Ethical leadership is the demonstration of appropriate conduct through personal actions and relationships and the promotion of such conduct to others through communication, reinforcement and decision making.
The National Policy Board for Educational Administration (NPBEA) Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (formerly the ISLLC Standards) has defined ethical leadership under Standard 2: Ethics and Professional Norms, as:
Effective educational leaders act ethically and according to professional norms to promote each student’s academic success and well-being.”
NPBEA, 2015
This course focuses on the behaviors and attitudes that define ethical leadership. It contains scenarios that help learners discriminate among a variety of behaviors in identifying the ethical ideal, including identifying moral issues and ethical dilemmas. Elements within this dimension include understanding the core principles, how a leader gains credibility and authenticity with staff and the learning community, and how a leader is perceived as a role model. Professional and ethical behavior crosses through all of the Professional Standards for Educational Leaders.
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course module, the learner will:
- Define ethical leadership.
- Acquire and apply strategies that enable educators to discriminate among a variety of behaviors in identifying the ethical ideal.
- Apply strategies to assist in ensuring that behavior is ethical in all day- to-day interactions with members of the school community and to show, by example, the need for high ethical standards.
- Define the relationships between morals, values, and ethics; and communicate the shared values of the school community.
- Differentiate between moral issues and ethical dilemmas and respond appropriately in each scenario.
- Use key strategies and techniques to ensure ethical decision making.
Lessons contain exercises that you will be asked to complete, and resources you can use for continuous learning. Use a personal journal to record your completed exercises and document your learning in this course. This guide can assist you with creating your personal journal. Your school district facilitator may request you submit your personal journal to show proof of course completion. Direction on where to submit your finished journal will be provided by your district facilitator, should they require it.
Select a lesson from the table of contents below to begin your learning. Lessons do not need to be completed in sequence. The pre-test and post-test are optional. If you would like to receive a certificate of completion, you must mark each lesson as complete.