RSSProfessional Ethics
:: Introduction ::
The debate concerning the ethics of education that took place in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century has gained renewed, worldwide interest in the past two decades. The contemporary debate targets two overlapping sides of the role morality plays in education: the moral behaviour of the teacher and the morality children learn in school.
In 2001, Education International (EI), officially entered this debate when the Declaration on Professional Ethics (DPE) was adopted by EI’s 3rd World Congress held in Jomtien, Thailand. The document was further updated at its 4th World Congress in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
The DPE is mainly intended as a blueprint for EI affiliates' own guidelines. It is complementary to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998) and draws on the UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers (1966) and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1948).
Its objectives are:
- to raise consciousness about the norms and ethics of the teaching profession;
- to help increase job satisfaction in education; to enhance status and self-esteem, and;
- to increase respect for the profession in communities.