Graduate School

EDU 292 – INTRODUCTION TO ETHICAL THEORY

Date of SUBMISSION:(Saturday) October 10, 2020

Prepared by:
LARRIZA JANE F. GALVAN Submitted to:
MAEd- Administration and Supervision RAYMUNDO ESPARES PICCIO,Ph.D.
Professor

I. Give a concrete situation/example where you personal morality can override the ethics/
codes of conduct of a company or group/ community.
Scenario
Student Confidentiality
Ms. S, a sixth grade math teacher, complains to her next door neighbor about a
difficult student in her class, identifying the child by name and providing specific details
about the student’s academic record. Ms. D says that the neighbor doesn’t know the
student personally, so there should be no problem discussing the student and the situation.

Discussion Questions:
 What possible issues/concerns might this scenario raise?
 In this situation, what are some potential negative consequences for the teacher, for the
students and the school community?
Consider the following sections of the Code of Professional Responsibility for Educators
Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 10-145d-400a

Ms. S is not exercising professional judgment by discussing a student outside of school

with someone who is not directly related to the student’s educational program. Ms. S may
be revealing confidential information, which in itself, may violate public trust and privacy
laws. Also, Ms. S may not recognize that the person she is sharing the information with may
have a relationship with the child which may now be compromised.
In addition to legal violations, Ms. S may be sharing information about a student that
will now be distributed to the wider community. The student’s privacy will be violated and
the student could be subject to unwanted concern, curiosity or ridicule. The student’s
learning environment could be compromised due to continued harassment by classmates.
The student may no longer feel emotionally or physically safe which may affect attendance
and academic progress. Colleagues, students and families may develop a lack of trust in
Ms. S leading to a break in collaborative efforts. Colleagues may be less interested in working
together, students may become increasingly mistrustful and families may lose confidence in
Ms. S’s capabilities to be an effective teacher. Continued complaints about Ms. S to
administration regarding breaches in student confidentiality could lead to written reprimands
and possible dismissal proceedings.

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II. Define the following:

 METHAETHICS
 From Greek ‘meta’ (meaning beyond) and ‘ethikos’ (meaning character or custom). Meta Ethics
is the study of underlying ethical ideas or ethical language
 The study of meta-ethics refers to the nature of ethical terms and concepts and to the attempt to
understand the underlying assumptions behind moral theories; therefore, it is the branch of ethics
that seeks to understand the nature of ethical properties, statements, attitudes, and judgments. It
covers a broad range of questions surrounding how we know what moral truth is (and even if
moral truth exists), and how we learn about moral facts.
 Focuses on determining the meaning and objectivity of moral concepts of good and bad, or
right and wrong.

 NORMATIVE ETHICS (MORAL THEORY)

 is the study of ethical action.
 attempts to determine which character traits are good and bad, which actions are right and
wrong.
 that branch of moral philosophy, or ethics, concerned with criteria of what is morally right and
wrong. It includes the formulation of moral rules that have direct implications for what human
actions, institutions, and ways of life should be like. It is typically contrasted with theoretical ethics,
or metaethics, which is concerned with the nature rather than the content of ethical theories
and moral judgments, and applied ethics, or the application of normative ethics to practical
problems.
There are four major normative theories:
Utilitarianism
According to this theory, the right action is the action that produces the greatest balance of overall
happiness.
Kantianism
Derived from the work of the German philosopher Immanuel Kant, this theory focuses on categorical
imperative, which is a moral principle that acts as the fundamental principle of morality, and from
which all our duties may originate from.
Ethical Intuitionism
According to this theory, our intuitive awareness of value, or intuitive knowledge of evaluative facts,
forms the foundation of our ethical knowledge.

 VIRTUE ETHICS
 This theory focuses on the inherent character of a person rather than on specific actions. In other
words, it focuses on the role of character and virtue rather than doing one’s duty or acting in
order to bring about good consequences.
 Virtue ethics is currently one of three major approaches in normative ethics. It may, initially, be
identified as the one that emphasizes the virtues, or moral character, in contrast to the approach
that emphasizes duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasizes the consequences of actions
(consequentialism).
 Virtue ethics is a broad term for theories that emphasize the role of character and virtue in moral
philosophy rather than either doing one’s duty or acting in order to bring about good
consequences. A virtue ethicist is likely to give you this kind of moral advice:
 “Act as a virtuous person would act in your situation.”

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 HINDUISM (give 5 main tenets, beliefs)

 Hinduism is the world’s oldest religion, according to many scholars, with roots and
customs dating back more than 4,000 years.
 Hinduism is the third-largest religion behind Christianity and Islam. Roughly 95 percent of
the world’s Hindus live in India. Because the religion has no specific founder, it’s difficult
to trace its origins and history.
 Hinduism is unique in that it’s not a single religion but a compilation of many traditions
and philosophies.Hinduism is not an organized religion and has no single, systematic approach
to teaching its value system.
BELIEFS
Truth is eternal.
 Hindus pursue knowledge and understanding of the Truth: the very essence of the universe and
the only Reality. According to the Vedas, Truth is One, but the wise express it in a variety of ways.
Brahman is Truth and Reality
 Hindus believe in Brahman as the one true God who is formless, limitless, all-inclusive, and eternal.
Brahman is not an abstract concept; it is a real entity that encompasses everything (seen and
unseen) in the universe.
The Vedas are the ultimate authority
 The Vedas are Hindu scriptures that contain revelations received by ancient saints and sages.
Hindus believe that the Vedas are without beginning and without end; when everything else in
the universe is destroyed (at the end of a cycle of time), the Vedas remain.
Everyone should strive to achieve dharma.
 Understanding the concept of dharma helps you understand the Hindu faith. Unfortunately, no
single English word adequately covers its meaning. Dharma can be described as right conduct,
righteousness, moral law, and duty. Anyone who makes dharma central to one’s life strives to do
the right thing, according to one’s duty and abilities, at all times.
Individual souls are immortal
 A Hindu believes that the individual soul (atman) is neither created nor destroyed; it has been, it is,
and it will be. Actions of the soul while residing in a body require that it reap the consequences of
those actions in the next life — the same soul in a different body.

TENETS
 Dharma: the ethical, duty-driven manner of living in cooperation with one's fellow human beings.
This path includes a comprehensive set of rules for the "right way of living."
 Artha: the pursuit of material prosperity through constructive work. For Hindus, Artha includes not
only traditional work for daily sustenance but also the work of government and civic service.
 Kama: the pursuit of pleasure and happiness through the exercise of desire and passion. This does
not have the connotation of hedonistic pleasure, as it does in some other traditions, but is
regarded as one facet of a well-rounded spiritual life.
 Mosha: the pursuit of spiritual liberation and salvation. This is the area of scholarly study and
meditation, along with other forms of mysticism.
 Harmony In Diversity Unity ,Within oneself,With others,With GOD

III. References:
https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/SDE/TEAM/Module_5_Facilitator_Guide_January_2015.pdf?la=en
https://www.soas.ac.uk/cedep-demos/000_P563_EED_K3736-Demo/unit1/page_21.htm
https://pediaa.com/difference-between-metaethics-and-normative-ethics/
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-virtue/
https://www.britannica.com/topic/normative-ethics
https://www.nhsf.org.uk/images/stories/HinduDharma/Hinduism%20Lectures/Tenets%20of%20Hinduism.pdf

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