This teaching guide is a resource for lecturers  

 

Table of exercises

 

The E4J University Modules on Integrity and Ethics include over 70 interactive exercises. The table below lists all these exercises and briefly describes each of them. In addition, the table indicates which of the five core learning principles discussed above (see section on " Helping people learn") are relevant to each exercise.

Module
Exercise title
Brief description
Core learning principles
1.1 Personal values After showing a video on personal values, the lecturer asks the students to develop a list of their own personal values and to prioritize their top ten values and then to discuss them in small groups.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
1.2 Shipwreck situation The lecturer asks the students to imagine that their ship has started to sink in the middle of the ocean. Eleven people have jumped into a life-boat that only fits ten people, and the life-boat is also starting to sink. What should the passengers do? Throw one person overboard and save ten lives? Or stick to the principle of "do not kill", which means that everybody will drown? The lecturer can invite contributions from the class and even take a vote, and then illustrate how different theoretical approaches (e.g. utilitarianism and deontology) will lead to different solutions that are both valid in terms of the particular approach.
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
  2. Varied and active engagement
1.3 Case study: Baby Theresa The lecturer presents a case of parents who have to decide what to do with their baby, who was born with one of the worst genetic disorders. The lecturer facilitates a group discussion around these questions: How do we put a value on human life? What should one do when there is a conflict between the law and one's own moral position about an issue? If you were in a position to make the final decision in this case, what would it be and why?
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
1.4 Case study: Emails exposed After presenting a case study in which school authorities are monitoring student's social media and e-mail accounts, the lecturer facilitates a group discussion around these questions: Should universities be allowed to monitor student email and social media accounts? If so, under what circumstances? What crosses the line between campus safety and invasion of privacy? Are university rules regarding email and social media monitoring too vague? If so, how can these rules be changed for more clarity? Should Robert have been punished for cheating in class if he did not know his email was being monitored? What about his tutor?
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
1.5 Case study: The Parable of the Sadhu In this exercise the lecturer presents another case in which a group of people - hikers in this case - has to respond to an ethical dilemma. At the highest point of their climb, the group encountered a man barely alive. They wrapped him in warm clothing and gave him food and drink. A few members of the group helped move the man down toward a village two days' journey away, but they soon left him to continue their way up the slope. The lecturer facilitates a group discussion around these questions: Can you identify the ethical issues in this case? If you were in the position of the travellers, how would you respond? What is the relevance of this case in contemporary society?
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
2.1 Performance: Enacting universal values The lecturer asks the students to read a speech by former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan. The students divide into five teams and each is assigned one of five values mentioned in the speech. Each team must then write a short performance in which they act out their value.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
2.2 Simulation: Creating a Universal Declaration of Human Values In this exercise, students are asked to create a Universal Declaration of Human Values (UDHV). This is modelled on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), though its focus is on values rather than rights. Students will be organized into groups of at least five and no more than eight to create a declaration of 10-15 articles.
  1. Varied and Active Engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
3.1 Today's News Students are encouraged to bring a daily newspaper to class or to access any news-related web site. They are given five minutes for individual preparation - the task is to explore the front page or headlines and to identify three to five stories with a clear ethical component. After five minutes, small groups are formed to discuss and share examples. Each group is required to present one example to the class.
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Social nature of learning
3.2 The Everyday Ethicist The lecturer presents a TED Talk on different kinds of ethical issues we face in our daily life. The students are divided into small groups to discuss the video and the following questions: What is the relationship between ethics and society? What is the origin of our own ethical standards and the ethical standards of society? The lecturer should invite some students to provide feedback.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
3.3 Expedition to Mars This exercise simulates John Rawls' Veil of Ignorance thought experiment. It involves videos, hand-outs, small group discussions and students' presentations. Students are told they will be sent to Mars to establish a colony and will be given different roles once they reach the destination (builders, administrators, entertainers, scientists, and caterers). They are asked to agree as a group on a few rules of engagement (a social contract) before their departure and before they know their roles, such as how to determine the order in which completed houses will be allocated, the salaries of the different positions, etc. The students are paired in small groups to discuss and come up with recommendations. In the next step the students are allocated their roles and they deliver presentations based on the different roles. The lecturer facilitates a group discussion and debrief.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
3.4 What do I owe society? The lecturer explains that the university environment forms part of society, and highlights the roles of different sectors of society vis-à-vis the university (e.g. the public sector is involved through funding and regulation of university and degree requirements, the private sector is involved through the production and sale of text books and other support material or through the creation of infrastructure, and the students themselves - especially once qualified and working in a professional environment - will be in a position to make a contribution to society. The lecturer then leads a discussion around the question: What do I owe society?
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Challenge of transfer
4.1 Leader's view This exercise is intended to encourage students to reflect carefully on their current views on leadership and to stimulate their interest in learning more about ethical leadership. The lecturer asks the student to complete a questionnaire, either in class or before they arrive to class, and facilitates a discussion in class around the questions.
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
  2. Becoming self-aware
4.2 Decision cards This exercise involves distributing decision cards to students, asking them to decide in which "box" to place the cards, and to consider the choices made by their fellow students. The purpose of this card exercise is to encourage students to make decisions in given situations and to evaluate the decisions' ethical dimensions from the point of view of others. Lecturers could design their own cards and adapt the exercise accordingly.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
4.3 Pop culture examples of ethical leadership Either during class or at home before the class, the lecturer asks the students to research online a current example of ethical leadership among pop culture figures and celebrities. Each student has to provide an explanation as to why this figure or celebrity demonstrates ethical leadership.
  1. Varied and active engagement
4.4 Case study: Telling the truth A case in which an employer has to deal with an ethical conflict regarding frequent absences of his employee due to a serious disease is presented to the students. The lecturer asks the students to discuss the following questions: Should you reveal to your employees the reason for their co-worker's absence? Why or why not? Should you explain to your boss what is really going on? How would you handle this situation? The lecturer facilitates a group discussion with the students on their answers at the end of the exercise.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
4.5 Case study: Stay neutral or not This case study involves a somewhat more complex ethical conflict for a leader compared to the previous one. The guidelines for conducting this exercise are similar to the previous one: After giving the students a few minutes to read the short case and prepare individual answers, have them discuss their answers in small groups and elect a spokesperson to provide feedback to the plenary group. Ask the groups' spokespersons to provide feedback. Summarize by explaining the dilemma and highlighting how the application of different ethical theories might lead to different actions.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
4.6 Turning knowledge into practice The idea behind this exercise is to turn knowledge about ethical leadership into practical guidelines. Students are encouraged to carefully examine the ten activities Daft associates with a moral leader, and then to review the five principles of ethical leadership suggested by Northouse (see Key Issues section of the Module). After carefully considering the approaches of Northouse and Daft, Students are encouraged to critically evaluate these approaches, and come up with their own set of practical guidelines for ethical leadership.
  1. Challenge of transfer
5.1 I Am Malala The lecturer asks the students to reflect on the following questions, drawing on the pre-assigned reading of the excerpt (pp. 183-190) from I Am Malala: 1) Can diversity principles ignore the teachings of prevailing local religions that in this case might encourage discrimination against girls and women? 2) What can Malala's father's behaviour tell us about diversity, tolerance and pluralism? The students have a few minutes to write down their answers, before they present their views and discuss them with the others.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
5.2 DNA testing video This exercise aims to introduce the students to the complexity of the concepts of diversity, tolerance and pluralism, by showing them a short documentary that demonstrates our common ancestry and mixed racial and geographical backgrounds. After watching the video, the students are asked to analyse it and to discuss its implications by addressing the following three questions: Whether it is literally accurate or not, the spirit of the research suggests we are all related and unaware of the full spectrum of our origins. Do you think that is true? What are the implications of this thinking for your own sense of identity and that of your family and friends? How does this sense of identity change your relationships with others and your interaction with those who seem "different"?
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
5.3 Mandela's The Long Walk to Freedom The students are asked to draw on the pre-assigned reading of the excerpt (pp. 50-55) from The Long Walk to Freedom. The excerpt describes Nelson Mandela's first major ethical/racial injustice case, when his university president threatens him with expulsion if he does not violate the wishes of other students he represents who are involved in a boycott and school election. The students are paired in small groups to discuss what they would have done if they were in Mandela's shoes.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Challenge of transfer
  3. Varied and active engagement
5.4 Video montage of three moral role models The lecturer shows a video montage of three different moral role models - Gandhi, Mother Theresa, and Bayard Rustin, and subsequently leads a discussion of differences and commonalities of the three role models, particularly focusing on their approach to ethics and diversity.
  1. Varied and active engagement
5.5 An Intersectional Constitution In this exercise, students are asked to take on the persona of different religious/cultural/ideological figures and develop a short constitution with a bill of rights for the society in which they will live together. This short constitution should reflect their differences and yet also provide protection to ensure that those differences do not prevent a functioning social and political system. The students should be asked to think about questions of intersectionality and pluralism as they develop their constitutional framework.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
5.6 Model United Nations simulation The lecturer asks the students to choose the country that they will defend in a small Model United Nations simulation, ideally one which is not their own, nor one they know well. They also choose a debate topic.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
6.1 Understanding dishonesty In this pre-class exercise the students are asked to watch the RSA Animate video on Dan Ariely's book The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty. After watching the film, the lecturer asks them to consider why is dishonesty everywhere but almost always kept within bounds? Why, in other words, are there many little cheaters and few big cheaters?
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
6.2 Failing to see what is right in front of you A video called The Monkey Business Illusion is presented to the students. After watching the video, the lecturer asks them to try to count the number of times players in white make passes. After the students finish counting the passes, the lecturer facilitates a discussion about the mechanism of selective attention and its potential to induce unethical behaviour.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
6.3 The Good Samaritan Experiment The lecturer shows a short video clip about the famous Good Samaritan Experiment conducted by J. M. Darley and C. D Batson. The students are asked to explain the experiment and link it to the phenomena of selective attention and psychological distance.
  1. Becoming self-aware
6.4 Asch's Conformity Experiment The lecturer can choose either to reproduce the Conformity Experiment or to show the students the video that describes Solomon Asch's influential experiment. The lecturer could pretend to be Solomon Asch and a group of students could either be confederates or subjects of the experiment. Students should record how hard it is for them to remain honest to the evidence of their senses or, most typically, honestly report on what they see. The lecturer facilitates a group discussion, during which the students should consider what ethically relevant lessons could be drawn from this experiment. How, for instance, can they avoid the pull of conformity when required? Pay attention to specific examples provided by students, focusing in particular on what they felt when refusing to conform.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
6.5 The Milgram Obedience Experiment A video about Stanley Milgram's controversial obedience experiment is presented to the students. After they watch the video, the lecturer asks them to explain the Milgram Experiment.
  1. Becoming self-aware
6.6. Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment The lecturer shows a short video of the controversial Stanford Prison Experiment, which demonstrates the problem of situationism - i.e. the extent to which external circumstances can influence behaviour. Then the lecturer asks the students to explain the experiment, focusing in particular on the specific mechanisms that led guards and prisoners to adopt their roles.
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Challenge of transfer
7.1 Building a no-blame, just culture in an organization The lecturer presents a scenario to the students in which they are a group of consultants that have to advise a custom authority in a country X that seeks to build a no-blame culture. The students are paired in small groups and discuss the following questions: What are basic principles of a no-blame culture? What steps would you recommend for developing a no-blame culture in the customs authority? How can the no-blame culture be implemented in practice? How can the customs authority raise awareness among its staff for the no-blame culture?
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
7.2 A tale of two stories This exercise has three parts. In the first part the students reflect on a time when they voiced their values in a values conflict situation; in the second part they reflect on a time when they did not do so; in the third part the students engage in small group discussions and then the lecturer facilitates a class discussion. Answers to the Part 1 and 2 questions should be prepared in advance of the classroom discussion as they can be challenging to recall in the moment.
  1. Challenge of transfer,
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
7.3 Peer coaching and the value of feedback In this exercise students are asked to consider a scenario in which a legal advisor notices that certain clauses in a contract for a new client of his company are vague and may pose a commercial risk to the client. The legal advisor informs the manager but is put off with the argument that revenue targets must be reached. The students are asked to reflect individually on a strategy the legal advisor could employ to speak up, and on arguments that could be used for this purpose. Then they are paired in small groups and in each group one student assumes the role of the legal advisor and the remaining students act as "peer coaches". The student designated as the legal advisor explains to the peer coaches his or her strategy and scripted arguments (ten min). The participants are then asked to silently reflect on this explanation, according to the following guidelines.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
7.4 Ethical business practices The main objective of this exercise is to encourage students to train their "moral muscle" and develop the skills in terms of the action-based approach to integrity and ethics. They are asked to imagine a situation in which they work for a company that is bidding on a large, publicly tendered contract with a foreign government. To get the contract this company is requested by the government to pay a last-minute "closure fee". Students are asked to discuss this situation first in groups. Subsequently, the rationalizations discussed in the groups are discussed with the larger class.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
8.1 Pre-class survey: Own versus others' behaviour You can demonstrate self-righteousness by simply having people predict how likely they are to engage in a series of moral and immoral behaviours compared to others in the class. This survey asks students to do so. Specifically, students are asked to predict how likely they are to engage in a series of 14 behaviours compared to others in the class. You can simply show to the class the average rating for each behaviour. You can also report the average rating for the seven moral behaviours and the seven immoral behaviours separately.
  1. Becoming self-aware
8.2 Pre-class survey: How much? This survey asks students to indicate how much they would need to be paid for performing several different actions. This survey reflects the existence of five different basic moral foundations, first proposed and identified by Jonathan Haidt and his colleagues.
  1. Becoming self-aware
8.3 Pre-class survey: Investment adviser demonstration This demonstration illustrates the concept of ethical awareness by asking students to imagine that they are investment advisers who are considering four mutual funds, one of which (Fortitude Investments) is the Bernard Madoff feeder fund (the fund that was the largest Ponzi scheme in history, to date).
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
8.4 Case study: Ethical beacon The lecturer asks students to think of the organization or society that seems most ethical to them. This would be an organization or society that is an ethical beacon that the students might want to emulate. The students are asked to focus specifically on what the organization or society does to turn its ethical principles into daily practices, and discuss the following questions: What was your ethical beacon? How do they lead with ethical principles? How do they enact principles in day-to-day practices? How do they respond to inevitable ethical failings?
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
9.1 Privilege is invisible to those who have it The lecturer shows to the students a TED Talk and then discusses with the class the following questions: How does this Ted talk make you feel? Can you reflect on the ways that sexism and/or racism has/is impacting your life as an individual (positively and negatively)? How can you relate Borrego's and/or Kimmel's ideas to the Ethics of Care?
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Challenge of transfer
9.2 Role play: The power walk To further help students understand the idea of privilege, and make them aware of their own privilege, in this exercise the lecturer can ask the students to do the "privilege walk", sample of which are widely available on the internet. To avoid causing discomfort and embarrassment to the students, it is recommended to use the role-play method and assign fake identities to the students.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Becoming self-aware
  3. Social nature of learning
9.3 Self versus other The lecturer shows the TED Talk "Wiring a Web For Global Good" to the students. After watching the video, they are asked to discuss what an Ethics of Care approach tells us about how to balance the needs of vulnerable others with the need to provide for ourselves and our dependents.
  1. Social nature of learning
9.4 The "Gender-Career Implicit Associations Test" In this exercise, students are asked to take the Harvard Implicit Associations Test (IAT), which provides the opportunity to explore implicit bias on a range of topics. Once the students have completed the tests the lecturer asks them to share their results with the class and compare those results with the overall findings.
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Social nature of learning
9.5 Gender equity in recruitment advertisements ("Gender Decoder") The lecturer asks the students to find a job advertisement for a position they are interested in and asks them to use the "Gender Decoder for Job Ads" tool to review the wording of their chosen job advertisement. At the end of the exercise the lecturer facilitates a group discussion on the following questions: Consider how this tool and the Ethics of Care would direct you to rewrite the advertisement to ensure it is more gender neutral. What words did you change? Are there any words in the Decoder that you would question, or you feel are missing? Reflect on what you learnt about your own biased use of language.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
  3. Social nature of learning
9.6 Sexual harassment online During this exercise the lecturer shows the students a video about online harassment of women. Then the students are paired in small groups to discuss how workplace sexism and sexism more generally play out in online forums. If time allows, the student can also discuss their suggestions with the class.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
9.7 Role play: Sexual harassment in the workplace The students are asked to write and perform in pairs their own script for setting the culture in an organization they feel close to. An alternative to role-playing is to set an assignment asking students to come up with a lesson plan to teach the class about what sexual harassment is and how their chosen "organization" will respond to an allegation that has been made public.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
9.8 Class wrap up - Minute Paper A few minutes before the end of class, the lecturer asks the students to write down their responses to the questions below and to briefly present them to the rest of the class: What was the most important thing you learned today? What question remains in your mind?
  1. Becoming self-aware
10.1 What do we know about media ethics? This pre-class exercise could be useful for expanding students' thinking about the Module topics. Before the class takes place, students are asked to prepare a one-page report assessing their use and view of media and social media. Lecturers should provide students with ample notice and time to complete this assignment before class.
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
  2. Varied and active engagement
10.2 How to choose your news The lecturer asks the students to write down their current sources of news stories, whether traditional media or trending social media. The lecturer then facilitates a group discussion on the following questions: Why they chose that source(s)? Why they think it is reliable? Could they identify the author of the story? How many times have they re-sent, re-tweeted or posted a story without any investigations of its authenticity or reliability?
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Social nature of learning
10.3 The rise of fake news The students are asked to watch a documentary that shows fake news 'factories' in FYR of Macedonia. After a short discussion of the documentary, the lecturer asks each student to create a fake news story and show it to the class together with another story that is true. The rest of the students must distinguish the true from the fake news and facilitate a discussion around that.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Becoming self-aware
10.4 Role play: Does the media have a "duty of care"? The lecturer divides the class into four groups representing different parties: media consumer, journalist, media producer (owner), and government regulator. The lecturer asks the students to role-play or debate the following themes: Does the media have a duty of care to be accurate? To whom does it owe this duty?
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Challenge of transfer
  3. Varied and active engagement
10.5 The Potter Box The lecturer introduces the Potter Box method, which is explained in the Key Issues section, and demonstrates each of the method's four steps through a discussion with the students.
  1. Social nature of learning
10.6 Astroturf and manipulation of media messages The lecturer starts the exercise by screening the TED Talk "Astroturf and manipulation of media messages", which demonstrates the need for ethical investigation of news and the harm from not doing such ethical investigations. Following the TED Talk, the students are assigned to small groups to prepare stories from a Fake News site for considering whether "astroturfing" was behind the fake news. At the end the students are asked to present their results in a class discussion.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Becoming self-aware
10.7 Citizen journalism The TED Talk "Citizen Journalism" is presented to the students. This video provides an excellent point of departure to introduce the Code of Ethics for Journalists from the Society of Professional Journalists and allows for a final class discussion with the caution that errors, manipulation or fake news are always likely, mandating the principles found in the code of ethics. The class ends as it began with an open and student-centred class discussion.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
11.1 What do we know about business Integrity? Before attending the class, students are asked to complete one or more of the video-modules associated with the e-learning tool " The Fight against Corruption" .
  1. Varied and active engagement
11.2 Mapping business contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) This exercise seeks to familiarize students with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The lecturer can get the class, individually or in small groups, to develop an understanding of the SDGs and of potential contributions and impact that businesses may have. The aim of the exercise is not that students present a comprehensive assessment of business contributions to SDGs but rather that they understand the concept and can make use of the SDGs as a framework for responsible and ethical business conduct.
  1. Challenge to transfer
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Becoming self-aware
11.3 Role play: Convince your supervisor that ethics pays In this exercise, the lecturer encourages students to consider the business case for integrity and ethics, to reflect on concrete examples of how following a path of integrity and ethics can be good for a business. First, the lecturer divides students into small groups and asks them to brainstorm on how following a path for integrity and ethics can be positive for business, and to think of possible consequences for lack of integrity in business. To internalize the arguments, students are asked to engage in a role play. At the end, a couple of groups can present their role play in front of the rest of the class.
  1. Challenge of transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
11.4 Case study: Analysis of codes The aim of this exercise is to introduce codes of ethics or codes of conduct to the student. The lecturer starts with explaining what codes are and present some examples, highlighting the different components and how they fit together. The students are split up into small groups to analyse examples of codes and identify their main components. Then the lecturer asks the students to present their findings to the class.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
11.5 How to communicate codes? In this exercise, the students are asked to go back to their groups and take a second look at the codes they have already analysed. The aim of this exercise is to consider how the codes analysed in Exercise 3 contribute to the building and implementation of a successful integrity and ethics programme. The lecturer encourages students to choose a few key elements and come up with ideas on how the rules and regulations could be effectively communicated to employees.
  1. Challenge to transfer
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
12.1 Case studies The lecturer starts the exercise with introducing one of the six case studies listed in the Module and leads a discussion which allows students to address and debate issues of integrity, ethics and law. If time allows, the students can vote on which case studies they want to discuss.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
  3. Social nature of learning
12.2 Definitions The lecturer splits the class into three groups and assign each group the task of presenting the definitions of integrity, ethics and law to the whole class
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
12.3 Interviews Prior to meeting students, the lecturer assigns them the task of interviewing someone they think is ethical or has integrity. Students should ask the person about a difficult decision they made, and report back to the class about the interview. If this exercise is used, it is important to discuss privacy and confidentiality with students and talk about whether the person interviewed wants to remain anonymous or not.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Challenge of transfer
12.4 Videos In this exercise the lecturer encourages students to watch and discuss movies or videos that address this Module's topics. In large classes, students can view videos outside of class and lecturers can facilitate discussion during class, using small groups that report back on questions.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Becoming self-aware
12.5 Teaching integrity, ethics and law Prior to class, the lecturer plans for his students to teach the concepts of integrity, ethics and law to younger students, e.g. university students can visit and teach high school students. In class, class time should be allocated for students to come up with interactive, age-appropriate ideas, prepare activities and practice the lesson (role play can work well here). Outside of class, as part of the class or an extra-curricular activity, the lecturer accompanies students to the high school. After the session, the students are asked to debrief and evaluate the teaching experience by using a diary or report.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
13.1 Reception on values After a short brain-storming on important values, the lecturer distributes cards to the students and asks them each to write on the card one value that is the most important value in their life. The lecturer also asks them to imagine that they are at an opening reception of a new programme and have to introduce themselves to the other students by referring to the value on their card. Their card is their business card. The students have to go to others and present themselves by explaining their guiding value. After short mutual introductions, they should walk to others, to make new contacts.
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
  4. Social nature of learning
13.2 Ethics codes for civil servants The exercise starts with distributing list of core values and action principles of the national civil service code in the country or another national code for public service available from OECD website. Then the students are divided into five groups and each group has to work with one core value from the Temporary Steward scheme used by Lewis and Gilman (explained in the Key issues section). The groups should identify the values and principles from the code with the corresponding core value they were assigned from the Lewis-Gilman scheme. Finally, the group representatives explain their groups' choices before the larger class.
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
  Integrity breaching practices The lecturer asks the students to give examples of integrity breaching practices and shows them the video "Just Do Your Job!". The Students are asked to react to the situation presented in the video. The lecturer leads the discussion towards the understanding that public servants may not be able to act ethically when their organizations have weak internal controls and low levels of compliance.
  1. Prior knowledge and experience
  2. Varied and active engagement
13.4 Case studies and structured ethical reflection The lecturer selects a case study that present ethical dilemmas and facilitate a discussion in a manner that allows students to experience effective dialogue and understand how the dialogue shapes interpretations and opinions. For example, the students can sit in a horseshoe shape, and place two chairs at the open end of the horseshoe. On each of the two chairs at the open end place a sign with one of the possible solutions to the dilemma discussed. Then the students are asked who wish to speak to move from their own chair to the chair reflecting their selected solution, and from there argue in favour of their solution.
  1. Becoming self-aware
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Varied and active engagement
  4. Challenge of transfer
14.1 Case studies for professional ethics In this exercise the lecturer can choose to present one of four different case studies on professional ethics and facilitates a group discussion with the students by asking them questions regarding the case.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
14.2 Case studies for role morality This exercise is similar to the previous one, except the presented case studies explain the role morality. The students again are asked to discuss them in a group, facilitated by the lecturer.
  1. Social nature of learning
  2. Varied and active engagement
  3. Challenge of transfer
14.3 Additional exercise 1 The lecturer can provide the photograph or ask students to identify and suggest photographs published in a reputable newspaper of an individual experiencing extreme suffering, such as a victim of war or famine, etc. The lecturer then assigns roles for the students to play and ask students to express the opinions of the person in those roles regarding the publishing of the photograph, e.g. the victim, parents of the victim, a professional photographer seeking permission from the parents to publish the photograph. In their roles, students should express role-appropriate views, ethical concerns and priorities, and suggest what they would do and why.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
14.4 Additional exercise 2 Lecturers wishing to address engineering ethics and codes of ethics can review the article "Thinking Like an Engineer", on the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger and starts a group discussion with the students on the political sensitivity of the investigation into the explosion and the urge to cover it.
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
  3. Challenge of transfer
14.5 Additional exercise 3 To spice up class discussion, the lecturer might want to compare the ethical reasoning done by students with an online ethical reasoning app from Santa Clara University's Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and ask the following questions: Can a list or online ethics tool help or hinder ethical reasoning? Does student reasoning produce results that differ from those of the app, and if so, which result is better?
  1. Varied and active engagement
  2. Social nature of learning
 
Next page
Back to top