6.7 — Demonstrating professional responsibility, integrity, and ethical conduct
This guide turns CSTP element Demonstrating professional responsibility, integrity, and ethical conduct into observable practice: what teachers can plan and do, what students may experience, what evidence can support reflection, and where technology can add value without becoming the goal.
Use this as a professional-learning companion. It does not replace the complete CSTP, California content standards and frameworks, local policy, collective bargaining agreements, credential requirements, legal advice, or the individualized requirements in a student’s IEP or Section 504 plan.
What Effective Practice Looks Like
- Use a recurring inquiry cycle: identify a student-learning need, establish a focused goal, try an evidence-informed action, study impact, and revise.
- Seek feedback from students, families, colleagues, coaches, and supervisors while protecting confidentiality and professional boundaries.
- Contribute to collaborative planning, calibration, intervention, and improvement work with shared responsibility for all students.
- Maintain accurate records, meet legal and contractual duties, communicate reliably, and use time and workload systems that support sustainable practice.
- Apply professional codes, district policy, due process, mandated-reporting duties, copyright, accessibility, privacy, security, and responsible technology use.
Focus Points for This Element
Plan intentionally
When law, policy, ethics, and convenience conflict, pause, document, consult the appropriate authority, and protect students.
Teach responsively
Keep professional accounts, devices, communication channels, and relationships appropriately bounded.
Study the impact
Treat generative AI output as unverified assistance, never as an authority or substitute for professional judgment.
Teacher Inquiry Cycle
- Identify: Name a specific student-learning opportunity, barrier, or question connected to this element.
- Learn: Gather student, family, curriculum, assessment, and contextual information while protecting privacy.
- Design: Choose an evidence-informed strategy, success criteria, access supports, and a feasible way to gather evidence.
- Enact: Teach, observe, confer, and make in-the-moment adjustments without losing the intended learning.
- Study: Examine student work, participation, explanation, transfer, and student perspective—not implementation alone.
- Respond: Keep, adapt, intensify, replace, or discontinue the practice and record the reasoning.
Possible Evidence for Reflection or Coaching
- focused professional-growth goals tied to student outcomes
- reflection logs and before/after evidence from inquiry cycles
- collaboration artifacts showing decisions, responsibilities, and follow-through
- family and community partnership records with consent and access considerations
- completion records and artifacts related to required duties and professional learning
Evidence caution: No single artifact proves accomplished teaching. Interpret evidence in context, center student learning, use multiple sources, and avoid collecting identifiable student information that is not necessary.
Technology and Software: Purpose Before Product
| Purpose | Possible tools | Professional-use guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Create and collaborate | professional learning networks and district learning platforms | Use version history, comments, exemplars, and clear roles; explicitly teach digital collaboration. |
| Elicit and assess | collaborative documents, agendas, decision logs, and project boards | Keep checks low stakes when formative; inspect item quality and pair scores with student work and conversation. |
| Model and investigate | district-approved family communication and interpretation systems | Require prediction, observation, explanation, and transfer so the tool supports—not replaces—disciplinary thinking. |
| Access and communicate | calendar, task-management, and secure recordkeeping tools | Follow student plans, provide captions and accessible formats, and use human-reviewed interpretation or translation. |
| Manage and reflect | video reflection or coaching platforms used only with consent and district approval | Minimize collected data, restrict sharing, use approved accounts, and periodically remove records according to policy. |
Software is illustrative, not endorsed. Availability and features change. Before use, follow district approval processes and review accessibility, age restrictions, privacy, security, advertising, data ownership and retention, interoperability, copyright, AI features, and the need for family notice or consent. Never enter confidential student information into an unapproved service.
Questions for Collaborative Reflection
- What do students say, do, create, explain, or transfer when this practice is working?
- Whose participation or success has changed, and whose has not? What barriers or unintended effects remain?
- Does the evidence reflect the intended learning, or might language, disability, technology, background knowledge, or task design be obscuring it?
- What is the smallest high-leverage adjustment to test next, and what evidence will show whether it helped?
- How will student and family perspectives inform the next decision?
Original Examples and Resources, Cleaned for Migration
Teachers reflect on their teaching practice to support student learning. They establish professional goals and engage in continuous and purposeful professional growth and development. They collaborate with colleagues and engage in the broader professional community to support teacher and student learning. Teachers learn about and work with families to support student learning. They engage local communities in support of the instructional program. They manage professional responsibilities to maintain motivation and commitment to all students. Teachers demonstrate professional responsibility, integrity, and ethical conduct.
As teachers develop, they may ask, “How do I…” or “Why do I…”
Remain informed of, understand, and uphold professional codes, ethics, and legal responsibilities
Guidance: Study and apply state and district educator codes of conduct. Participate in trainings on mandated reporting, FERPA, Title IX, and anti-discrimination policies.
Contribute to school and student success by being knowledgeable of established goals and standards
Guidance: Stay informed about national, state, and district learning goals. Align curriculum and assessment practices with Common Core, NGSS, and other relevant frameworks.
Meet my professional obligations to implement policies and guidelines
Guidance: Follow school and district procedures related to attendance, grading, reporting, and safety. Stay current with legislative updates and district policies.
Extend my knowledge about legal responsibilities for student learning, behavior, and safety
Guidance: Understand legal mandates regarding student discipline, bullying prevention, ADA accommodations, and child welfare reporting. Document concerns appropriately.
Maintain professional conduct and integrity in the classroom and school community
Guidance: Exhibit fairness, respect, and professionalism in interactions with all students and colleagues. Avoid favoritism and uphold boundaries at all times.
Interact appropriately with students and families outside the classroom
Guidance: Follow district policies for communication, social media, and extracurricular interactions. Maintain transparency and professional distance to protect all parties.
Demonstrate my professional obligations to students, colleagues, school, and the profession
Guidance: Uphold high expectations for all, collaborate with transparency, and advocate for student-centered practices. Participate in school improvement and policy conversations.
Authoritative Starting Points
- California Commission on Teacher Credentialing: California Standards for the Teaching Profession
- California Department of Education: Content Standards
- California Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources
- CAST Universal Design for Learning Guidelines
- U.S. Department of Education: Student Privacy Policy Office