[Year 12 SofDev] Ethical decision making

[Christophersen, Paula P]

Colleagues

As we only too well know, students often have difficulty handling ethics-based questions, whether in exams or for school-based assessment. The other day I came across a segment within an article that focuses on types of thinking when making ethical decisions, and I like it. These may be useful tools when students are unpacking a scenario and trying to determine the basis of an ethical outcome - they give students handles on which they can attack a situation and justify their decision.

Whitehead, D (2008) International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 'Justifying the design and selection of literacy and thinking tools', Vol 1, Issue 1, October 2008

Whitehead believes that there are five types of ethical thinking that can be used when making ethical decisions. These are:

*         'ends-based' thinking, where the learner selects an action that they believe will result in the greatest good for the greatest number

*         'fair and just' thinking, where the learner considers whether an action treats everyone in the same way or whether it favours some people without justifiable cause

*         'rule-based' thinking, where the learner decides what to do based on a rule, e.g. legal, religious, cultural, personal

*         'care-based' thinking, where the learner decides what to do based on the idea that this is what they would want other people to do to them

*         'common good' thinking, where the learner believes that an action should be linked to the common good - for the benefit of society.

Regards
Paula

Paula Christophersen
ICT Curriculum Manager
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
Authority
(03) 9651 4378


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