Betrayed No More - How Morally Centered Schools Reduce Educators’ and Students’ Distress

Oct 15, 2026

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Examining educators’ lived experiences, the article explains how “amorally centered” schooling can intensify distress by breaking trust, creating values conflicts, and leaving unresolved miscommunications. Drawing on interviews with 13 educators across five U.S. states, it presents four scenario-based accounts involving safety incidents, partisan board politics, test-driven instruction that displaces play, and systemic under-resourcing that shapes students’ readiness to learn and feeling of safety.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Betrayal of Trust

Partisan Polarization

Scores Before Students

Structural Determinants of Education

ILLUSTRAT IONS BY GABY D’ALESSANDRO Betrayed No More How Morally Centered Schools Reduce Educators’ and Students’ Distress By Wendy Dean and Rachel Schaffer F or too many educators, the idea of amorally centered school may seem like a fantasy—or be so novel a concept that it is hard to grasp. In this article, we describe such schools, which truly serve students’ best interests by following a set of shared professional values, and how educators and their unions can help create them. But first, let’s take a look at how things currently stand. The following four scenarios are drawn from interviews we conducted with 13 educators in five states. Although we have changed individuals’ names and some key details, the fundamental truth of each educator’s predicament remains clear. Betrayal of Trust One fall day at a Midwestern elementary school, Jane threatened to use a sharp object as a weapon against another student, Sally, as they were standing in line before school. Other students saw the incident and reported to their teachers that they felt unsafe. Wendy Dean is a psychiatrist and cofounder of Moral Injury of Healthcare. She has published widely on occupational distress in healthcare and its impact on patients and is a coauthor of IfI Betray These Words: Moral Injury in Medicine and Why It’s So Hard for Clinicians to Put Patients First. Rachel Schaffer has taught elementary school since 2014. She is a teacher leader working to elevate educators’ voices and enhance public education for all students. Terry, a midcareer teacher, followed the district protocol: they accompanied Jane to the office, reported the incident, and expected that (per the policy) Jane’s parents would be contacted and the school counselor would engage Jane in a series of sessions to help her apologize to Sally and change her behavior (along with determining if there were any underlying issues to address). Terry assured Sally that Jane would face consequences and that she and the other students were safe. Terry made those promises based on the clear district policies and procedures that were in place to maintain a safe environment in exactly this situation. That day, though, all administrators and counselors were busy: addressing more severe behavior issues, gathering reading data for district meetings, filling out forms for state funding requirements, and addressing that day’s substitute shortages. Because the school is under-staffed, no one called either Jane’s or Sally’s parents or rendered any consequences. Describing the situation, Terry cringed as they recalled their inadvertent “betrayal of [Sally’s] trust because the principal was too busy.”1 They had assured Sally that Jane would be held accountable for her actions, and yet Jane returned to class within an hour. Terry summed up their despair: “Public education is falling apart, or it’s being torn apart. I don’t know what to hope for except maybe that we can piece it back together.”2 32 AMERICAN EDUCATOR | WINTER 2024–25 Partisan Polarization Alex, a teacher in the Deep South, has felt in recent years as if his state school board has been working against educators. After adopting partisan state school board elections several years ago, voters have seemed to care more about the candidate’s party than their expertise in education. As Alex explained,“I was a state delegate atthe party convention a few years ago. Candidates for the state school board called me daily. I remember when one of them launched into talking about their platform: getting groomers out of education, supporting vouchers, Moral injury stems from broken trust, values conflicts, and unresolved miscommunications—like devoting time to test prep instead of joyful learning. parents’ rights.…The usual extremist conservative talking points. When I shared that I am, infact, a teacher, the candidate hesitated for only a moment before continuing to bash my profession. I asked for any proof of her claims, and she cou

FAQs

What is the article’s main focus about schooling and educator distress?

It explores how schools that are not morally centered can worsen educators’ and students’ distress by undermining trust and failing to address values conflicts and miscommunication.

What evidence does the article use to describe current problems in education?

It relies on four scenarios drawn from interviews conducted with 13 educators in five states, with names and key details changed.

How do testing and pacing pressures affect students according to the article?

The article describes how time for play and foundational learning is reduced for benchmark and test preparation, which can erode students’ trust in adults and their willingness to engage.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Logic