BSI Professional Ethics 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A parent asks you to privately coach their child at the facility pool during off-hours without the facility's knowledge. What is the most ethical response?
- Accept only if the child is advanced
- Decline and refer the parent to the facility's approved private lesson program (Correct answer)
- Accept since it is the parent's request
- Accept but charge a reduced rate
Correct answer: Decline and refer the parent to the facility's approved private lesson program
Using facility resources without authorization violates employer policy and creates liability.
Question 2: You notice a fellow instructor regularly leaves their class unattended to check their phone. What should you do first?
- Post about it on social media
- Report the safety concern to the aquatics supervisor (Correct answer)
- Confront the instructor in front of students
- Ignore it since it is not your class
Correct answer: Report the safety concern to the aquatics supervisor
Unsupervised swimmers are a serious safety risk that must be reported through proper channels.
Question 3: Which practice best protects both students and instructors from allegations of misconduct?
- Keeping interactions observable and following a two-adult or open-door policy (Correct answer)
- Meeting students one-on-one in closed locker rooms
- Texting students privately on personal phones
- Giving rides home to students
Correct answer: Keeping interactions observable and following a two-adult or open-door policy
Observable interactions are a core abuse-prevention and professional boundary practice.
Question 4: A student's progress does not meet the level's exit skills, but the parent pressures you to pass them. What is correct?
- Let the student repeat without telling the parent
- Accurately evaluate against the performance criteria and explain the next steps (Correct answer)
- Pass the student to keep the parent happy
- Pass the student but note concerns privately
Correct answer: Accurately evaluate against the performance criteria and explain the next steps
Honest assessment against established criteria is required for safety and program integrity.
Question 5: An instructor posts photos of their swim class on a personal social media account without permission. What ethical issue does this raise?
- Only a copyright issue
- None, since it is a public pool
- Violation of privacy and facility media-consent policies (Correct answer)
- It is acceptable if faces are smiling
Correct answer: Violation of privacy and facility media-consent policies
Photographing minors requires guardian consent and adherence to facility policy.
Question 6: What is the instructor's responsibility if they suspect a child is being abused at home?
- Follow facility procedures and state mandated-reporter requirements (Correct answer)
- Ask the child to keep it a secret
- Wait for more evidence before telling anyone
- Discuss it with other parents
Correct answer: Follow facility procedures and state mandated-reporter requirements
Many states require youth-serving staff to report suspected abuse to authorities promptly.
Question 7: Accepting an expensive gift from a student's family may be problematic mainly because it can:
- Violate pool chemical standards
- Change the student's level
- Reduce lesson length
- Create a perceived conflict of interest or favoritism (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Create a perceived conflict of interest or favoritism
Valuable gifts can compromise impartiality and should be handled per facility policy.
BSI Professional Ethics 2
A parent asks you to privately coach their child at the facility pool during off-hours without the facility's knowledge.
What is the most ethical response?