This paper examines three interconnected dimensions of school policy and culture. First, it outlines the essential characteristics of an effective school Code of Conduct, arguing that changing societal conditions — including violence, gang behavior, and single-parent households — require clearer, fairer, and more enforceable behavioral standards. Second, it explores the role of ethics in education, tracing the concept to ancient philosophy and emphasizing that modeling ethical behavior helps students internalize positive values. Third, it addresses school safety through the Safe Schools Act, with particular attention to the growing problem of bullying and the conditions that enable it. Together, the three sections argue for a holistic approach to creating safe, ethical, and well-governed school environments.
The school environment has changed considerably over the past several decades. As is typical, schools reflect many of society's values, and the cultural changes experienced in broader society are then mirrored within the classroom. This has become particularly true when it comes to school violence, student behavior, and the availability of firearms and weapons within the school environment.
Sociological changes — including one-parent households, technology, gang behavior, and substance abuse — require that schools adopt a stricter Code of Conduct that provides a semblance of safety for both faculty and the student body (Ballantine, 2007). However, it is equally important that any Code of Conduct adequately reflect the standards expected of students, and that it be reasonable, fair, and equitable — as well as enforceable.
The Code should suit the developmental needs of learners at all levels. It must contain a set of moral values, norms, and principles that are relevant to student life. It should clarify and promote the positive roles and responsibilities of students, and encourage them to take on the role of stakeholder within the school system. The Code should be positive in tone, yet clear and unambiguous regarding consequences.
It is important that the Code be communicated to students at multiple levels, given the wide disparity in reading ability across a student population. Communication is ultimately the key: the Code must be made available to parents and the community alike, and it must be reinforced on a daily basis by faculty and administrative staff (Barry, pp. 320–22).
The study of ethics has been part of the human condition for centuries. Ethics, by nature, is a moral and philosophical concept. Ancient in origin, it tries to help humans understand the best way to live within a group, participate in cultural values, and understand how the individual interacts with the collective. Ethics also helps us make material and conceptual judgments regarding behavior, our approach to others, and even our approach to group norms such as political life (Cahn and Markie, 2008).
Even as far back as Ancient Greece, the guiding principles of ethics focused on what it means to be human. The goal of humanity, in this tradition, is happiness — and happiness is achieved through virtue and morality. Since all individuals naturally desire happiness, it follows that in essence all humans are drawn toward ethical behavior (Cahn and Markie, 2008).
This principle is highly applicable to the school system, because the learning environment must reflect the relevance and reasons behind certain behavioral expectations. If the behaviors modeled within that environment are ethical and moral, students have a far better chance of emulating them and incorporating them into their own lives. This is not a new idea — it has been recognized for millennia. As one 1913 article observed: "Within a few years a strong demand has arisen for ethical teaching in the schools" (Ethics in the Schools, 1913 & 2006).
"Purpose of school and need for safe environments"
"Conditions enabling bullying in school settings"
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