CodeHS Professional Ethics in Education 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student reports feeling unsafe because a classmate is sending threatening messages through the class coding project's comment feature. What should the teacher do first?
- Tell the students to resolve it themselves
- Document the messages and report to school administration immediately (Correct answer)
- Delete the comments and warn both students
- Ignore it as it occurred within a coding tool, not social media
Correct answer: Document the messages and report to school administration immediately
Student safety is the highest priority; threats must be documented and escalated to administration immediately.
Question 2: Which action reflects ethical professional development for a CS educator?
- Reusing the same lesson plans for 10 years without updates
- Attending workshops only when required by contract
- Actively learning about emerging technologies to improve instruction (Correct answer)
- Delegating curriculum updates entirely to administrators
Correct answer: Actively learning about emerging technologies to improve instruction
Continuously updating one's skills and knowledge is a core professional responsibility in a fast-changing field like CS.
Question 3: When is it appropriate for a teacher to access a student's private files on a school-issued device?
- Whenever the teacher is curious about student activity
- Only when there is reasonable cause and proper authorization (Correct answer)
- Any time the student is not present in the classroom
- Only if the student has previously misbehaved
Correct answer: Only when there is reasonable cause and proper authorization
Accessing private files requires reasonable cause and proper authorization to respect student privacy rights.
Question 4: A teacher notices a student's code contains a complex algorithm that appears far beyond the student's demonstrated ability. What is the most ethical next step?
- Give full credit since the code works correctly
- Fail the student immediately for suspected plagiarism
- Have a private conversation with the student to understand their process (Correct answer)
- Publicly question the student in front of the class
Correct answer: Have a private conversation with the student to understand their process
Speaking privately with the student gives them a fair opportunity to explain their work before any conclusions are drawn.
Question 5: What does FERPA primarily protect?
- Teacher employment records
- Student education records and privacy (Correct answer)
- School financial disclosures
- Curriculum copyright ownership
Correct answer: Student education records and privacy
FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) protects the privacy of student education records.
Question 6: A teacher wants to post a video of students coding to promote the school's CS program. What must happen first?
- Post the video immediately to increase engagement
- Obtain written parental or guardian consent for each student featured (Correct answer)
- Get verbal permission from students only
- Only blur faces and post without consent
Correct answer: Obtain written parental or guardian consent for each student featured
Written parental or guardian consent is required before publishing identifiable images or videos of minors.
Question 7: How should a teacher handle discovering that two students submitted identical code on an individual assignment?
- Give both students zeros without discussion
- Follow the school's academic integrity policy and investigate before acting (Correct answer)
- Only penalize the student who submitted second
- Assume it was a coincidence and take no action
Correct answer: Follow the school's academic integrity policy and investigate before acting
Following established academic integrity procedures ensures a fair and consistent response.
CodeHS Professional Ethics in Education 3
A student reports feeling unsafe because a classmate is sending threatening messages through the class coding project's comment feature.
What should the teacher do first?