After Class Ten

Many thanks to this week's presenters.  Again we heard about many interesting topics.  First, we learned about ethics and classroom management, including ways to handle problems.  Then we explored the more ethical possibility of teaching ESL students in their own languages.  We also revisited inclusion and utilitarian views.  Then we examined the question of indoctrination and education in religious schools.  We looked at animal rights, moral concerns and how we can teach children to expand their respect for all living things.  Lastly, we looked at issues connected to public/private/segregated schools.  Well done, everyone.

Next week, July 29, your three lesson plans will be due.  You should have three separate plans, but one "plan" might be a series of classes or a unit plan.  The rationale should explain clearly how ethics plays a part, either in how the lesson is taught, how it is embedded in the curriculum or with what specific ethical issues students will engage.  Tell me your reasons for teaching the lesson in this way and what ethical objectives you hope the students will achieve.  The plan itself can be according to a template or point form:  just clearly show what will be happening.  Please note:  each lesson plan should be about one and a half pages, with the rationale a minimum of a half page.  (This is different from what I originally wrote in the syllabus.)
Due to time constraints with the paper presentations, we will no longer do lesson presentations in our last class, Aug. 4.  I would ask that you choose one lesson to share on the blog next week and write up a short description.  This should be posted between July 29 - Aug. 4.  This way, if someone in class is interested in your lesson, you could e-mail a copy to him or her.

Enjoy the lovely weather!

After Class Nine

Many thanks to our presenters today -- another round of excellent papers.  First we heard about the various ideas around "rewards and punishments" and Kohlberg's levels, in contrast to intrinsic motivations for good behaviour.  Second we looked at Montaigne, the ethics of standardized testing and the role of dialogue in education.  Third, we examined the boundaries for student-teacher relationships and Aristotle's Golden Mean.  Next, we learned about assessment, the fairness of teaching to the test and what to do about cheating.  Then we looked at how the educational goal of critical thinking may be at odds with Divine Command Theory and the role of faith in learing.  Lastly, we discussed the moral issue of allowing sex education of children to be optional for some families. 
As I mentioned in class, some SFU Educ Master's students are doing research on online learning.  If you would like to give an hour of your time to this study, please contact Farshid Marbouti at fmarbout@sfu.ca
Just a friendly reminder:  your blogs are due next week, July 22.  Please send them to me via e-mail in one Microsoft Word document.  The three lesson plans will be due the next week, July 29.
Enjoy the beautiful weather!

After Class Eight

Today we were treated to four presentations of papers.  For this posting, you have the option of commenting on any or all the topics and bringing in any of your related ideas and experiences.  The first paper dealt with the highly ethical conflict of inclusion of students with learning/physical disabilities in the regular classroom and the concept of utilitarianism.  The second paper looked at First Nations education and what can be done about the huge gap in high school graduation rates both on reserves and overall in Canada.  The third paper explored how to promote multicultural education and gave some fine examples of student responses to Western teaching practices.  Lastly, we learned about another ethical approach to education from antiquity, that of Epictetus, a Greco-Roman Stoic, who sees teaching as putting the students' best interests first, emphasizing a practical approach to education, less performance-based than developmental.
Just a few reminders:  first, in two weeks, your blog entries will be due.  Hopefully you are saving them in one Word document, dated chronologically.  Feel free to edit or add to postings before you submit.  I am only grading what you send me.  Secondly, the following week, July 29, three lesson plans and their rationales will be due.  The group lesson plan we worked on in class can be one of those.  You can submit a plan identical to your group members' plan or take the ideas you discussed in your group and develop it in your own way.  The other two plans should be original, developed by you.  Please submit these as one document by e-mail on July 29.  If you still feel you would like to discuss the structure of a lesson plan, I'll be happy to stay later next week after class.
Last but not least, presenters for next week, July 15, should e-mail me their papers and discussion questions by 6 pm Wed. before class.  Stay cool!

Class Seven: Movie Night

Please post your half page ethical review of a film of your choice on this prompt sometime before July 8.  There is no class next week for Canada Day.  And just a reminder for presenters on July 8, please e-mail me your paper the evening before you present in class.
Enjoy the break.

After Class Six

Today we looked at ethical theories of contractarianism, of Hobbes and Rawls, and also feminist ethics of care and postmodernism.  We watched two film clips, Stand and Deliver (1986) which shows the idealism, virtues, duty, social/academic contract and caring ethics of a teacher.  The second film, Avatar (2009) we used as part of a lesson plan to teach ethics in context.  Groups sketched out some ideas and you can bring those to the next class.
(If you requested lecture notes and did not receive them, please e-mail me and I'll send them to you.)
Please comment on this prompt for June 17th's class.
Next week I will post another prompt for our "movie night" (no class on campus).  Write a half page ethical review of a movie of your choice.
Keep working on your papers, and just a reminder for those presenting on July 8, please e-mail me your papers by 6 p.m. on July 7th.
See you in two weeks.  Enjoy the sunshine!

After Class Five

Give yourselves a pat on the back -- you have ploughed through the most complex philosophy of the semester.  Next week we will look at social contracts, feminist ethics and some postmodern views, which will be more familiar.
This week we discussed Kant's key contributions to ethics: to follow the categorical imperative that requires us to ask if we would want an action to be a universal moral law; to consider all people equal and worthy of respect, treating them as ends in themselves rather than a means to an end; and to judge actions based on a person's intentions or principles.  This is in contrast to Mill's utilitarianism, which aims for the greatest happiness for the largest number of people; here we look at outcomes or consequences and work backwards.
Connecting Kant's approach to religion and politics, we see that the individual is free from following any higher authority's decree, free to follow the moral law, but at the same time, responsible for his or her actions.  This has had a major impact on our concept of moral order, the demand that people learn to think for themselves, and the necessity of recognizing human rights.  It follows that teachers are deeply involved in facilitating this growing understanding in their students.
The questions on the handout we considered also helped us to understand that particular ethical systems are often simultaneously at play in a teacher's decision-making process in the classroom.  Where one falls short, another steps in to fill out the whole picture.  Consciously or unconsciously, we draw on many systems in the work we do.  Our goal is to be more aware of our practices and understand them better.
If you haven't sent me a description of your paper topic, please do.  Also, be thinking about the film you will analyze through the lens of ethics.
Have a great weekend.

After Class Four

This week we compared Plato and Aristotle (image is part of Raphael's famous painting, "The School of Athens" where Plato is pointing upwards to the world of ideals, and Aristotle is pointing forward to this world).  Then we examined some of Aristotle's accomplishments, especially in his ethical concepts of the virtues and the Golden Mean.
Later we compiled a comparison list of moral values of the religions we researched and are still deciding if it's safe to say most religions share universal values.  If yes, perhaps teachers can be more confident about upholding these values in multicultural classrooms.
Continue to fill in the last questions on the back of that sheet and bring it to class next week.
Also, it's not too soon to start thinking about a topic for your paper.  Whenever you've decided, write up a short paragraph describing what you want to explore and I'll give you feedback.
See you next week.