Teacher Conduct

Teacher conduct is a popularly discussed topic. It is one that is highly debated, and can lead to serious consequences for the teacher or the school as a whole. Teachers are held to higher standards in the public's eye. Because of the standard that has been set, it is important for teachers to keep their personal lives out of the public's eye. Being ethical, modest, and respectful are among some of the characteristics that teachers are expected to possess at all times. In the following paragraphs, there will be three different teacher conduct scenarios analyzed and dissected thoroughly. It is important to keep in mind that many decisions that are made based on teacher conduct differ from state to state, or from school district to school district.

The first scenario involves a first-grade teacher and religious issues. For three Friday's in a row, the teacher has worn a shirt that reads, "I Love Jesus". The teacher claims that she can wear the shirt based on civil rights even after she is asked by the principle to no longer wear the shirt. The teacher goes on to threaten a lawsuit against the principle for threatening her civil rights. Teachers are not allowed to promote religion to students. Although there are arguments on the choice of religious clothing, teachers have lost battles in court regarding religious clothing. The teacher in this scenario threatens the principle with a lawsuit. The teacher, however, is likely to lose this battle. "Religion in Public Schools" states, "some courts have held that state statutes restricting teachers from wearing certain clothing are constitutional" (2013, para. 3). The reason that it is considered constitutional to restrict teacher's clothing is due to the issues with promoting religion in schools.

Next, we are looking at a fifth-grade teacher who accuses a student of cheating on an exam. The teacher notices a student looking at another student's exam and takes the exam from him or her. On taking the exam, the teacher...