CALT ALTA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An ALTA-certified therapist is asked by a school administrator to provide therapy services outside their scope of training. What is the ethically correct response?
- Decline and refer the student to a qualified professional (Correct answer)
- Attempt the services since the need is urgent
- Consult a colleague and proceed without formal training
- Accept only if the parent provides written consent
Correct answer: Decline and refer the student to a qualified professional
The ALTA Code of Ethics requires practitioners to practice only within the boundaries of their competence and refer clients when services fall outside their training.
Question 2: Which principle of the ALTA Code of Ethics most directly prohibits a therapist from sharing a student's IEP data with an unauthorized third party?
- Competence
- Confidentiality (Correct answer)
- Integrity
- Professional Responsibility
Correct answer: Confidentiality
Confidentiality obligates ALTA members to protect client information and disclose it only with appropriate authorization or legal requirement.
Question 3: A CALT discovers that a fellow ALTA member has been using an unvalidated assessment tool and misrepresenting results to parents. What should the CALT do first?
- Report immediately to ALTA's Ethics Committee
- Address the concern directly with the colleague when possible (Correct answer)
- Inform the student's school district without speaking to the colleague
- Do nothing unless a formal complaint is filed by a parent
Correct answer: Address the concern directly with the colleague when possible
ALTA's ethical guidelines encourage addressing concerns informally with the colleague first before escalating to the Ethics Committee.
Question 4: Under the ALTA Code of Ethics, when is it permissible to break confidentiality without client or guardian consent?
- When a supervisor requests the information for scheduling
- When disclosure is required by law or to prevent serious harm (Correct answer)
- When a school committee wants to review therapy outcomes
- When a colleague needs the information for research purposes
Correct answer: When disclosure is required by law or to prevent serious harm
Confidentiality may be broken without consent only in legally mandated situations or when there is imminent risk of serious harm to the client or others.
Question 5: A CALT candidate is completing supervised hours and begins offering private paid tutoring to the same student receiving ALTA-supervised therapy. This situation raises concerns about:
- Scope of practice
- Dual relationships (Correct answer)
- Inadequate supervision
- Documentation standards
Correct answer: Dual relationships
Providing paid tutoring to a current therapy client creates a dual relationship that can compromise professional objectivity and is discouraged by the ALTA Code of Ethics.
Question 6: Which action best reflects the ALTA ethical obligation of professional integrity?
- Advertising therapy outcomes that exceed what research supports
- Accurately representing one's credentials and the evidence base for interventions (Correct answer)
- Using testimonials from satisfied parents without disclosing limitations
- Declining to disclose when an intervention lacks research support
Correct answer: Accurately representing one's credentials and the evidence base for interventions
Integrity requires ALTA members to be honest about their qualifications and to accurately represent the evidence base for the interventions they use.
Question 7: An ALTA member who is also a licensed speech-language pathologist wants to use the CALT credential to market general speech therapy services. This would violate which ethical principle?
- Confidentiality
- Misrepresentation of credentials (Correct answer)
- Failure to maintain competence
- Inadequate supervision
Correct answer: Misrepresentation of credentials
Using the CALT credential to imply expertise in areas beyond language therapy and dyslexia instruction constitutes misrepresentation, violating ALTA's integrity standards.
CALT ALTA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct 4
An ALTA-certified therapist is asked by a school administrator to provide therapy services outside their scope of training.
What is the ethically correct response?