Examining the associations between educators’ ethics position and ethical judgment in student assessment practices

Abstract

The relationship between educators’ ethics position and ethical judgment in student assessment practices remain unclear. The current study filled the research gap utilizing a sample of 406 educators (in-service teachers, pre-service teachers, and educational administrators) who completed a survey with relevant questions. The respondents were classified into four ethics position groups – situationists, exceptionists, subjectivists and absolutists. They had divided opinions in making ethical judgments (ethical or unethical) on 13 out of the 18 assessment scenarios. The logistic regression results indicated that educators’ ethics positions were significantly associated with their ethical judgment in seven student assessment scenarios. Exceptionists were more likely to endorse certain student assessment practices that are not recommended by assessment books, while subjectivists were more likely to have similar opinions with assessment books in certain practices. The study helps us gain a deeper understanding of educators’ individual differences in making ethical judgments about student assessment practices.