ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on school leaders’ recognition of ethical dilemmas and application of ethics in their professional decision making. Educators, and many others for that matter, often confuse and intersperse terms such aslaw, ethics, morals, values, and personal preferences. Both ethics and morals are defined as “custom or usage” and, in this respect, they are synonymous. Several educators have recognized the importance of developing educational leaders for ethical decision making. Beck refer to an “unprecedented amount of interest in explicit consideration of ethical issues by educators and students”. School law courses remain a staple of many educational leadership programs. In discussing case law related to what is legal and what is ethical, important themes emerge. These themes are also apparent in educational literature that focuses on what constitutes good administrative practice. They include issues related to: the importance of access to education for all students; the extent that schools inculcate values; and so on.
