Ethics Ethics - NAEYC

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What do you think a good early childhood educator should do in this situation? How can Alicia use the NAEYC Code to guide her thinking and decision making?

Ethics

Messy Play The response In the November 2011 issue of Young Children, we presented a dilemma related to messy play. In this analysis of the dilemma, we pay special attention to the 2011 reaffirmation and update of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct, which highlights the importance of nurturing two-way communication between teachers/caregivers and families and stresses the importance of ensuring cultural consistency between children’s homes and early childhood programs. This is the situation: The parent of one of the children in Alicia’s class of 3-year-olds has asked Alicia to keep her daughter, Mia, clean. She does not want Mia to participate in any art or sensory activities that may be messy or dirty. She tells Alicia, When Mia’s clothes get dirty, it is very difficult to remove the paint, glue, dirt, and other stains she brings home. We’ve tried every type of detergent, but nothing works. It’s very important to me that she looks neat and clean when she comes to school. That means I have had to replace many of her everyday pants, tops, and dresses. I cannot continue to spend that extra money. What’s more, she often gets paint under her nails and on her hair, arms, and legs. It is taking me even longer to give her a bath when she comes home dirty, and she cries when I have to wash the stains out of her hair. With our busy schedule, we don’t have the time to do this every night. I have to cook, help my other children with their homework, and get everyone to bed in time to wake up early in the morning.

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Alicia wants to honor the family’s value that Mia come to school in clean clothes and certainly understands how hectic evenings can be for working mothers. At the same time, she knows how much Mia enjoys participating in all the activities provided during the school day— especially the messy ones. Alicia firmly believes Mia needs these hands-on, concrete activities to support her development and learning. Alicia also knows how important it is to Mia to have opportunities to play with her classmates. She is a social child who enjoys the give-and-take of the classroom and the choices she can make each day. Alicia believes it would be a real disservice to Mia to limit her choices in the classroom.

The process for resolving a dilemma 1. Identify the problem and determine if it involves ethics. The first step in addressing a workplace problem is to determine if it involves ethics. To do this you ask whether the terms right and wrong or fair and unfair can be applied to the situation. The messy play situation clearly involves ethics. Alicia knows that it would be right to honor the mother’s needs and wishes and that it would also be right to allow Mia to engage in sensory and social experiences she enjoys and appears to need. The next step in addressing a problem is to decide whether it is an ethical dilemma—a situation that has at least two possible justifiable resolutions. In this case there is a conflict between the needs of the child and the needs of the parent. This kind of situation is a complex client case, because it involves conflicting obligations to individuals to whom the early childhood educator has commitments. In looking at this predicament, we can identify two possible reso-

Stephanie Feeney, PhD, is professor emerita of education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She has served on the governing boards of NAEYC and the National Association for Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE). Since the 1980s she has been involved in developing and teaching the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct. [email protected] Nancy Freeman, PhD, is an associate professor of early childhood education at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, where she is the director of the Yvonne and Schuyler Moore Child Development Research Center. She chairs the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Child Care Regulation and is currently the president of the National Association for Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE). [email protected] The authors thank everyone who offered their thoughts about how this situation could be addressed—participants in sessions on professional ethics at the annual conference of the Oregon Association for the Education of Young Children (OAEYC) and at the 2011 NAEYC Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, and second-year early childhood education students at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon. Special thanks go to Jannie Umeda, who submitted and analyzed this case for a course on ethics and professionalism taught at the University of Hawaii. An archive of the Focus on Ethics columns is available at www.naeyc.org/yc/ columns/focusonethics.

Young Children • March 2012

lutions—each of which could be justified using the NAEYC Code.

3. Identify the stakeholders affected by the situation.

• Support the child’s need for sensory and creative learning experiences and deny the mother’s request.

We refer to those who are touched by a dilemma as stakeholders to suggest that they have some stake in the outcome. Alicia has obligations to the following people who will be affected by her decision:

or • Honor the mother’s wish for the child not to come home from school dirty by preventing the child from participating in messy activities.

2. Identify applicable Core Values.

• Mia, who needs hands-on learning and deserves to experience a program that supports all aspects of her development;

Respondents to this dilemma thought that a number of Core Values could be applied to the situation:

• Mia’s mother, who has a busy work schedule and deserves respect from the school staff and assurance that her wishes will be respected;

• Base our work on knowledge of how children develop and learn.

• Mia’s siblings, who also need their mother’s attention in the evening;

• Appreciate and support the bond between the child and family. • Recognize that children are best understood and supported in the context of family, culture, community, and society. • Respect the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each individual (child, family member, and colleague). • Respect diversity in children, families, and colleagues. • Recognize that children and adults achieve their full potential in the context of relationships that are based on trust and respect. Because so many Core Values are relevant, Alicia needs to reflect on how they should be prioritized.

• Herself, as a teacher who is committed to meeting the needs of the children and who wants to do her job with professional integrity; and • Colleagues and administrators, who have an interest in the quality of the program and its relationship to its clients and with the community.

4. Look for guidance in the NAEYC Code. Respondents’ careful review of the Code led them to identify 13 Ideals and Principles that related to responsibilities to children and another 13 related to responsibilities to families. The NAEYC Code emphasizes our strong historical commitment to sup-

porting all areas of children’s development and an equally strong commitment (highlighted in the 2011 affirmation of the Code) to work in close collaboration with children’s families and respect their needs and wishes. In this situation Alicia is faced with the thorny dilemma of determining whether it is more important to honor the relationship with the mother or the needs of the child.

5. Identify the most ethically defensible course of action. There was strong consensus among those who discussed this case that the first thing Alicia should do is to seek a clear understanding of the nature of the mother’s request. Participants in one workshop suggested that Alicia should arrange for a private talk with the mother in which she sensitively sought to understand the underlying reason for her request. They emphasized that it was important for her to suspend judgment and to listen attentively. Tamara Trattner, from Chemeketa College in Salem, Oregon, pointed out, “We have to be seekers of knowledge; if we just give our knowledge, it’s not a partnership.” A number of those discussing the case conjectured about what the mother might really mean by the request. Several participants pointed out that some cultural groups have a strong sense of pride about sending their children to

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Above all, we shall not harm children. We shall not participate in practices that are emotionally damaging, physically harmful, disrespectful, degrading, dangerous, exploitative, or intimidating to children. This principle has precedence over all others in this Code. — NAEYC Code, Principle 1.1, Ethical Responsibilities to Children

clean at night, then there are a number of things that she can do to honor the mother’s wishes while continuing to allow the child to participate in messy activities. Suggestions included having Mia bring an extra set of clean clothes from home and helping her change before she leaves school, washing clothes at school (contingent on having a washing machine), tying back long hair, providing shower caps and big shirts or smocks for all the children to wear, and using invisible gloves for the children (a hand lotion type of protection available in art stores).

school clean and well dressed. They may feel that dressing their child up for school reflects their respect for the teachers and the school as an institution. Other participants pointed out that families may worry that a dirty child or dirty clothes may cause the school staff to think that a child is neglected or that it could reinforce negative stereotypes about a group of people. There was general agreement among the respondents that the quality of the communication between families and school personnel is key in this situation. They emphasized that the teacher should engage in two-way dialogue and listen carefully without discounting the mother’s wishes or judging her viewpoint. They stressed that it was critically important to understand the parent’s views and to be aware of and respect cultural differences.

Modifiy the school program. Schedule messy activities early in the day or provide longer transitions between activities so there is more time for thorough cleanup. Or schedule messy play for a particular day of the week when Mia’s mother would be less rushed in the evening. This strategy would also give her the opportunity to dress Mia with messy activities in mind.

Trying ethical finesse

If ethical finesse does not work

When Alicia is sure that she understands the meaning of the mother’s request, she can begin to think about whether ethical finesse can be applied. This term refers to strategies that early childhood professionals might use to meet the needs of everyone involved in a situation and to avoid having to make a difficult decision. In other words it is a way to arrive at a “win-win” outcome. Everyone who worked on this case thought of things that Alicia could do that could lead to a happy resolution.

Everyone who discussed this case thought that ethical finesse would probably be all that was needed in this situation. However, it is always a good idea to think about what would happen if finesse did not work. If that were the case, Alicia would face a difficult choice.

Help Mia to get home clean. If Alicia determines that the mother’s request really is about how hard it is to get Mia

Modify the activities or the program. These included providing materials that are easier to clean—washable paint (and avoiding red paint), playdough instead of clay, washable markers and other art media that do not stain people or clothes—and painting on sidewalks or fences with water. It was also recommended that children could learn ways to control materials in order to not get so dirty.

Tell Mia’s mother that she cannot honor her request and that she will not prevent Mia from participating in messy activities. This approach was endorsed by some respondents and could be supported by a number of items in the NAEYC Code. One person said, “The priority should always be what is best for the child.”

As in all ethical situations that involve children, Alicia must first consider P-1.1—Above all we shall not harm children. We shall not participate in practices that are emotionally damaging, physically harmful, disrespectful, degrading, dangerous, exploitative, or intimidating to children. This principle has precedence over all others in this Code. Other ethical responsibilities to chil-

dren that apply to this case are: I-1.2—To base program practices upon current knowledge and research in the field of early childhood education, child development, and related disciplines, as well as on particular knowledge of each child. I-1.5—To create and maintain safe and healthy settings that foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development and that respect their dignity and their contributions.

If, after careful observation and reflection, Alicia determines that it would be detrimental to Mia not to be allowed to engage in messy activities, then she would be justified in declining the mother’s request. She could argue that excluding Mia from sensory activities would deprive her of meaningful learning experiences and would be harmful to her development (especially, as one person pointed out, if she had sensory integration problems) or emotionally damaging if she were deprived of significant peer interactions. Do what the mother asked and prevent Mia from participating in messy activities. This approach was supported by some respondents and could also be justified by referencing items in the Code that highlight the importance of respect for and collaboration with families. These include: I-2.2—To develop relationships of mutual trust and create partnerships with the families we serve. I-2.5—To respect the dignity and preferences of each family and to make an effort to learn about its structure, culture, language, customs, and beliefs to ensure a culturally consistent environment for all children and families. I-2.6—To acknowledge families’ childrearing values and their right to make decisions for their children. (cont’d on p. 64)

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P-2.6—As families share information with us about their children and families, we shall ensure that families’ input is an important contribution to the planning and implementation of the program

Alicia would be justified in honoring the parent’s request if she determined that it would not be harmful to Mia, and that denying the request could be detrimental to Alicia’s relationship with the parent or create tension between the mother and child. This option honors the mother’s wishes while communicating respect and increasing the likelihood that their relationship would be productive in the future. In one lively discussion of these alternatives, several people in a session articulated the view that respect for the parent and developing a bond between teacher and family was as important as meeting the immediate needs of the child. Some discussants pointed out that if Alicia decided to agree to the mother’s request, it would be important not to single Mia out in a way that would be embarrassing to her. Alicia would need to offer Mia alternatives and might need to limit access to messy activities for all of the children so that Mia did not feel excluded. There was strong consensus in every group that discussed the case that, whatever she decided to do, Alicia needed to make a concerted effort to help the mother understand the value of sensory play. It was pointed out that the mother might not understand the value of these kinds of activities and how her child was benefitting from them. It was recommended that Alicia cheer Mia’s

creativity and document her learning adventures in messy sensory art in order to explain to the mother what she is doing and why. Alicia could also share some ways that other families had handled this situation. Some people thought that to show respect for the mother’s wishes, Alicia could curtail messy play for a while or redirect Mia to other kinds of activities. Alicia would engage in a dialogue and problem-solving process in which she acknowledged the mother’s feelings and asked for her suggestions about how to handle the situation. One group wanted to remind Alicia that she is the trained professional. While she should take the mother’s request seriously, she should not deny her own knowledge of child development and honor the mother’s wishes without trying to help her understand the program and Mia’s needs. They felt that a skilled early childhood educator should be able to help the mother understand the benefits of sensory activities.

Discussion A program could prevent this kind of situation from occurring by providing a family orientation that includes a demonstration of all of the activities offered to the children and explanations of the developmental rationale for each one. It would include an opportunity for parents to air their concerns and discussions of possible problems and solutions. School policies and a parent handbook could address the benefit of

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Join the discussion We hope that you will find this column valuable—and that you will think about how your center, school, or college class can use these discussions, and contribute to them in the future. The authors’ e-mail addresses appear on page 60.

sensory play for children and guidelines for participation in it. A strong case could be made for both alternatives in this situation and either of the possible resolutions could be justified. Alicia’s decision would ultimately be based on the success of her efforts at ethical finesse and her assessment of the particulars of the situation, including how much Mia was benefitting from sensory activities, how she might react to being excluded from them, and how important it was to build trust with the mother. All of the respondents agreed that the key to a successful resolution would be Alicia’s good-faith efforts to work with Mia’s mother. Many of them advised Alicia to make an effort to listen thoughtfully, to be sure that she understands the mother’s perspective, and to make it clear that she wants to reach a mutually agreed upon decision. Alicia must assure Mia’s mother that her final decision will be based on a foundation of trust and respect. This approach reflects the field’s growing commitment to engaging families in their young children’s everyday experiences in early care and education settings, which was the principle that guided the 2011 update of the NAEYC Code. One of the groups that participated in this discussion highlighted the fact that the Code, including its strengthened emphasis on building partnerships with families, helped them to do a better job of considering the parent and involving her in this process. This is the outcome that those who worked on this recent update to the Code hoped to accomplish.

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