Download: Complete Bulletin. (48k pdf)
The Regents established the Professional Standards and Practices Board in 1998, in part to address issues that would ensure "an adequate supply" of highly qualified professionals for al of New York's classrooms. The Professional Standards and Practices Board (the Board) advises the Regents and Commissioner of Education on issues relating to the quality of teaching and teacher education, and it was charged by the Regents to develop a Code of Ethics. The Board consists of twenty-eight members, including twenty-one K-12 (only nine of whom are practicing classroom teachers) and higher education practitioners, six public representatives consisting of parents, school board members, and community and business representatives; and one non-voting teacher education student.
The Regents charged the Board with developing a Cod eof Ethics for teachers. A teacher pledge, although not part of the charge, was also developed,. The Professional Standards and Practices Board, following a period of public comment, completed work on the Code. The final draft included an important change: the term "teacher" was changed to "educator" to reflect that the Code applied not only to classroom teachers and personnel service providers, but to school administrators as well. The Board also decided to separate the teacher pledge from the Code, but to plan to revisit the issue of a need for a teacher pleedge at a later date. The Code of Ethics was approved by the Board of Regents in September 2002.
The six core values or principles articulated in the Code of Ethics to guide practice and inspired professional excellence are:
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Principle 1: Educators nurture the intellectual, physical, emotional, social, and civic potential of each student.
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Principle 2: Educators create, support, and maintain challenging learning environments for all.
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Principle 3: Educators commit to their own learning in order to develop their practice.
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Principle 4: Educators collaborate with colleagues and other professionals in the interest of student learning.
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Principle 5: Educators collaborate with parents and community, building trust and respecting confidentiality.
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Principle 6: Educators advance the intellectual and ethical foundation of the learning community.
Download: Complete Bulletin. (48k pdf)