Yes ethics need to be taught to provide a general and acceptable code of behavior of living in a society. Kids enter school as products of their family life. Many of these families do not have the same code of rules and know how to function in society as a whole, so it is up to schools to teach the rules to live by that are lacking in the home. With out the common code of ethics, its near impossible for a school to be successful without the student being given tools of reinforcement. We owe it to the future of the student and society in general.

I am in a business school at a public university in Texas - Prairie View A&M University near Houston. We introduced a mandatory course, "Leadership and Ethics in Business" about 8 years ago. Each semester we offer two sections, sometimes team taught by a JD and a Ph.D team. We often get non business students in the class. As an economist, I have done some research on the subject and have team taught this course. We had some initial resistance from faculty colleagues who do not believe "ethics can be taught." We argued it serves to raise awareness and students learn from one another - not only from the book or the lectures. I am glad we have the course (although we also teach these topics "across the curriculum"). Our accreditation body - AACSB International strongly encourages this. The accounting undergraduates (interested in the CPA) also need an ethics course - so they take a (similar) course designed only for accounting majors as part of their bachelors requirement.

Ethics is a framework not something elective or extra curriculum. for any work not only academia.

the point is sometimes we we could we found graduate who cannot go through the ethical issues (Either IRB, ethical committee or even ethics in communication with patients) this problem simply can be solved by undergraduate ethics mandatory curriculum.

I think that will be more cost effective and time saving

The concept of transformational leadership emphasizes honesty, credibility, compassion, inspiration, fairness on the part of the leader to be practice so as to be successful. These all are issues related to ethics as well.

As Munir points out, I think it would be a great idea to teach a course like: Ethics and Leadership at the undergraduate level to business studies students. In fact, leadership is also not taught at the undergraduate level normally. In the chaotically changeful world today, leadership and ethics are becoming critical. So the foundation of these competencies should be laid through such a course.

In India, the new Companies Act has recently made it mandatory for all registered public limited companies to invest 2 per cent of their profits in CSR. This will be good step in curbing the negative consequences of the rising inequality in the world. Otherwise, as we know, social scientists are cautioning that we are going to have a revolution soon due to the realities of the globalizing world..

Absolutely yes, ethics should be taught not just to undergraduate students but also to graduate students. Including all issues of values, principles, and ethics of a technological society regarding to their national and international levels.

From my experience I taught a class of "higher education administration", one of the major chapters of it about "Ethics of academic work" , discussing values and principles that guided the relationship among students, faculty members, and other employees in the university. Also, the relation between the university and local, national and international community regarding to the ethics issues.

Practice of ethics should start from family. As Dr.Kamal said, course on ethics should be a part of curriculum from the early school to any level of courses.

Ethics should be taught to undergradutate students. That is my opinion. It is mandatory for students to understand how basic things in society work so that they can behave properly and act as they should. Also, they should understand that what we call ethical in our environment may be completely different in another region. Basically, students who focus their studies on social sciences should understand all these principals and should also apply them on a daily basis. They should question society and its ideals but they must follow them untill better methodologies are proven.

I will teach to undergraduate students the following elements associated with the concept of ethics:

•What is a code of ethics and a code of practices?

A code of ethics has a regulatory, educative and cultural integration functions. Often the main regulatory role of a code of ethics is actually played by an associated code of practices. The code of ethics is a basic presentation of principles and ideals; the code of practices is a detailed description of the actions that are to be performed and not performed, and of the sanctions that attach to non-performance. The code of ethics has two aspects: a) the content comprising the requirements, rules, principles, ideals, and so forth; and b) the commitment of the members of the occupation or organisation to conform to, and otherwise uphold, those rules and ideals. The commitment to that content on the part of the members of the occupation consists of an oath, or promise, or other kind of undertaking that each member has given to adhere to the code. The codes of ethics are a good place for members of occupations to signal their commitment to the basic laws, and thus basic moral standards, of their community, including the principle of individual autonomy.

•What should be the main elements to be included in an ethical policy, in a code of ethics and in a code of practices?

•Which are the main ethical principles to be considered?

The purpose of an ethical policy and related codes is to promote a culture of openness, trust and integrity for all organisation activities implemented in the country.

•Which is the role and support of all personnel associated with the activities of the organization in the implementation of an ethical policy, principles and the corresponding codes? Effective ethical conduct is a team effort in which individual members of the team should be familiar with the ethical policy, the code of ethics and the code of practices in force and also with the set of ethical principles adopted by the organization.

•The need for the establishment of an ethic committee to ensure that the institutions carry out their activities respecting a group of ethical principles that should be adopted by the competent national authorities, bearing in mind a group of international and regional ethical principles. The Ethics Committee should be an independent reporting body whose main responsibility should be to ensure the protection of the rights, safety and well- being of all persons involved in the activities of the organisation. The Ethics Committee should provide public assurance of that protection by reviewing and approving standards and underwriting a code of practices suitable to the activities carried out by the institution.

Dear Nageswara, I agree with many voices above. Ethics should be taught at level of undergraduate studies as course, as well as complementary issues basically needed while methodology courses (qual - quant).

Dear Nageswara, I completely agree with you. Ethics should be taught to undergraduate (and also graduate) students.

Not only in undergraduate classes, it should be taught even in schools.

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”

― Aristotle

That is true Hemanta. Teaching in schools will be very effective since they probably will retain it long.

Thanks Nebi for excellent quote by Aristotle.

Absolutely! I very much agree with everyone here. I would even argue that ethics should be taught at even younger ages, grade school, secondary, etc...I was particularly fortunate during my high school years to have had the opportunity to take a survey of ethical theories course, something few secondary schools offer. Intelligence without the refinement of ethical insight has always been a dangerous force in world history...Of course, my only problem with the instruction of ethics, is that as a student of ethics I am uncertain that my studies have ever made me any more ethical than I was before (or perhaps even less?). Regardless of this however, students need instruction in ethics if they ever hope to eventually participate in meaningful research. Whether or not studying ethics will ever make us more ethical in daily life is inconsequential when we consider the practical necessity of ethics in research and formulating well founded prescriptions for social progress.

Definitely. "To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society" (Theodore Roosevelt). An aspect of ethics should be integrated into every course. Many textbooks include ethics issues related to specific topics in each chapter of the book. A dedicated lecture on ethics in general could be presented (http://goo.gl/7s3zB). Further, many universities have added dedicated courses on ethics to their core curriculum. Ethics is a major concern to people in every walk of life. While academic concepts and technical skills are important, at the heart of all business and social activity is a foundation of ethical values.

I am very encouraged by what I have read here. I share the sentiments of most everyone who has contributed to this discussion. I do, however, believe Nicholas raises an important point. When children are young we can "habituate" them in virtue (the term is Aristotle's). Whereas Plato, and presumably Socrates, thought that if we knew our true good we would pursue it, Aristotle reckoned with weakness of will ("akrasia"). So for Aristotle the didactic proclamation of principles of character and virtue might inform the intellect, but it would not necessarily change a person's behaviors. I do not believe that in the USA (my context) the current structure of our schools permits for anything which resembles habituation. Therefore, an especially potent and persuasive form of pedagogy must be formulated, otherwise character education will be an abortive thing. We need a method of teaching character which connects with young people at a depth level, and which motivates them to want to be people of character and principle.

Thank you for all of your contributions. I agree with Nicholas and Kamal that the ethics should be taught in schools and should have a bearing from the home. It is at home they will have their character molded from a very early age.

History shows that where ethics and economics come in conflict, victory is always with economics. Vested interests have never been known to have willingly divested themselves unless there was sufficient force to compel them. - B. R. Ambedkar

Thanks Murphy for the excellent reference for further information on ethics and its relevance.

Thanks Bill for bringing up the idea of habituation as a way of inculcating the ideal virtues that will help the student in his/her life. Gurukul as a concept has been extensively used in ancient India to impart specific education plus the virtues of life under the tutelage of a sage well versed with the teachings. Even Kings used to send their kids to these schools which are often in remote and serene places.

http://www.gurukultheschool.com/

http://gurukul.org/hyderabad/

Nageswara I am very interested in Gurukul. I have looked at your links. This seems like a wonderful thought-process/strategy. - Thank you.

Thanks Bill. It is done in a small way, but we have seen some good interest coming from people for this type of holistic education. Here are a few more that you may browse to get some idea:

https://www.facebook.com/gurukul11

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gurukul-English-School-Beed-GES/460945973939917

http://gurukulkurukshetra.com/home.html

The short and direct answer is yes ethics should be taught to under graduate students. We have two levels of ethics the first is ethics of managing patients and patients rights which should be taught during all courses when managing patients in medicine, pediatrics, surgery, OBG, ENT, ..etc. The other level is research ethics that also should be taught to all undergraduate medical students as any one of them would like to try a drug or herbal or new operation after being graduated he has to know earlier in life that trying a new medication or procedure is considered research. He/she needs to know how to manage this research as at that point his/her objective will change from giving the best treatment/management to the patient to be how his new treatment/procedure work. So both levels of ethics should be taught in under graduate courses.

I think this is very important topic to teach at university level. It is more important to teach it to undergraduate students rather than graduate students. "Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do". This is very important quality that our students should learn.

@Patrick: We have not included in our curriculum. Also I have not seen this as a specific course in any undergraduate curriculum. At the same time we see many rampant unethical practices by many educated people. We have compulsory ethics course for graduate students. So could this be one way that it can be remedied?

Hello All,

Good day to you.

In response to the question posed by Nageswara, my answer is a definite YES. And why not? I strongly believe that as soon as students begin tertiary level studies such a course should be offered and made compulsory for all. During my undergrad degree, I never did such a course as such a course was not, and still is not, being offered at the University of Guyana.

Ethics (Bello, 2012) should govern students' actions, especially in this 'copy, cut and paste culture' with regard to assignments and research paper writing. So, yes a select course and ethics and ethical practices would be a welcome reality.

As noted by Livingstone (2013, p. 11), "In every educational institution, there is either a written code of conduct to which we must adhere, better known as the code of ethics. These behavioural norms determine what we do as well as how, where, when and why we do it. It is to say that everything that is done must be governed by ethical statutes. Ethics governs how we act, behave, think, feel, speak, and the like ".

This is an idea that I need to propose to my University. Thank you Nageswara for the idea.

Warm Wishes,

Kerwin.

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Bello, S. M. (2012). Impact of Ethical Leadership on Employee Job Performance. International Journal of Business and Social Science 3 (11), 228-236.

Livingstone, K. (2013). Refflective Essay on Educational Leadership. Retrieved April 26, 2014, from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260983319_Reflective_Essay_on_EDUCATIONAL_LEADERSHIP_-_ED491?ev=prf_pub

Article Educational Leadership and the University of Guyana: A Critical Look

Thanks Kerwin Livingstone for your response. As you rightly said this 'copy, cut and paste culture' with regard to assignments and research paper writing should go.

Yes, definitely. We have a saying in Turkish: " Trees bend when young". Moral development and reasoning takes a long way and it is a journey. Earlier, better. Otherwise, we risk to witness decision-makers who are self interest-oriented, leading corporations to "finish" all resources without responsibility for future generations. I don't only mean sustainability; I also mean erosion of justice and rising inequalities which are the most threatening developments for the future of the globe. Therefore, I highly support creating awareness at undergraduate level.

Ever since ethical behavior is important at every age, we should teach ethics since pre-school. However I believe the way this teaching is approached is completely obsolete, if you are teaching math, you are expecting the student to practice what he or she learned, if you teach language you are expecting the student to acquire some abilities, nevertheless if you are teaching ethics you are not expecting to see any change on behavior, we are just hoping they understand and apply what we teach.

For example, when I was a student in high school I had an Ethics and Society class, in the middle of the final exam one of my classmates showed up completely intoxicaded. She was asked to leave the classroom but she was given by the director the opportunity to take the test days later without any consequence for her behavior whatsoever, because her parents complained, even when the teacher had failed her. Was the behavior of the director ethical? was the behavior of my classmates and her parents ethical? Did she not disrespect the school and even the law being druck while underage?

But the most important question is did the school effectively taught her ethics? I think the teaching that she learned from that is that ethic is so much less important than power. And I believe failing her would have taught her more about ethics than the whole content of the course.

Some other school that I met charged student associations for using space to collect food and water for victims of a natural disaster.

Another time I met an elementary school director that bullied the students making other kids make fun of one particular kid and even by prohibiting them to make friends with someone under penalty of suspension.

And this is without even metioning the vast amount of teachers who sustain sexual activity with their students (both underage and older) and benefit them with scholarships and grades.

Or on more simple situations, how many teachers don't fully commit to do their jobs? Is it fair for private schools to bully their students by telling them they are going to get expelled if they complain about the performance of their teachers?

These situations are not as uncommon as we wished and the truth is that even when there are specific courses to teach ethics in many universities these are completely useless when the university itself acts unethically. If the unversity where to act really responsibly and ethically would it not teach ethics more effectively? And to all of its students?

To summarize, I believe, YES we should teach ethics at every level, but in a deeper, more effective, and more creative way.

Thank you Graciela for narrating very interesting experiences of yours which are actually violating the ethical behavior that we are teaching. As you correctly said we will have to “Practice what we preach”. If the school or college administration do not pay attention to ethics in its behavior because of whatever reason, then we are setting bad examples for the student. The students will obviously understand that it is OK to violate ethical rules. Then teaching ethics in classroom is wasting the time and effort of both the students and teachers.

“Character is that which reveals moral purpose, exposing the class of things a man chooses and avoids”. — Aristotle, Greek philosopher (384-322 B.C.)

“The best way to teach morality is to make it a habit with children”. — Aristotle, Greek philosopher (384-322 B.C.)

It's very important to learn ethics in the elementary school.I was brought up in Latvia, where ethics was in the curriculum.My family traditions were very strict in the frame of ethics, as for my first school, the laws of ethics were perfect, too.Our school was situated in the park- nobody plucked a snow-drop, or broke a tree. I had never been late, or thrown a paper or been impolite. We, adults, are from our childhood . The age of early childhood is sensitive for ethics.

Dear Colleagues,

I have read with interest and agreement to the consensus that ethics should be taught to undergraduate students. As one who has taught professional ethics (to clinical/counselling psychology students) and as a previous president of a professional practice ethical regulating body, I certainly can attest to the need in all professional disciplines.

As one who has been a professor for over 35 years, I can also say that the NEED is greater now than ever before. I would posit that the reason for this observation is related to the increasing failure of families and religions to "teach ethics" --- as they had done for at least the last two centuries. This, in turn, has more to do with the increasing disintegration of the "nuclear family" and a generally declining involvement in formal religious practices --- particularly in North America over recent decades. In addition, with the increasing "stress" placed on both individuals and families to simply survive (i.e., financially, emotionally, etc) in the post millennial culture (even moreso after the financial/economic collapse of 2008) one cannot but be reminded of the relevant words from the "Penney Opera" ---- "grub first, then ethics."

I wish ALL of my academic colleagues every success in imparting some knowledge and appreciation of "ethics" to all of their students. The success of this endeavor will, in large part, determine the quality of life for all of us.

Sincerely,

Lou

Now if I look at degrees that do not focus mainly on ethical/philosophical angles . I have the experience that students throw the term ethics around a lot without really a deeper understanding. What do students really take home from the teaching? How do we teach? What biases do we have in our teaching? What ethics theories does ethics teaching adhere to?...

I teach a class to undergraduates focused on "contemporary ethical problems." Many schools have some version of this class. It is meant to introduce young students to deeper consideration of those situations in which we confront our most cherished beliefs and values and ask what foundation we have for those values and beliefs. Required readings expose them to a variety of perspectives and this too is meant to broaden their range of considerations and deepen their thinking about serious topics having to do with moral choices. Exposure to systematic, theoretical thinking reveals the kinds of principles that people have considered important or necessary to making sound moral decisions and many classes include this too. This also is good way to question relativistic perspectives which many of them bring to the class - "it's just a matter of opinion" or "everybody has their own ideas about ........ so it's just a matter of choice" or the ever-present "Who's to say" - Students think they are being very "tolerant" and accepting of other perspectives and see moral judgment as being negative - actually making judgments is being too "judgmental." It's really important to address this and get them to think more seriously about what they're saying. And, when questioned, they indicate that they indeed are not as relativistic as they claim - they really do make judgments and have principles. I think this is one of the most important discussions that can take place in a classroom because it brings about the kind of self-reflective thinking and questioning that is supposed to be fundamental to good critical thinking - the main skill we all are supposed to be helping them develop. So, while many of us are reluctant to "enforce" our own version of ethical behavior on them in some direct way, I think just getting them to point I've described is quite an achievement in itself. Obviously, younger children need more direction and the examples cited by Graciela are troubling - many times by the time students reach the university, it seems we are trying to undo some of these kinds of experiential lessons that they garnered along the way. Another difference too is that older students get taught moral lessons in indirect ways - through standards and rules various teachers put in place and often in more direct ways through programs such as training sessions in sexual harassment, etc. that are in place in campuses all across the U.S.

l agreed that the ethics should be taught to undergraduate students simply because it is a parameter for their life. Ethics are part of identity.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236340162_Here_is_what_young_East_Asians_are_studying_in_order_to_live_more_harmoniously_with_the_West_What_has_the_West_learnt?ev=prf_pub

This article places the issue of teaching ethics in terms of cross-cultural education at the earliest ages and are revealed in Chinese textbooks published in English and quoting Western ideas on ethics, etc.

Article Here is what young East Asians are studying in order to live...

This is an important area, particularly for computer science students. Technological developments initiate different ethical issues, so there is no one answer fits all. However there are central issues in technology such as privacy and trust, both of which are becoming more recognised for individual users, ISPs and online commerce. It is becoming increasingly difficult for policy makers and legislators to keep abreast of developments and therefore, privacy by design and an awareness of ethical principles among engineers is becoming increasingly important.

I feel ethics should be taught at the undergraduate level as well as at home. In the office, there is ‘Code of conduct’ to maintain professionalism when dealing with customers or colleagues and breaching the code may considered as ‘misconduct and can result losing the professional standing and even loss of job

Appropriation of others (1) resources, (2) ideas, (3) publications, and (4) technologies are all-around us, especially online and in academics. We can use this knowledge and understanding to discuss issues of ethics, fairness, and justice.

Most definitely ethics should be taught. It may reduce the number of plagiarism incidents and reduce the extent student will go through to convince faculty of missed assignments.

I recently had an undergrad student that missed the final for a class who fabricated medical paperwork as support for not taking the exam. She claimed she was in a hit and run accident but the supposed responding police agency had no record nor did the hospital she claimed provided medical attention. Once this was discovered, the student was offered an out regarding a grade and she refused the grade. Unfortunately, as a result of all of her efforts she will be subjected to a failing grade instead of the one that was offered which was a passing grade, and potential suspension from the university via Judicial Affairs.

I also sit on a University committee that addresses student concerns regarding grades and whether they feel that have been graded unfairly by a professor. We have had two incidences back to back of plagiarism. One is a master's student (International) that had issues with the final project paper and the other, is an undergrad with the attitude that as long as the citations are there it is not plagiarism. I ran the submitted paper through "Grammarly" and 49% of the paper was not original an she wants to challenge the final grade which was a passing grade.

To answer the question, YES ethics should be taught!

Naturally, ethics and cross-cultural comparisons could be taught earlier and benefit us all more--so the students comprehend the jargon at college.

We are from childhood by birth. I agree, that the first lessons of ethics are from the family. We lived in Latvia, there were a lot of private fields with tulips there. I plucked some tulips and presented to my Mum. My father was furious, "Who brought these tulips? Who is a thief in my family?" He threw out the tulips. It was a bitter lesson. It's very important to explain a little child what is good and what is bad. Elementary school is a very important stage in upbringing, because this age is sensitive for ethics.The teachers of elementary school must explain the norms of ethics through role plays, interpretation of literary texts, explanation of bad behaviors. It will be complicated to explain the norms later. Nevertheless, to Makarenko, this repeated work must be constantly important.To close eyes on bad acts of our students is wrong.It means to affirm a bad behavior.

I wonder whether in some cultures, the home-versus-other mentality is actually that "ethics stops at one's family". I have seen evidence in all countries that this is what is taught or practiced, but in some cultures this tribal sense of ethics is stronger or more obvious.

I have also observed it among religious and non-religious business groups.

Hello sir,

You are correct

I think that ethics should be taught to undergraduate students as well as in higher studies too. With the rapid advances in technology and its applications which affects the human being and the environment,

Dear All,

I think elementary ethical rules should be taught in the family by the parents. In addition, the life of societies/communities should be permeated by historically developed human ethics. Without ethical backgrounds built in childhood, ethical education at university level is but an imperfect try.

Dear Kamal,

As far as I know ethics is taught at medical universities for future physicians. Have you got some data on the success of this education activity?

I think people know (intuitively) the difference between what is ethically acceptable or not, even without a course at university..... Anyway, prior to university there have been numerous opportunities to learn the difference between ethical versus unethical behavior.

The question then is what kind of ethics should be learnt. Is ethics in bio-medical sciences different from that in other research fields (Physics, Chemistry, etc..)?

Dear Marcel,

There is a very simple rule: do not do to your fellow-man what you would not like him to do with you.

I use The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey in my junior-level undergraduate seminar. The focus of the seminar is professional development and leadership in the hospitality industry. I've found that it's a useful tool in covering ethics in an applied manner. I've had a few students comment that the book helped change their outlook on life.

Thanks David for your contribution.Here are the 7 habits:

“Habit 1: Be Proactive

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

Habit 3: Put First Things First

Habit 4: Think Win/Win

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood

Habit 6: Synergize

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw”

― Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Dear Dr. Posinasetti,

Thank you for bringing up the topic.

I strongly believe not only should ethics be taught at the undergraduate level, but should be made an inherent part of every course that is taught. Irrespective of the field of study, every professional faces ethical issues out in the real world. However, generally educational institutions globally are content with providing the theoretical framework with at best, some hands on experience. But, the moral realm is left completely at the hands of the individual without any formal training. The only sense of ethics one develops (besides one's own conscience) is during childhood from family and maybe some at elementary school. However, if we can gear our global education system to preclude ethics education at every level, I staunchly believe that we will create more ethically grounded individuals in society.

At the undergraduate level, students are at some of their highest levels in terms of a combination of understanding and retention of concepts. They have the knowledge of primary education and understanding of basic concepts in different disciplines. Hence the time is ripe to introduce some formal ethics concepts (such as teleology, deontology, distributive justice, corrective justice, virtue ethics, trust ethics etc.) in order to prepare them as a more ethical and disciplined professional. These can be taught in a combination of standalone courses as well as a part of standard courses by highlighting the ethical issues in that particular subject.

I'll give some examples to illustrate my point:

1. Corporate Strategy: Using cases students can be shown how modern organizations are facing ethical dilemmas (and their solutions) even at the board levels in corporates. These will expose them to real world issues and better their understanding and expectation levels from corporate houses. Additionally, ethical issues at lower levels of management can also be highlighted to expose future managers to realistic situations they are likely to face in their own careers and help them voice these issues in order to resolve them.

2. Music: Students could be taught the issues around plagiarism when it comes to creating music so that when some of these students go out to create their own music, they are aware of these principles.

3. Civil engineering (strength of materials): Students may be taught the need to use best grade materials when they are being taught about measurements like shear strength, bending moment, stress and strain by showing the relationship between identifying good quality materials, involving in ethical purchase and the impact of these factors on safety to help understand their holistic role as future engineers.

4. These can be in addition to having a standalone course on corporate ethics / ethics in arts / ethics in technology.

At XLRI (Xavier School of Management) in India, we are exploring possibilities of introducing ethics (in addition to a standalone course on corporate ethics) across courses in order to improve students appreciation of ethics as a part of their life in personal and professional terms.

References for interested audience:

1. Website: Giving Voice to Values movement found at http://www.babson.edu/Academics/teaching-research/gvv/Pages/home.aspx

2. Course: On Practical Ethics at www.coursera.org

3. Book: Honest Work by Joanne B. Ciulla, Clancy Martin, Robert C. Solomon

Real world examples of ethical issues and safety are the most important for engineers and most scientists to adhere too. However, issues of practicality also play a role in what we eventually do.

I recall a friend of mine who was in a local company that poured cement for a major governmental project. As an individual, he was working as a subcontractor technician in the lab who tested the water and cement levels before approving the grade or mixture for pouring. As a 3rd world subcontractor working in another country, he had no one to turn to when immediate supervisors asked him to approve cement mixtures rations that were far from what the guidelines said. He was told to look into what practical engineering required etc.

My did not have much of a leg to stand on. He was eventually transferred by his subcontracting office to another project for another government project more than 1000 km away.

Who are the stakeholders and who should have supported him? The government officials? His own contracting firm? The local cement company that was running the project was obviously feeling that "practical engineering" issues overrode safety and other standards.

What are different stakeholders roles in ethically fulfilling contracts and according to whose rules and ethics in the real world?

Yes I certainly agree that Ethics & Social Responsibility (E&SR) should be taught to all students, even as early as at primary school (we would call it something different and this would be a very simple introduction), then at secondary school and at Colleges or Universities, whether at UG or PG levels. In fact I think that all students entering a University should have to receive some specific content which they must all do before commencing their other courses, no matter what their field of study, sort of a foundation program. Included in this there should be a strong course of study in Ethics and Social Responsibility.

I acknowledge those who will immediately leap in and say that "stand alone" courses do not work and I could not agree more. That is why you cannot just leave it there. It is then important that, in each and every other course or subject that they do after that, there is coverage of the specific E&SR issues for that subject area, whether it be law, marketing, HRM or whatever. There is no subject area that I know of which is devoid of ethical dilemmas or challenges. That way they can be constantly reminded of their foundation E&SR course and it will be reinforced and made more specific at every turn, as they become nearer to entering their chosen profession. Some Universities do this now of course, but it ought to be done everywhere in my view.

Of course, getting some students to even come to general Orientation is a challenge in some places, but we should be tougher on that anyway in my view.

Dr Arthur Shacklock ("Shack")

(Griffith University, Australia)

However, on top of courses, lecturers (including the following former Professor of Constitutional Law) need to model ethics--and truly relate thinking ethically to acting ethically.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: What I can say unequivocally is that if you are a U.S. person, the NSA cannot listen to your telephone calls, and the NSA cannot target your emails.

CHARLIE ROSE: And have not.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: And have not. They cannot and have not, by law and by rule, and—unless they—and usually it wouldn’t be "they," it would be the FBI—go to a court and obtain a warrant and seek probable cause, the same way it’s always been, the same way, when we were growing up and were watching movies, you know, you want to go set up a wiretap, you’ve got to go to a judge, show probable cause.

from: http://www.democracynow.org/2014/5/13/the_stuff_i_saw_really_began

Is this former professor of constitutional law modeling ethics? I think Not.

Kevin,

I couldn't argue with that. I will say though that we never really know how much politicians really know or are told and how much they are not. Sometimes I think that they just "spin on" and hope for the best it seems. Certainly, when they say things like this (and I mean on both sides of the political spectrum – both "right" and "left" do this) their utterances often turn out to be inaccurate, partial truths or, at worst, complete untruths. We never quite know whether they intentionally lied or whether they were simply misinformed. Our pollies here in Australia redefine "promises" as "non-core promises" so that they do not have to live up to them etc.

I suspect that our political "masters" are not only compromised, but often very poorly briefed before they say wildy risky such things. This does not give one much confidence in their judgement, to speak without ensuring that they are on the mark. I am not saying that Obama can be excused for this kind of statement any more than any other politician in the past or future can be. But they are a particular breed and rely very heavily on advice from some often very dodgy people who surround them. I worked in the public sector at senior levels for many years and this situation of poor and often manipulative advice from close advisers is not new.

However, I do agree totally that we need our leaders to set the example, whether we are talking about Prime Ministers, Presidents, other politicians or managers in organisations. If they do not walk the talk then they are not modelling integrity, so it is then often hard to convince others to do so. Maybe the answer lies in us all setting our own high moral standards and not being influenced by the behaviour of others. But we can't give up on this, so I do stand by my earlier comment that we need education at all levels to help lift the game. It is only part of the answer though, as you rightly point out.

Shack

Arthur, I worded the comment and described the quotes of Obama as "Professor of Constitutional Law", which he actually claims to have taught in Chicago in the 1990s. It's in his resume. Rather than looking at the political parts of the man, I refer to the fact that at the time of his first autobiography, DREAM OF MY FATHER, he had not even run for office and would not for several years, but he was already teaching part-time and/or full-time at the time of that book's publishing.

So, the kernel of idea here is that students of any age need to see the instructor (and/or leader) model what they are supposedly representing, in his case a better and more educated America or world citizen.

Kids, youth, students, and other should sniff this out. Employers and other Academics must lobby against instructors who do not model ethics.

NOTE: I was attempting a doctorate in political science in 2000-2001 when the Texas Bushites in my building took over the USA in the crazy 2000 election. I ran into men, like Robert Gates, who wandered our hallways and taught young minds on government.

http://www.thebatt.com/news/to-washington-and-back-gates-returns-to-a-m-1.3131878?cache=03D163D03D163Dp%2Fhe3D03Dn63Frindex.jsp%3FhotelCode%3DXI%3B2177%22target%3D%22_blank%22+lang%3D%22en%22+data-bk%3D%225395.1%22%3ESports+-+The+Battalion+-+Texas+A+and+3%3C2%3FMMode%3Dtrue

Good link - thanks Kevin.

I did like the sentiment expressed at the end of his piece !

"...If they could be civil to one another, listen to one another and recognize that the other person may have good ideas, if they would not demonize each other or distort facts, I think we could change the tone in Washington..."

It would certainly be nice if people on different sides of the political spectrum could actually treat each other with some dignity. We have the same problem here in Oz where our federal (and some state) parliamentary and media behaviour sets an awful example to our youth about how not to treat others. Our so called "Question Time" which is supposed to be for sensible questions to be asked so that focused answers can be given in the public interest, has now deteriored into a contest of who can insult whom the most ! It has become a total waste of publicly funded time and is an embarrassment, especially when we see international visitors sitting in the public gallery. They must wonder "is this really how democracy works then ?"

We've probably drifted off the initial topic a bit. Let's see what others think. Thanks for your insights.

Shack

Absolutely yes to the question. The sooner undergraduates get exposed to ethics, the better. This MIGHT discourage cheating from the start. Good works to teach might be Plato´s "Republic," Aristotle´s "Nicomachean Ethics," and "The Ten Commandments" in depth in the Old Testament.

Having seen students cheat on their term papers for a course on ethics, I wonder if such courses change attitudes.

That said, I agree with Indrajit Shaw, Kevin Stoda, and Arthur Shacklock that ethics could be incorporated into other courses with an emphasis on real world situations.

Perhaps schools could administer an ethics inventory that would tell students what kind of ethical system they already have. I've seen students spend time finding out what Game of Thrones character they'd be, maybe they'd like to know what ethical outlook they have and build on that.

Yes, in computing course it is requirements BCS creditation! Secondly any degree with research dissertation ethics falls under research integrity, therefore needs to be taught.

I Do agree with Kamal Bani-Hani

I also want to insist to add ethical/ moral content in schooling as well. Because the lessons they get in primary education it was carved lifelong in their brain which will cultivate the students to be a person of ethical principles...

Well said, Shafig: ethics must begin at home. Ethics deserves to be taught at all educational levels until it becomes a second nature. The fact that Nageswara has raised the question in the first place of when to begin teaching ethics shows that this system of norms has been too long neglected in education.

I just entered this thread, so excuse me for possible repeatings. Ethics should be teached at all phases of education, but be cautious. Match the teaching-level to the grade of possible understanding. That means teach ethics to young pupils at another level as to graduates. Use more simple examples, not so much theory. Later on you should start with the "age-matched" theoretical background.

I think ethics need to be taught in all form of professional...

Parents are best teachers..

So it can be started even at pre school level.

There no defined marker to learn a good practice.. That may be any ethics, habits, etiquette s..

Dear Dhara,

parents could be the best teachers, because they know their children best and have many chances to interact. But parents are not neccesarily the best teachers for ethics. They must know and follow themselves these ethical rules and orders. I´ve seen and heard of a lot of parents, who don´t earn the name, and their children need an external education. It´s a pity but thats reality.

I agree ethics teaching should start at home and preferably at a very early age. Also ethics should be taught showing the practice of it in all matters the children are likely to observe. At home that may be a problem some times when parents compromise for something openly when the children observe. So practice while preaching becomes a very important element particularly in ethics training.

I think that ethics is a very important subject and should be taught to undergraduate students. In mine discipline "Experimental Psychology" in the Stat University of Londrina, Brazil, I teach Ethics in the use of humans and animal in experiments. All live animal use in research, teaching or testing must be reviewed by a committee, and this is explained and discussed during my classes.

Teaching students legal and ethical issues is extremely important. As we all know there is sometimes a fine line between the two areas. We have a solid 2 credit course for our Bachelor of Nursing programme and I totally agree with Eduardo the importance of stressing this important aspect at the bedside. Reflective reports are an ideal way to assess the students.

Dear Nageswara, thank you very much for the valuable question: "Should ethics be taught to undergraduate students?" I also agree that ethics teaching should start at home!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-2pOQcbFx4

It's a film after M.Bulgakov, called "A Dog's Heart". To Bulgakov, "We can explain everything, but not everything is for ALL".Professor Preobrazhensky transplanted seminal glands and hypophysis to a good street dog, called Sharik. The dog became to Sharikov. The dog turned out to be humanized, but he got genes of alcoholic and rowdy. Sharikov lived in comfort, he managed to make a career, but he turned the life of the Preobrazhenskys into nightmare.

Dear Irina

Thanks for the very interesting reference to the film. I would really love to watch it.

My undergraduate training was in Engineering - toward which we were required, in order to earn the degree, to take an ethics course. I completed my requirement early in my undergraduate career, and it was the first "Philosophy" class I ever took. Subsequently, I took several such courses as an undergraduate, and after completing my B.S. degree, I couldn't resist pursuing graduate studies focused in 'philosophical ethics'... so, I'm sure you can guess where I come down on this question.

For me personally, what I appreciated about being forced to take an ethics course (when I would never have thought to do so on my own) was that it enabled me to look beyond the rather narrow parameters of my (Engineering) discipline. To echo Dr Duro's experience, I think we do all students a great service when we emphasize the interconnection "of knowledge and clinical skills on one hand; cultural attitudes and values ​​in the other." Our academic disciplines benefit, and our students gain an opportunity to flourish in unanticipated ways...