October 26, 2016 ISSN 1094-5296

Levinson, M., & Fay, J. (Eds.) (2016). Dilemmas of educational ethics: Cases and commentaries. Cambridge:
Harvard Education Press.

Pp. 264 ISBN: 978-61250-933-4

Reviewed by Natalie JK Baloy

University of California, Santa Cruz
United States

Dilemmas of Educational Ethics: Cases and

Commentaries is designed to facilitate ethical
reflection and generate conversations among
diverse stakeholders about contemporary
ethical issues in education policy and practice.
Editors Meira Levinson and Jacob Fay
emphasize that ethical tensions arise daily for
educators across all spectra of the U.S.
education system – from classroom to district
level, from rural to urban settings, from
wealthy to low-income schools, and in all
school configurations, including public and
private schools, charters and magnets,
parochial and independent, and regular district
(3). Despite the everydayness of ethical
dilemmas and subsequent need for thoughtful
ethical decision-making capacities, however,
many educators lack tools, practice, or support
to effectively and collectively grapple with
ethics in their work. Dilemmas of Educational
Ethics offers an important resource to fill this
need.

Baloy, N. (2016, October 26). Review of Dilemmas of educational ethics: Cases and commentaries, by M. Levinson &
J. Fay. Education Review, 23. http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/er.v23.2117
Education Review /Reseñas Educativas 2

The book is organized around six cases method for grappling with ethical tensions in
– short stories or essays that develop a practice. That is, phronesis seeks ethical wisdom
narrative around a complex ethical issue, or set through the development of virtues in
of issues, and set up the reader to discuss or reflective practice. Rather than learning and
reflect on the case’s central dilemma(s): 1) applying an abstract set of ethical principles to
Promotion or Retention; 2) Rocky Choices: fanciful situations, readers are encouraged to
Scientific Inquiry, Discipline, and Mental develop practices by engaging realistic,
Illness at Rivers Elementary; 3) Stolen Trust: relatable, and context-specific cases and
Cell Phone Theft in a Zero-Tolerance High sustaining a dialogic process of debating
School; 4) Inflated Expectations: How Should theory and practice, “iterat[ing] repeatedly
Teachers Assign Grades?; 5) Is Pandering among field-based, data-oriented, and values-
Ethical Policy? Power, Privilege, and School oriented expertise” (p. 4). The book concludes
Assignment; and 6) How, If At All, Should with suggestions for using the cases in
Charters Be Compared to Local Districts? The education classrooms and professional
book concludes with a chapter outlining development settings. The remainder of this
potential discussion configurations for review is organized around the book’s core
classrooms and professional development contribution arenas (in bold) and stated aims
settings. (in italics).
To model deep ethical deliberation,
each case features six different commentators Pedagogy & Professional Development
presenting their distinctive interpretations,
offering wide-ranging perspectives on the To provide support, and affirmation, to educators and
most pertinent questions to unpack, possible policy makers who are already wrestling with these
decisions case characters might make, and issues by strengthening their capacities to address ethical
different scales and angles from which to dilemmas in their own work. To help readers use
tackle the dilemmas at hand. The phronetic approaches to test, generate, and learn how to
commentators include education specialists, seek insights into educational ethics that are rigorous,
practitioners, social scientists, and relevant, and actionable (pp. 3, 5).
philosophers, each with some degree of
expertise – research, and/or experiential – Taken together, the cases present an
related to the case material. The editors, Meira impressive diversity of school settings and
Levinson and Jacob Fay, are a professor- scales of ethical dilemmas, underscoring the
student team from the Harvard Graduate reach of educational ethics from classroom
School of Education. Levinson is a political level interactions to district-wide policy, from
theorist, former eighth-grade school teacher, individual moments of ethical decision-making
and 2014 recipient of a Guggenheim to institutional and systemic change. This
Fellowship. Fay is a current doctoral student, breadth is both a gift and a challenge for the
former co-chair of the editorial board for the reader. To be sure, educators and policy
Harvard Educational Review, former American makers familiar with K-12 education in the
History teacher, and 2016 recipient of a United States will likely recognize many issues
Spencer Dissertation Fellowship. They share of relevance and resonance for their work –
research interests in educational policy, such as the difficult decision facing the eighth
philosophy of education, and justice and grade teachers in Case 1 as they debate
equity in education. whether to promote or retain Adahuaris, a
As Levinson and Fay explain in their student struggling both in and out of school.
introduction, the combination of cases and Likewise, readers will likely find dimensions of
commentaries in Dilemmas in Educational Ethics their own ethical stances, theoretical
is intended to simulate and stimulate phronetic orientations, personal experiences and
Review of Dilemmas of educational ethics by N. Baloy 3

expertise, or research reflected back to them in characters but do not recognize the characters’
at least one of the case commentaries. A context as similar to their own, as Elizabeth
reader might find herself nodding along with Fieldstone Kanner’s commentary on Ms.
one or another commentator, as I did when Brown’s dilemma around supporting Kate and
reading Brendan Randall and Jal Mehta’s her fellow students: “[T]he case study
objections to reducing Adahuaris’s case to a implicitly pits Kate’s needs against the needs
single moment of individual decision-making of the whole class. This dynamic does not
and their demands instead for critical analysis represent the context of most classrooms,
of systemic conditions Adahuaris and her where there can be three or four or even ten
teachers are facing. At the same time, a reader ‘Kates,’ each of whom often requires a specific
might find himself in disagreement with the accommodation at the same time” ( p. 54).
same commentator’s analysis, as I did when While case-specific prompts are
reading Mehta’s suggestion that bioethics present in some instances, such as at the end
might serve as a model for educational ethics. of Case 6, the cases and commentaries are
These affectively charged moments of uneven in their explicit efforts to support
recognition, resonance, and dissonance serve readers’ personal reflections, potentially
important pedagogical functions, as Levinson missing out on some critical opportunities for
and Fay intend. By navigating these moments application that thoughtful guidance would
and paying careful attention to their own facilitate. Again, engaging with the case
responses to the cases and commentaries, discussion protocol or otherwise shifting,
readers can engage in the phronetic approach removing, or augmenting the decisional
to grappling with ethical tensions. In the prompts presented at the end of each case to
process, they can cultivate something between reframe the ethical dilemmas at hand might
a disposition, skill, and capacity to identify also enrich the reader’s experience. As
ethical issues in their own work. It must be commentator Brendan Randall notes in his
noted, however, that readers must be prepared reflection on the first case, “A facilitator’s
to translate case content, contexts, and judicious use of other prompts could expand
commentaries to their own settings and the discussion to other normative questions
institutional processes. This is not an reflecting a more proactive rather than reactive
insignificant task, and some additional stance” (p. 33). The relative paucity of
question prompts or pedagogical exercises at explicitly expressed questions is especially
the end of each case-commentary set may notable given the editors’ emphasis on the
have offered readers more support as they gain important role questioning plays in the
practice; in the absence of case-commentary- phronetic method they’re advocating: “More
specific questions, readers can rely on the case important than providing answers to a limited
discussion protocol presented by the editors number of scenarios, they are effective means
on page 217. of surfacing the right kinds of questions, and at
University instructors and professional provoking searching, collaborative inquiry into
development facilitators using this text may the principles and values that guide ethical
want to develop some reflection questions of education policy and practice” (p. 5). As I
their own to supplement and support the continue to emphasize below, skillful
reader’s learning process. One simple facilitation and/or reflective resources would
possibility is to ask readers to change key enhance this book’s pedagogical impact
features of a case’s context to reflect local toward strengthening readers’ capacities to
conditions, opening discussion around how anticipate, identify, and respond to ethical
contextual details may differently shape ethical tensions in their work.
deliberations. This is especially important for
readers who may recognize themselves in the
Education Review /Reseñas Educativas 4

Policy Applications & Implications deliberation and the cross-sector conversations

Levison and Fay hope to foster. The editors
To enable a more open conversation among all state in their introduction: “We believe that
stakeholders about what values and principles we good ethical judgment about problems of
should be trying to realize in education policy. (p. 3) practice inevitably draws upon a multiplicity of
theoretical, empirical, and pragmatic
Levinson and Fay state that they “organized perspective” (p. 5). This methodological claim
each chapter to approximate a conversation is enacted within and across the case
among highly informed, and also highly commentaries as commentators draw on
diverse, interlocutors” (p. 7). This theory, research, and practice to interpret the
approximated conversation aims to initiate and cases. Reading the commentaries together,
guide collective inquiry among stakeholders, then, enables the reader to experience the
who Levinson and Fay identify as education multiplicity of experiences and framings that
scholars and empirical researchers, policy can be brought to bear on each case.
makers and practitioners, philosophers, Commentators come from many different
activists, parents, students, and beyond, disciplinary backgrounds, bring distinctive
including business leaders, journalists, and areas of expertise, and draw from different
citizens. theoretical traditions and methods for applying
The book certainly provides ample research findings to ethical decision-making.
material for these conversations. The cases For example, the commentators for Case 4:
alone offer opportunities to explore myriad Inflated Expectations – How Should Teachers
ethical tensions, including promotion and Assign Grades, include an eighth grade
retention decisions (Case 1); balancing the humanities teacher (Rebecca E. Yacono);
needs of children with learning challenges with professors of political science (Rob Reich),
their peers (Case 2); contending with African and African American Studies
mismatches between teacher decision-making (Jennifer Hochschild), organizational
and controversial administrative policies leadership (Peter Demerath), and education
(Cases 2 and 3); enforcing zero tolerance (Doris Santoro); a graduate student in the
policies amid growing awareness of the Harvard Graduate School of Education
school-to-prison pipeline (Case 3); navigating (Deepa Sriya Vasudevan); many of these
the sometimes disparate ethical and individuals have additional relevant
pedagogical rationales of different grading experiences, such as Rob Reich’s former
systems in and between schools (Case 4); employment as a sixth grade teacher or Peter
school choice processes and policies in Demerath and Jennifer Hochschild’s
relation to integrationist ideals and wealth interdisciplinary appointments in anthropology
disparities (Case 5); comparing attrition and and government, respectively. This diversity of
demographic information between charter commentators for each case offers significant
schools and local public school districts (Case opportunities for reflecting on the role that
6); and many cross-cutting issues, as Levinson positionality and experience might play in
and Fay describe in their concluding chapter. shaping ethical practice; more sustained critical
Each case’s central dilemmas raise challenging reflexivity on the part of all commentators
questions related to principles and practice of would have been appreciated toward this end.
justice and equity – issues that are amplified Although the cases and commentaries
and thoughtfully analyzed in the commentary offer rich content and the process of reading
sections. them does develop a reader’s phronetic
In addition to content material, the skillset, I found it somewhat peculiar that the
wide-ranging case commentaries also offer commentaries are presented as clusters of self-
process models for complex ethical contained essays. The commentators respond
Review of Dilemmas of educational ethics by N. Baloy 5

only to the cases, not to one another, with the possibilities of the book. For example,
resulting effect resembling a panel of bounded students or workshop participants could be
presentations at a conference versus a assigned the role of a specific commentator
conversational roundtable. Again, the reader is and then tasked with asserting, defending,
tasked with some significant work – in this and/or revising their assigned commentator’s
instance, making a dialogue out of six perspective in a discussion role-play.
sometimes wildly divergent perspectives. In Another writing or discussion
their concluding chapter, Levinson and Fay assignment might direct students to parse out
state, “[Y]ou may feel, in reading this book, as the disciplinary, theoretical, practical, and
if we have spun you back and forth, twirled empirical dimensions of the collective
you around, and left you with more questions commentary set for one of the cases. Students
than answers . . . We assure you, however, or workshop participants might also be
such spinning and twirling is intentional” (p. encouraged to carefully read commentators’
211) It is true that the intentional spinning and brief biographies at the end of each
twirling will have pedagogical payoff for commentary to reflect on how commentators’
patient readers, but some additional facilitation distinctive combinations of experience,
and/or prompts might provide some expertise, and theoretical orientations might
grounding during the spin, as the editors shape distinctive interpretations and analyses
acknowledge. Reading the last chapter first is of the case. This would also further
highly recommended as it offers helpful underscore that complex ethical quandaries,
overviews and suggestions for dissecting the like those presented in each case and in
cases and various angles, positions, and practice, rarely have a single clear solution, but
questions raised by the commentators. rather multiple possible options for action and
Even with the helpful framings in the reframings that will develop through the prism
last chapter, readers are largely left on their of a practitioner’s pragmatic wisdom (see
own to find points of commonality and Joshua Wakeham’s commentary on Case 2 for
disagreement, assess how commentators’ a discussion about teachers exercising practical
reason through a case, and bring the wisdom in their ethical decision-making).
commentaries together into a conversation. Ultimately, facilitation activities that foster
Levinson and Fay’s aim to approximate a reflexive and collective phronetic engagement
discussion among highly informed might inspire readers to grapple more deeply
interlocutors is therefore only partially with the potential barriers and possibilities
achieved. This in turn may limit the they may experience in practice when
pedagogical impact of the book’s aim to attempting to engage in collective ethical
enable conversations among education inquiry in the future.
stakeholders, especially policy makers who
need more practice with dialogue with diverse Scholarship & Theory Development.
constituencies. The individuation of the
commentators and monologic presentations To provoke philosophers to develop moral, political,
risk perpetuating ethical deliberation as an and education theory that provide context-sensitive
individual enterprise, rather than supporting guidance to the education profession. To elevate
dynamic processes of collective phronetic educational ethics to a new level of urgency within U.S.
inquiry. Interactive facilitation in and international reform movements and to enable
undergraduate and graduate education scholars, policy makers, and practitioners to act on this
classrooms, professional development urgency in productive and nuanced ways (pp. 3, 8).
workshops, and communities of practice
settings will therefore play an especially Dilemmas of Educational Ethics will likely be most
important role in animating the dialogic impactful in facilitated education learning
Education Review /Reseñas Educativas 6

spaces, but it also offers important lessons for practice in educational ethics” that they
policy making and theory development. Its envision?
greatest value to these realms is deceptively Scholars interested in contributing to
simple: repositioning major debates in this growing arena of scholarship might wish
education as situated ethical quandaries to know more about the editors’ and
steeped in contexts of systemic injustice and contributors’ methodological practice, as I did.
inequity, rather than decontextualized puzzles Information about whether a case is fictional
that can be effectively addressed through or factual is tucked away in footnotes, and
technocratic maneuvering. Additionally, the there is little reflexive description (even in the
book affirms that a more robust educational last two pages of the text, which focus on
ethics will involve iterative processes of constructing normative cases) about the
collective inquiry that combine theory, process of developing the cases and
practice, and empirical research, as well as a commentaries, decisions about representation,
critical understanding of and attention to or the selection of particular cases and
systemic conditions that structure educational commentators. For example, although the
contexts. authors note that they do not claim these are
The editors assert in their introduction “the six most important dilemmas of
that “ethical judgment must join philosophical educational ethics,” they do not clarify why
insight and expertise with social scientific insight these six. Why focus on an instance of student
into empirical patterns and logics, and pragmatic theft to illuminate questions around zero-
expertise developed by educators and policy tolerance policies and the school-to-prison-
makers themselves” (p. 6). The editors call pipeline if other narrative devices or topics
upon philosophers and theorists to generate may have been equally compelling? Why
principles and theory to better serve the needs scrutinize charter schools’ attrition rates and
for ethical guidance for the messy realities of demographic details, rather than deliberate
the field, and they also note that the text might about ethical tensions around mixing public
open opportunities for new avenues of social and private funds for charter schools? Why
science research. The editors’ emphasis on focus only on U.S. schools and K-12 contexts?
collective inquiry might merge well with Why is there a preponderance of contributors
collaborative and community-based social from schools in the Midwest and on the East
scientific analysis. For example, ethnographers Coast?
might consider collaborating with practitioners Certainly the editors needed to make
to mutually examine ethical dilemmas and difficult decisions and they ultimately did
deliberation processes, or perhaps work with select a dynamic range of dilemmas that evoke
an education department to trace how layered tensions; I only wish these decisions
students develop their capacity to grapple with might be shared more directly with the reader.
ethics in education. Conversely, many To push further, it would be interesting to
questions remain about the myriad ways in learn more about why the cases were designed
which empirical research is taken up in the to end with a distinct set of options the case’s
service of ethics in policy and practice, as decision-makers face. Although the courses of
many commentators’ citations of various action presented are rarely straightforward and
research findings demonstrate. In addition to no choice is “self-evident[ly] the right one to
their epistemological concern about the limits take,” the distillation of an ethical quandary to
of grand moral theories for ethical practice, an actionable moment may perhaps limit the
how else might Levinson and Fay, their reader’s capacity to recognize ethical dilemmas
contributors, and their readers envision the or concerns that are not so neatly packaged
intersection of ethics and knowledge in the into ethical decision-making event. The ethics-
“new flowering of grounded scholarship and as-event narrative form imbues a sense of
Review of Dilemmas of educational ethics by N. Baloy 7

pressing importance, mirroring the editors’ around the intersections of ethics and political
goals of “elevating educational ethics to a new visioning and action. Meira Levinson’s
level of urgency” (p. 8), but I encourage forthcoming book Theorizing Educational Justice
readers to explore how this urgency relates to may also work to address some of these
the always-slow work of ethical formation, of questions and might be another
shaping a deep ethical praxis over time. This complementary book to give more shape and
book offers some important tools readers can contour to the characterizations of justice and
use to sustain the more open-ended, iterative, equity in Dilemmas of Educational Ethics.
emergent, and decidedly-not-neat nature of Levinson’s forthcoming book, alongside her
ethical dilemmas and deliberation, especially if past texts (including her award-winning book
readers are attentive to the many No Citizen Left Behind) and current work with
commentaries that emphasize that working the Civic and Moral Engagement Initiative,
toward systemic levels of justice and equity are may also provide students with additional
moral imperatives. context around the debates underlying the
But what kind of justice? And why cases, and how these debates get animated
equity as a key frame? How do ethical efforts when engaged within the realm of the ethical.
toward equity envisioned by the book’s editors Dilemmas of Educational Ethics ultimately
and commentators relate to other visions of offers accessible prose and a set of
liberation, such as decolonization or prison pedagogically robust tools to enhance ethical
abolition? What kinds of discourses and praxis in the field of education. It is well-
political projects are mobilized when terms positioned to make a major impact in and
like democratic, citizen, and public are used beyond the classroom, especially aiding policy
alongside justice and equity? This book did not makers and analysts as well as future educators
set its task to theorize justice or to weigh the to develop greater capacity for collective
merits of different orientations to imagining a phronetic processes of ethical inquiry and
more just future, but it may be useful for action.
university instructors to pair this text with
examples from critical theory and/or current
social movements to facilitate reflection

About the Reviewer

Natalie JK Baloy completed her PhD in cultural anthropology at the University of British Columbia.
She is currently completing her postdoctoral fellowship with the Center for Collaborative Research
for an Equitable California (CCREC) at UC Santa Cruz. Her research projects ask how ongoing
expressions of settler colonialism and systemic racism shape everyday experiences and research
engagements. At CCREC, Baloy is currently co-developing research ethics training materials and co-
writing Dwelling Within the Ethics of Research, an interactive textbook designed to foster critical ethical
praxis among collaborative research teams.
Education Review /Reseñas Educativas 8

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