The first article that I read was titled Public school Law: Teachers’ and student’s rights by Martha McCarthy. The author highlights the legal rights of the teacher and student alike. A court can determine that An educator is liable if he or she could have “foreseen and prevented the injury by exercising proper care” as documented in the Negligent Tort Law (McCarthy & Cambron-McCabe, 1992). Furthermore, the same law states that the duty to protect is a crucial component of the teacher’s role in the classroom. This highly sensitive responsibility includes taking all of the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of students that are being supervised. As a result, if an accident or injury occurs which could have been prevented or predicted by any member of the staff and proper supervision was overlooked then the law declares that negligence has occurred. However, if a poor choice or non-compliance with classroom rules by the student contributed to the incident, it can be classified as contributory negligence in which the teacher can no longer be held liable. Often the factors of development and age appropriate ability are evaluated closely in attempt to establish contributory negligence. In addition, various other components are addressed when a claim of negligence is investigated. These other contributing factors can be the certification and professional training of the supervising instructor, the surroundings in which the incident took place, and the nature of the activity and preservation of any equipment that may have been involved. As a budding professional enters the field of education, such laws and mandatory “duty of care” can often be nerve-racking. However, many facilities and public school unions require that specific routine evaluations be conducted in order to decrease the potential of injuries from occurring.

The second resource reviewed was titled Rights and Responsibilities of a Teacher and a Student by Sarah Ganly. The author examines as educator’s responsibility in the classroom as well as the legal rights of the students. Student safety is obviously a top priority for the classroom teacher and is considered a legal right for the child. Yet, the child’s parents also have the right to enroll their child in a program that has the overall safety of their child in mind. In addition, the author addresses teacher liability and the degree to which they are held accountable. For example the law states that a teacher is “held liable for a student’s welfare if foreseeability of harm exists (Ganly, 2007).” However, not everyone defines a foreseeable and unforeseeable incident the same and providing proof is even more difficult. Consequently, any and all extenuating circumstances must be examined and every incident should be evaluated on an individual basis. A common activity that puts the safety of the students at a greater risk is the event of a field trip. Although this is a great way for the teacher to extend learning and related material to real life experiences, specific preparations should be made to ensure the safety of all students. There is a lot to do when planning a field trip and the teacher’s responsibilities should not be taken lightly. In light of previous incidents of negligence and inappropriate student conduct in various American public schools, the rights of students and the responsibilities of the supervising teacher has received much controversy in the media. While everyone has an opinion regarding the situations reported on the news, people often lack the knowledge to form an educated opinion and do not understand the relationship that exist between teacher responsibility and student rights. For instance, when hosting a class field trip it is a responsibility of the hosting teacher to take the necessary precautions to ensure student safety on the field trip. However, the fact is that under specific circumstances a teacher may be required to limit the student’s rights in order to preserve the safety of the individual or the entire group. Therefore, the issue of teacher rights and responsibilities when compared to student rights and responsibilities can often difficult to decipher. Despite the specifics of each situation, it is important to remember that the teacher ultimately is liable to protect the student who in turn has the basic right to be protected from harm. However, the question of when a teacher can override a student’s individual rights is often an issue. In my opinion, a situation which may require the teacher to override an individual’s rights would be an incident where one student intentionally or unintentionally puts another individual’s safety in danger. For instance, if a group was on a hiking field trip and a student was throwing rocks, the teacher would have the right and responsibility to remove that particular child from the field trip and any other future activities of the day to ensure the safety of other students. One could argue that the student’s exclusion from the instructional activity was a violation of his or her individual’s rights, but not when the teacher’s responsibility of reasonable care is jeopardized due to the contributing actions of the student in question. The third article I found interesting when conducting my research was by author Edgar Baguio titled Response and Responsibility in the Classroom. The main focus of this article is the overall responsibilities of students within the classroom. However, the author also introduces the idea of response which entails the way in which a student reacts to a teacher’s classroom management. Therefore, responsibility would define the student’s job of following classroom rules and procedures. Furthermore, the author discusses that an effective classroom consists of both a teacher and students who follow through with their responsibilities and promises. Baguio believes that when both parties “do their responsibilities, it is easier to rely and trust each other (Baguio, 2008).” Therefore, when trust is established classroom management becomes less of an issue. After reviewing the legal and ethical implications of classroom management, I feel that my current method of classroom management is very ethical and age-appropriate. My preferred style is based on positive reinforcement and behaviorism. I have developed my own behavior management system with debits and credits as I have yet to find a behavior management system that best suits my personal educational philosophy. In my opinion, another responsibility of a teacher is to teach a child self-monitoring techniques and hold them accountable for making smart choices. The ultimate goal would be for students to become independent while meeting their goals through responsible choices and developing life skills for future experiences. By giving the students such responsibilities, the teacher is in turn encouraging ownership of the learning experience and overall success. In turn, this approach not only holds the students accountable, but also promotes responsibility and introduces the requirements of the individual to achieve personal goals.

Baguio, E. (2008). http://www.scribd.com/doc/2936599/Response-and-Responsibility-in-the-Classroom

Ganly, S. (2007). Rights and Responsibilities of a Teacher and a Student. Retrieved on March 28, 2009, from Associated Content: Information from the Source Website: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/352999/rights_and_responsibilities_of_a_teacher.html?cat=4 Kagan, S. (2002). What is Win-Win Discipline? Retrieved on June 6, 2009, from the Kagan Online Journal Web site: http://www.kaganonline.com/KaganClub/ FreeArticles/ASK15.html
McCarthy, M.M. & Cambron-McCabe, N.H. (1992). Public school Law: Teachers’ and student’s rights (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.