Teachers’ Responsibilities

Teachers Should Provide Quality Education

Of course, most people would say that a teacher’s first responsibility is to teach well. Beyond
the minimum requirements for the job (including education and credentials), federal, state,
and local education agencies set out standards for providing high quality instruction and
ensuring that all students have the opportunity to learn.

It’s not news, however, that many schools and teachers fail to meet those standards. When
that’s true in your child’s school, what can you do? Unfortunately, whenever parents have
tried to sue schools for failing to provide an adequate education (what’s known as educational
malpractice), courts have usually thrown the cases out. If you can’t get your child into a
better school, your only option may be to push for changes in educational (and maybe fiscal)
policies, in your local school district as well as on a statewide level.

Teachers Must Provide Proper Supervision

Teachers have a legal duty to supervise students in the same way that a sensible, careful
parent would do in similar circumstances. If students are hurt because of negligent
supervision, their parents might be able to pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the
school.

Teachers Must Protect Students’ Privacy

Both state and federal laws protect the privacy of school records. Schools must get
permission from parents before revealing information from students’ records to anyone other
than certain school officials and others with an educational or legal need to see the
information.

Teachers also learn things about students that might not be in their records. For instance,
children might tell their teachers (or inadvertently reveal) private information about their
families. Ethical rules typically forbid teachers from passing on any information about
students that they learn in the course of their work unless the disclosure is legally required
or is necessary for purposes of the child’s education.

One legal exception to privacy rules stands out: State laws require teachers and other school
employees to report when children are being mistreated. These laws vary from state to state,
but teachers usually have to make a report whenever they suspect that a child has been
abused or neglected.
Ethical rules typically require teachers to show respect for all students, considering their age,
gender, culture, and socioeconomic background.

Teachers Should Respect Students and Observe Boundaries

Ethical rules typically require teachers to show respect for all students, considering their age,
gender, culture, and socioeconomic background. The Model Code of Ethics spells out specific
behavior that teachers should avoid, including:

 touching students unless there’s a clearly defined reason for doing so

 maintaining personal relationships outside of school with students or their family
members, if those relationships might get in the way of the teacher’s objectivity or
effectiveness, and
 engaging in a romantic or sexual relationship with students under any circumstances.
Obviously, the duty to respect students also includes refraining from any kind of physical or
verbal abuse, harassment, or illegal discrimination.

Limits on Discipline

In order to ensure that all students have a safe and productive learning environment,
teachers have a responsibility to discipline any students who disrupt the classroom and
endanger other children. But state laws and regulations set limits on what teachers can do
to carry out that discipline. Most states outlaw spanking or other types of physical discipline
in schools, but a significant majority still allow it.

Talking With a Lawyer

Consider consulting with a lawyer if you suspect that a teacher has harassed, abused, or
inappropriately touched your child, or has violated your child’s privacy. An attorney with
experience in a field like education law should be able to give you practical advice about
reporting the behavior to officials and getting them to respond to your complaints. In addition,
a knowledgeable lawyer should be able to explain which laws apply your situation, and
whether you have legal reasons for a possible lawsuit against the school.