in need of someone, then it should be expected for teachers to demonstrates

such skills and character themselves.

I was able to make my student feel heard, important and overall comforted in giving her a

hug and listening to her story. She had asked me for advice, in which I told her she ought to speak

with her counsellor to see what resources they could provide during this difficult time. I thanked

her for feeling comfortable enough to seek me and share with me what was happening in her life

and that everything would work out. I followed-up with counsellors and my School Advisor to

inform them of her current situation in order to keep them informed and ensure she received the

help she deserved and needed.

The best way we can teach our students to develop character and ethics is to display them

ourselves in how we teach and more importantly, in how we treat and interact with our students.
 References

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.

https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/doi/abs/10.1080/13540602.2011.539794

Howard, R. W., Berkowitz, M. W., & Schaeffer, E. F. (2004). Politics of character education.

Educational Policy, 18(1), 188-215. doi:10.1177/0895904803260031