Ethical Leadership and Decision Making in Education: Applying Theoretical Perspectives to Complex Dilemmas

The fourth edition of the best-selling text, Ethical Leadership and Decision Making in Education, continues to address the increasing interest in ethics and assists educational leaders with the complex dilemmas in today’s challenging and diverse society. Through discussion and analysis of real-life moral dilemmas that educational leaders face in their schools and communities, authors Shapiro and Stefkovich demonstrate the application of the four ethical paradigms—the ethics of justice, care, critique, and profession. After an illustration of how the Multiple Ethical Paradigm approach may be applied to real dilemmas, the authors present a series of cases written by students and academics in the field representing the dilemmas faced by practicing educational leaders in urban, suburban, and rural settings in an era full of complications and contradictions. Following each case are questions that call for thoughtful, complex thinking and help readers come to grips with their own ethical codes and apply them to practical situations.

New in the Fourth Edition:

• A new chapter on technology versus respect, focusing on ethical issues such as cyber-bullying and sexting.








• New cases on teachers with guns, the military and education, children of undocumented immigrants, homeless students, videos in bathrooms, incentive pay, first responders, private alternative high schools, verbal threats, and gaming etiquette.








• Updates throughout to reflect contemporary issues and recent scholarship in the field of ethical leadership.

This edition adds teaching notes for the instructor that stress the importance of self-reflection, use of new technologies, and global appeal of ethical paradigms and dilemmas. Easily adaptable to a variety of uses, this book is a critical resource for a wide range of audiences, including both aspiring and practicing administrators, teacher leaders, and educational policy makers.