Code of Ethics

for
Professional Teachers

Teachers are duly licensed professionals who

posses dignity and reputation with high moral
values as well as technical and professional
competence in the practice of their noble
profession, and they strictly adhere to,
observe, and practice this set of ethical and
moral principles, standards, and values.

The Teacher and the State

A Trustee of the cultural and educational heritage of the nation.
Elevate national morality, promote national pride, cultivate love of country.
Actively help carry out the declared policies of the state.
Physically, mentally and morally fit.
Posses and actualize full commitment and devotion to duty.
Shall not engage in the promotion of any political, religious, or other partisan
interest.
Shall vote and shall exercise all other constitutional rights and
responsibilities.

Every teacher shall enjoy ACADEMIC

FREEDOM and shall have privilege of
expounding the product of his
researches and investigations;
provided that, if the results are
inimical to the declared policies of
the State, they shall be brought to
the proper authorities for appropriate
remedial action.

What is Academic Freedom?

the belief that the freedom of inquiry by faculty members is essential to the
mission of the academy as well as the principles ofacademia, and that scholars
should have freedom to teach or communicate ideas or facts (including those
that are inconvenient to external political groups or to authorities) without
being targeted for repression, job loss, or imprisonment.

MERCADO vs. AMACC-PARANAQUE (G.R. No. 183572, April

13, 2010)
The institutional academic freedom includes the right of the school or
college to decide and adopt its aims and objectives, and to determine how
these objections can best be attained, free from outside coercion or
interference, save possibly when the overriding public welfare calls for
some restraint.The essential freedoms subsumed in the term academic
freedom encompass the freedom of the school or college to determine for
itself: (1) who may teach; (2) who may be taught; (3) how lessons shall be
taught; and (4) who may be admitted to study

The Teacher and the Community

Shall render the best services
Provide leadership and initiative to actively participate in community movements.
Behave with honor and dignity at all times and refrain from gambling, smoking,
drunkenness and illicit relations.
Study and understand local customs and traditions.
Inform the community about the schools work, accomplishments, its needs
and problems.
Provide leadership in community when needed; extend counseling services.
Possess freedom to attend church and worship.

The Teacher and the Profession

Ensure that teaching is the noblest profession.
Uphold the highest possible standards of quality education.
Participate in the continuing Professional Education program.
Help if duly authorized to seek support for the school
Use teaching profession in a manner that makes it a dignified means for earning a
decent living.

The Teacher and the Teaching

Community
Be imbued with the spirit of professional loyalty, mutual confidence and faith in

one another, self-sacrifice for the common good and full cooperation with
colleagues.
Not to claim for work not of his own and give due credit for the work of others
which he may use.
Organize and leave to his successor such records and other data as are necessary
to carry on the work
Hold inviolate all confidential information concerning associates and the school.
May seek correctives for what may appear to be on unprofessional and unethical
conduct of any associate.

May submit to the proper authorities any justifiable criticism against an

associate preferably in writing, without violating any right of the individual
concerned.
May apply for a vacant position for which he is qualified, provided that he
respects the system of selection on the basis of merit and competence.

A teacher may submit to the proper authorities any

justifiable criticism against an associate preferably
in writing, without violating any right of the
individual concerned
Art. 358. Slander. Oral defamation shall be punished byarresto mayorin its
maximum period toprision correccionalin its minimum period if it is of \
a serious and insulting nature; otherwise, the penalty shall bearresto menor
or a fine not exceeding 200 pesos. (Revised Penal Code)
Doctrine of Ancient Respectability - Defamatory words will fall under
one or the other, depending not only upon their sense, grammatical
significance, and accepted ordinary meaning judging them separately,
but also upon the special circumstances of the case, antecedents or relationship
between the offended party and the offender, which might tend to prove the
intention of the offender at the time.

Bullying - any means of destroying the privacy, reputation, life of a person or

hurting people (physically/emotionally)
Cyberbullying - any means of destroying the privacy,reputation,life of a person or
hurting people (physically/emotionally) through the use of the cyber world

The Teacher and Higher Authorities in

the Philippines
Make an honest effort to understand and support the legitimate policies of the school
and the administration.
Make no false accusation or charges against superiors, especially under anonymity.
Transact all official business through channels.
Seek redress against injustice and discrimination and raise his grievances within
democratic processes.
Invoke the principle that appointments, promotions, and transfer of teachers are
made only on the basis of merit and need in the interest of the service.
Live up to his contractual obligation assuming full knowledge of the employment
terms and conditions.

School Officials, Teachers and Other

Personnel
School officials show professional courtesy,
helpfulness and sympathy towards
teachers and other personnel

Formulate policies or introduce important changes in system at all levels.

Encourage and attend to the professional growth of all teachers.
Shall not dismiss or recommend for dismissal a teacher or other subordinates
except for a cause.
Ensure that public school teachers are employed in accordance with pertinent civil
service rules.

The Teacher and Learners

Has the right and duty to determine the academic marks and promotion of learners
in the subjects they handle.
Recognize that the interest and welfare of learners are his first and foremost
concern, and handle each learner justly and impartially.
Shall not be prejudiced nor discriminate any learner.
Shall not accept favors or gifts from learners, parents and others in exchange for
requested concessions.
Shall not accept, directly or indirectly, any remuneration from tutorials.
Base evaluation of the learners work on merit and quality of academic
performance.

Exercise utmost discretion to avoid scandal, gossip and preferential treatment of

the learner.
Shall not inflict corporal punishment on offending learners nor make deductions
from their scholastic ratings.
Insure that conditions contributive to the maximum development of learners are
adequate.

Child abuse refers to the maltreatment, whether habitual or not, of the child
which includes any of the following:
(1)Psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual abuse and emotional
maltreatment;
(2) Any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic
worth and dignity of a child as a human being;
(3) Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs for survival, such as food and
shelter;
(4) Failure to immediately give medical treatment to an injured child resulting in
serious impairment of his growth and development or in his permanent incapacity
or death.
(c) Circumstances which gravely threaten or endanger the survival and normal
development of children.

In a situation where mutual

attraction and subsequent love
develop between teacher and
learner, the teacher shall exercise
utmost professional discretion to
avoid scandal, gossip and
preferential treatment of the
learner.

A teacher shall not inflict

corporal punishment on
offending learners nor make
deductions from their scholastic
ratings as a punishment for
acts which are clearly not
manifestation of poor
scholarship.

Corporal Punishment
is a discipline method in which a supervising adult deliberately inflicts pain upon
a child in response to a child's unacceptable behavior and/or inappropriate
language..

Yna is a Grade 1 pupil at Punta Verde Elementary

School. She was hurriedly entering her classroom
when she accidentally bumped the knee of his
teacher, Miss Claudia, who was then asleep on a
bamboo sofa. Roused from sleep, Miss Claudia asked
Yna to apologize to her. When Yna did not obey but
instead proceeded to her seat, Miss Claudia went to
Yna and pinched her on her thigh. Then, she held her
up by her armpits and pushed her to the floor. As she
fell, Ynas body hit a desk. As a result, she lost
consciousness. Claudia proceeded to pick Yna up by
her ears and repeatedly slammed her down on the
floor. Yna cried.

Rosaldes v. People (G.R. No. 173988, October 08,

2014)
Maltreatment may consist of an act by deedsorby
wordsthatdebases,degradesordemeansthe intrinsic worth
and dignity of a child as a human being. The act need not be
habitual. The petitioner "went overboard in disciplining a
helpless and weak 7-year old boy. The physical pain
experienced by the victim had been aggravated by an
emotional trauma that caused him to stop going to school
altogether out of fear of the petitioner, compelling his parents
to transfer him to another school where he had to adjust
again. Such established circumstances proved beyond
reasonable doubt that the petitioner was guilty ofchild
abuseby deeds that degraded and demeaned the intrinsic
worth and dignity of Michael Ryan as a human being.

Although the petitioner, as a schoolteacher, could duly discipline Michael

Ryan as her pupil, her infliction of the physical injuries on him was
unnecessary, violent and excessive. The boy even fainted from the
violence suffered at her hands. She could not justifiably claim that she
acted only for the sake of disciplining him. Her physical maltreatment of
him was precisely prohibited by no less than the Family Code, which has
expressly banned the infliction of corporal punishment by a school
administrator, teacher or individual engaged in child care exercising
special parental authority (i.e. in loco parentis.
Article 233. The person exercising substitute parental authority shall have the
same authority over the person of the child as the parents.

In no case shall the school administrator, teacher or

individual engaged in child care exercising special
parental authority inflict corporal punishment upon
the child,

The Teacher and Parents

Establish and maintain cordial relations with
parents.
Inform parents, through proper authorities of the
progress or deficiencies of learners under him.

Hear parents complaint with sympathy and

understanding.

The Teacher and Business

Has a right to engage, directly or indirectly, in
legitimate income generation.
Maintain a good reputation with respect to
financial matters.
Not to act, directly or indirectly, as agent of or
be financially interested in any commercial
venture.

The Teacher as a Person

Live with dignity in all places at all
times.
Place premium upon self-respect and
self-discipline.
Maintain at
personality.

all

times

dignified

Recognize the Almighty God or Being

as guide of his own destiny and of the
destinies of men and nations.

Don't try to fix the students, fix

ourselves first. The good teacher
makes the poor student good and
the good student superior. When
our students fail, we, as teachers,
too, have failed.