Professional Ethics and Law in Education: A Canadian Guidebook by Bruce Maxwell, Dianne Gereluk and Christopher Martin, Toronto, ON: Canadian Scholars, 2022

It’s no secret that professional ethics is an imperative in teacher education whilst also being rarely dedicated a full course of study in either undergraduate or postgraduate programs (Maxwell et al., 2016). Sometimes teacher educators consider professional ethics and the law nearly interchangeable, assuming that what is legal is ethical and that following school policies will fill the obvious gaps; or that perhaps knowledge of the relevant code of ethics alongside teacher professional standards provides the parameters for good teacher judgement. On the other hand are theoretical approaches to applied ethics, assumed to provide transferable applications which transform teachers’ ethical character and inoculate them from unethical behaviour. Fortunately, Bruce Maxwell, Dianne Gereluk, and Christopher Martin are all too aware of the limits and challenges of these approaches and offer an excellent solution for even the most thoughtful teacher educators in professional and educational ethics, based in their collective, and considerable, contributions to the field in Canada and worldwide. Maxwell is known for his contributions to educational ethics, having authored in moral psychology, moral emotions, philosophy of education, and ethics education, as well as empirical and theoretical works focusing on the professions and teacher education particularly (Maxwell & Hirsch, 2020; Maxwell & Schwimmer, 2016; Forster & Maxwell, 2022). Gereluk is a political philosopher and policy analyst whose contributions to theory and practice in the field have addressed educational inequities, citizenship, radicalization, and human rights (Gereluk, 2012; Gereluk, 2023), as well as mentoring and teacher education in rural settings (Corbett & Gereluk, 2020). Martin’s work has contributed significantly to philosophy of education and addresses questions in educational aims of higher education, issues of indoctrination, ethics, justice, and education for democracy (Cuypers & Martin, 2011; Martin, 2022; Martin, 2023). These authors represent a wide area of Canadian jurisdictions and seamlessly integrate practical legal examples alongside philosophical tools designed to enhance, and challenge, beginning teachers’ professional judgement. Conceptually, the text does not shy from careful theoretical discussion and offers distilled ethical provocations whilst also being highly accessible for those new to professional ethics in teaching. In an engaging tone, the authors speak directly to their readers, urging modes of inquiry which centre around care for philosophical ideas and commitment to meaningful, good work as a teacher within the Canadian context. They encourage critical inquiry around core ethical principles that teachers may take for granted or assume is something that they understand as common sense – for example, trust, respect, justice, duty of care, authority, autonomy, fairness, consent, and care, to name a few. The book canvases issues such as the power dynamics between teachers and students, social media use, cyberbullying, ability grouping, responsibilities to parents and guardians, gender and religious diversity and equity in schooling, discrimination and reasonable accommodation, dissent, and discipline. Where necessary, the authors pose dilemmas and ill-structured problems requiring consideration of multiple solution pathways that help the reader consider their underlying values and knowledge gaps. These ethical ideas and important practical concerns, among other aspects, are afforded considerable treatment to distinguish different interpretations, scope, and applications. The authors offer such a range of rationales, thoughtful case studies, and ways of approaching ethical and professional issues in education that the introductory reader is likely to be inspired to pursue further questions that will extend their thinking about the interactions between Canadian education law, ethics, and professional expectations, and develop further their capacities for professional judgement. The authors bring together moral education, social justice, and professional ethics in a complementary triptych. The rationale for using a multidimensional approach is explained thus: Exemplary of this approach is the careful distinctions made in the final …