101623 Ethical Futures And Addressing the ethical dilemma

In this respect, the teacher or the educator is often presented with hindrances by the practices adopted by the parents in rearing the child. As commented by DiPaola et al. (2014), the parents need to be transparent about sharing of information with an educator. This helps in understanding the requirements of the child. However, as argued by Olsen (2015), advocating the special needs of the child with external agencies is often seen as a greater degree of indulgence by the teachers. In this respect, the Privacy Act, 1998, regulates the sharing of personal information related to a person. Thus, any violation in the ethical sharing of information may subject an educator to legal penalties as applicable (Gess-Newsome, 2015).

Personal and professional values in addressing diverse needs

In this respect, the concerns of the educator may be divided into personal and professional values. Thus, promoting workplace diversity and encouraging sufficient participation from the educators of different cultural background could help in catering to the diverse needs of the children. Additionally, promotion of positive parenting from parents of different cultural backgrounds should be supported. As commented by Peyton et al. (2017), organising cultural workshops by the teachers could act as a promoter in cultural satisfaction.

The professional values focus more on the communication needs of the diverse group of children. As commented by Pastorelli et al. (2016), Australia harbours as many as 260 different languages, which emphasises more upon cross lingual communication. Therefore, the language rights of the non-natives or the immigrants need to be respected. Thus, the involvement of bilingual interpreters can facilitate the process of cross-cultural communication.

Ethical principles underlying the issues

A number of different ethical principles can be described within reference to addressing the diverse needs of the children. In this respect, a number of different approaches could be used in order to understand the underlying issues. Some of these are the relational ethics approach, the principal approach to ethics and values ethics. The relational ethics is built around the concept of understanding the multi-dimensional aspect of relationship for providing sufficient caring services to the children and their respective families. As commented by Nguyen et al.(2014), the goal of the relational aspect is to provide both process and content for ethical behaviour.

The principal ethics, on the other hand, emphasises on the consideration of parents and educators of the children as a group. As commented by Muir & Bohr (2014), the principles are designed to guide the parents and the educators regarding the everyday methods and practices. The virtual ethics says that moral considerations need to be implemented within the daily practices and approaches. The implementation of the approaches helps in active decision-making. It also helps in making informed choices, which further helps in avoiding any further disputes.

Tools and models used in decision-making

Figure 1: Rational decision-making model

(Source: Mertler, 2016)

The rational decision-making model may be used by the educator in order to arrive at a suitable plan for providing sufficient care and support to the children. The entire model could be divided into an 8-step process. The first step is focussed upon identifying the learning difficulty or problem faced a child. The parameters need to be considered based on which the decision needs to be made. This includes the readiness of the parents as well as the children in supporting the process. As mentioned by Patrick et al. (2013), the cultural values of the participants need to be respected over here. In this context, inefficiency in the English language may act as huge deterrence in the learning process. Therefore, the teachers need to plan suitable alternatives for providing sufficient learning measures to the student. As commented by Noriega et al. (2017), the implementation of the programme needs support and participation from the parents. Moreover, the implementation needs to be supported by sufficient evaluation. Thus, reflecting upon the outcomes can help in addressing the weaknesses associated with the inculcation of the plan in the workplace. Additionally, a number of hindrances are also offered by the inability of a group to participate in active and collaborative decision-making. This often leaves a number of loopholes and gaps in the process, which needs to be addressed accordingly.

Reflective journal

Analysing personal ethical learning and growth

In order to develop ethical learning at the personal level, I need to spend more time with the children. In working with children from different cultural backgrounds, I may be exposed to a number of cultural paradoxes. Therefore, as an educator, I need to develop an understanding relationship with the parents of the children. I can extend my help to them in understanding the benefits associated with a particular approach.

I also think, spending time with the children will help me in adding virtues to my personal growth and learning. The workshops organised helped me in understanding the difficulties associated with the learning process. The workshops also helped me in getting a hold over confidential sharing of information without hurting the feelings of the participants. Additionally, I think spending time with children from culturally and linguistically different backgrounds can help me in broadening the horizon of my expertise and knowledge.

Moreover, the educators can take additional measures where workshops and meetings could be organised in order to discuss relevant matters with the parents of the children. In my opinion, educational seminars along with video presentations can help in spreading awareness in parents as well as the children. It is particularly useful in coping with the cultural paradoxes. As per the myths and the beliefs possessed by people in few regions, educating the children may invite additional costs. According to me, sufficient support from the government and federal government organizations can help in meeting with the deficits. Additionally, sufficient training programmes of the teachers implemented by the government can help in meeting the requirements. I think such learning programmes can help me in meeting the demand and challenges of the profession. It would enhance my personal skills in catering to the diverse needs of the students.

Influence of personal professional values on the work of a teacher

The work of a teacher is influenced by the values encountered in the process of catering to the diverse needs of children from different cultural backgrounds. Here, as an educator, I need to look after the learning needs as well as the overall growth and development of the children. Therefore, understanding the workplace dynamics can help me in adding values to my personal and professional skills. 

In the context, of working along with diverse groups of professionals or educators from different cultural backgrounds, possessing different expertise can help me in adding values to my professional skills. Moreover, working with children from diverse cultural backgrounds with difference of opinions can help me in developing respect and cordiality and inculcating them within my profession.

Ethical tools, theories, models in addressing workplace dilemmas

The values professed by an educator in both personal and professional contexts can play a huge role in addressing the diverse needs of the children. The present assignment focuses upon the ethical dilemmas associated with learning and the effect of the professional and personal values on the role of an educator. This is particularly beneficial in dealing with children of the Aboriginal and Torres island race. These people come from diverse cultural backgrounds with a unique language of their own. Therefore, they need help and support from the educators in meeting the challenges faced in learning. As asserted by Noriega et al. (2017), the children of the aboriginal race face greater difficulties in understanding the English language.

I being a teacher can play an instrumental role over here by addressing a number of loopholes within the services offered to such diverse groups of children. I need to follow the relational ethics approach in order to develop a bond of understanding with the family members of the CALD children. In my opinion, inculcation of the family members of the group in the decision making can provide them with greater autonomy. However, a number of ethical dilemmas are faced in sharing of the confidential information related to a child. Thus, I think better communication approaches such as discussing the matter with other educators of my group can help me resolve the issues.

Moreover, I can use tools such as the rational decision-making model in order to understand the different alternatives, which could be used by me for providing better problem-solving approach. The implementation of the model is based on constant evaluation and critics. The loopholes deciphered can help in resolving the dilemmas encountered in the delivery of the services.

Conclusion and recommendations

Diversity is an evolutionary tool and plays a pivotal in the sustenance of the humankind. In this context, the diverse educational needs of the students within an education sector have been highlighted. There are almost 400 different languages spoken within the Australian continent. Therefore, the schools and colleges in Australia need to address students from a culturally diverse group of students. Therefore, I think the educators need to be trained sufficiently to deal with the diverse requirements of the students.

I think designing methods, which caters to the emotional and overall well being of the children from cultural and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. In my opinion, the learning needs of the children also have to be considered by the educators in designing the curriculum plan. Thus, further evaluation along with support at individual and community level is required in order to meet the diverse needs and challenges.

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