Code of Ethics

Code of Ethics- QA4 Staffing arrangements

Where is your Code of Ethics located in the centre? Is it in the foyer? bathroom or office? 

When I mentor teams, I find that there are some teams that do not understand the true essence of the C OE and the importance of how it guides our practices.

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The Code of Ethics was revised in 2016  by Early Childhood Australia outlines expected behaviour from practitioners which reflect the professional values of the group. Following the Code of Ethics will allow the educators to make informed decisions on a day to day in an ethical manner.

The Code of Ethics is a framework, just like the Early Years Framework. Both documents are used as a guide, does your tram use this document just as much as the EARLY YEARS LEARNING FRAMEWORK? WHY? WHYNOT? Is it because it is not viewed ‘as important’ as the EARLY YEARS LEARNING FRAMEWORK?

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This leads to my next question, when was the last time you looked over the CODE OF ETHICS? I mean really looked through it, at the different sections and spoke about how it guides the teams practice?

The CODE OF ETHICS was revised in October 2016 by ECA, and terminology has been changed. 

One of the areas in ‘In relation to colleagues’ reads

• Build a spirit of collegiality and professionalism through collaborative relationships based on trust, respect and honesty……. Does your team understand the definition of collegiality? 

This is the perfect opportunity to bring it to your next meeting and for each area, have the staff write down an example of how they are achieving it for each point. This is a wonderful opportunity for continuous improvement. Your team will be able to understand the CODE OF ETHICS on a deeper level and continue to make it part of embedded practice.

I’m going to set you all a challenge, put this on your agenda for the next meeting, and let’s share how it went for the team!

www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/our-publications/eca-code-ethics/code-of-ethics-core-principles/