Teachers’ ethical responsibility in teaching; to guide the children about right and wrong

Abstract

Teaching involves an ethical dimension that tends to remain unspoken and thus difficult to reflect on and discuss. From the perspective of professionalism, professional ethics and a common knowledge base are important to the quality and status of the teaching profession. This descriptive phenomenological study was motivated by the need to know more about how teachers understand their own professional ethics and how this is expressed through their teaching. The essence of the phenomenon is formulated through the analysis of interviews with nine teachers in Sweden who teach children from the age of 1–16. The results show that the teachers’ main ethical responsibility is to guide the children about right and wrong. The guidance, a safe learning environment, and relationships with and between the children are dependent on each other. The surrounding society affects the guidance of the children, as well as opportunities for collaboration with guardians and colleagues.