Ethics in school counselling

This chapter aims to enhance teacher’s knowledge of the codes of ethics in counselling, to heighten their awareness of ethical issues and their competence in handling them, and to highlight the need for recognizing professional counselling work. The chapter begins with an exposition of the necessity for teachers to study counselling ethics, followed by a discussion of the importance and limits of the ethical codes, covering also significant ethical issues relevant to school counselling. In the discussions a case study format is adopted. By referring to several typical school counselling cases, the complicated and contradictory nature of ethical issues is illustrated. On the basis of the ethical codes laid down by Western and local professional counselling organizations, methods appropriate to the Hong Kong school culture and social environment are proposed. Copyright © 2013 Hong Kong University Press.