Any act or behaviours by a professional that
violates or goes contrary to the professional code of ethics is considered a
professional misconduct. The teachers service manual (1987:8) noted that
infringement of, any article of the code of conduct shall incur punishment by
the school management board in the case of teachers. It went further to
enumerate those behaviours regarded as misconduct.
* Indecent dealing with a person who he knows to be a
pupil/student of a
school.
* Conduct prejudicial to the maintenance al good order and
discipline
in
an institution.
* Conduct in respect of the staff or pupils of an
institution, which is
disgraceful
or dishonourable.
* Engaging in political activities which will affect the
performance
Other
areas of misconduct are:
* Misappropriation of school funds including teachers‘ salaries,
tuition and
boarding
fees, and monies that should accrue to the Government Treasury
or
the School;
* Dishonest conduct in relation to examinations, for
example, leakage of
examinations
papers and other forms of malpractice;
* Suppression or falsification of school records or
statistics;
* Engaging in commercial activity of trade including
hawking of wares during
school
hours.
Discipline of teachers
Depending on the nature and gravity of‘ the
professional misconduct, certain punishments can be administered on the
offender either by the School Management Board in the case of Principal/Headmaster,
and by the Principal/Headmaster in case of teachers. Such punishment shall
range from caution to dismissal depending on the seriousness of the offence.
The Nigeria Teachers‘ Manual recommends that in al cases, fair hearing shall be
given to the offender.
Punishments that can be administered by the
Principal/Headmaster in a school can take the form of oral caution; written
caution recorded in the log-book; surcharge for absenteeism from school or neglect
of duty; or adverse annual report. Punishments that can be meted out by the
school management board include: written caution or warning; suspension; termination
of appointment and dismissal.
In some cases of criminal nature, the
offender after being punished administratively can still be sued to court. If
after prosecution the offender is found guilty, he may be fined or jailed,
depending on the gravity of the offence.
Regardless of development status, the
teaching force in most countries has never enjoyed full professional status.
However, the status of teachers as a developing profession is becoming evident
in Nigeria
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