I think that Braithwaite's actions are justified in the story.  His path is the path of the new teacher.  The struggles that are evident in his journey of characterization.  Braithwaite's actions are reflective of both a person struggling to find their own place in education as well as an individual who wishes to understand their own sense of identity in the classroom.  Braithwaite's actions are done in this self- explorative vein.  He is one who fully understands that his own sense of being is one that is based in the idea of understanding his own true experience in the classroom setting.  The justification here is that Braithwaite acts in a manner that reflects his own search for what it means to be an educator and what it means to be a settled individual.  Braithwaite's actions can be justified because they reflect this type of search.  For Braithwaite, his actions are of the purest of intent primarily because they seek to make others better and improve the lives of his students.  Braithwaite does not act in a manner that enriches his own life, as he is constantly driven with how to be more effective for his students and in this his actions can be justified in the clearest of manners.