ITT Technical Institute
EG468
Ethics
Online Course
SYLLABUS
Credit hours: 4
Contact/Instructional hours: 40 (40 Theory Hours)
Prerequisite(s) and/or Corequisite(s):
Prerequisite: EG372 Written Analysis or equivalent
Course Description:
This course provides students the opportunity to explore competing ethical theories and
through analysis and critical thinking to determine their own code of ethics.
Ethics
Syllabus
SYLLABUS: Ethics
Instructor:
________________________________________
Course overview
Ethics is an upper level general education course in the category of humanities. The students will
have the opportunity to explore primary theories and how ethics relates to the other disciplines.
The students will apply the written analytical skills taught in the prerequisite as they analyze
ethical theory, the related issues, and discuss the theory as it applies to contemporary society.
Students will be expected to develop their own written code of ethics.
Intent/Interface
The textbook in this course provides a foundation for careful thought about ethics. The focus of
the book is ethical theory, featuring the author’s discussion and primary sources that frame
ethical debates. This course seeks to take the predicate of theory and translate it into practical
application of theory to contemporary ethical issues. Each lesson shows how ethical principles
apply to students’ lives. A strategy employed in this course is to introduce an ethical dilemma in
class. This dilemma is one that relates to a contemporary issue. Interactive activities, such as
discussions, role-plays, and games, will then be conducted to come up with a solution to the
dilemma. These activities will also ensure that students connect the theoretical concept with its
practical application while discussing and debating contemporary ethical issues.
Major Instructional Areas
1.
2.
3.
4.
Foundations of Ethics
Competing Theories of Ethics
Critical Thinking and Ethics
Personal Code of Ethics
Course Objectives
After successful completion of this course, the student will have the opportunity to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Apply key concepts of critical thinking to the field of ethics.
Compare and contrast arguments of ethical absolutists and ethical relativists.
Assess the demands of ethical living as established by major philosophical views.
Demonstrate the relationship of reason and emotion.
Compare and contrast types of utilitarian ethics.
Assess the methods by which social contract ethics proposes to establish order and
security.
Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the difficulty of virtue ethics.
Summarize the concepts of egoism, relativism, and pragmatism.
Examine care ethics and the neglect of women’s ethical views.
Assess the scope of morality in both human and non-human situations.
Differentiate between the objectivists and non-objectivists.
Describe how moral realism relates to scientific revolution.
Apply arguments of determinism versus free will to moral responsibility.
Design a personal belief system or a code of conduct based on ethical theory using at
least three modern ethical problems.
Examine contemporary ethical issues and current ethical debates.
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16. Demonstrate effective and efficient use of the ITT Tech Virtual Library.
Related SCANS Objectives
1. Demonstrate the ability to clearly interpret and communicate information when
articulating ideas and views on the subject of Ethics.
2. Analyze information in new ways, using creative thinking skills to make connections
between seemingly unrelated ideas.
3. Examine personal ethical goals with integrity, in ways that reveal new possibilities for
self-development.
4. Apply decision-making skills to specify goals and constraints and find the best
alternatives, while always considering risks.
5. Apply a critical thinking process to identify a rule or principle underlying the relationship
between two or more theories.
6. Organize and maintain information to maximize retention and expression of knowledge.
Teaching Strategies
The curriculum is designed to promote a variety of teaching strategies that support the outcomes
described in the course objectives and that foster higher cognitive skills. Delivery makes use of
various media and delivery tools in the online learning environment.
Course resources
Student Textbook Package

Waller, Bruce. Consider Ethics. New York: Pearson Longman, 2005.
References and Resources

General References
ITT Tech Virtual Library
Login to the ITT Tech Virtual Library (http://www.library.itt-tech.edu) to access online books,
journals, and other reference resources selected to support ITT Tech curricula.
 Books
The following books are related to this course and are available through the ITT Tech Virtual Library
Ebrary >


Adorno, Theodor W., Rolf Tiedemann and Rodney Livingstone, Kant's Critique of
Pure Reason. Stanford, CA Stanford University Press, 2001
Alston, William P. Sensible Metaphysical Realism. Milwaukee, WI: Marquette
University Press, 2001
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Syllabus
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Centore, F. F. Two Views of Virtue: Absolute Relativism & Relative Absolutism.
Wesport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, Incorporated, 2000
Cocking, Dean and Justin Oakley, Virtue Ethics and Professional Roles. NY:
Cambridge University Press, 2001
Cushman, Thomas. Matter of Principle: Humanitarian Arguments for War in Iraq.
Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 2005
Davies, Richard. Descartes: Belief, Skepticism, and Virtue. NY: Routledge, 2001
Fern, Richard L. Nature, God and Humanity: Envisioning an Ethics of Nature.
NY: Cambridge University Press, 2002
Foster, Claire. Ethics of Medical Research on Humans. NY: Cambridge
University Press, 2001
Gasche, Rodolphe. Idea of Form: Rethinking Kant's Aesthetics. Stanford, CA:
Stanford University Press, 2003
Gottlieb, Stephen E. Morality Imposed: The Rehnquist Court & the State of
Liberty in America. NY: New York University Press, 2000
Graham, Keith. Practical Reasoning in a Social World. NY: Cambridge University
Press, 2002
Hoy, Terry. Toward a Naturalistic Political Theory: Aristotle, Hume, Dewey,
Evolutionary Biology & Deep Ecology. Westport CT: Greenwood Publishing
Group, Incorporated, 2000
James, William and Giles B. Gunn. Pragmatism & Other Writings. NY: Penguin
Putnam, Incorporated, 2000
Knowles, Dudley. Political Philosophy. NY: Routledge, 2001
Lamberth, David C. William James and the Metaphysics of Experience. NY:
Cambridge University Press 1999
Marsden, Jill. After Nietzsche: Notes Towards a Philosophy of Ecstasy. NY:
Palgrave Macmillan, 2002
Pangle, Lorraine Smith. Aristotle and the Philosophy of Friendship. NY:
Cambridge University Press, 2002
Rescher, Nicholas. Common sense: A New Look at an Old Philosophical
Tradition. Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University Press, 2005
Rickaby S.J., Rev. Joseph. Free Will and Four Philosophers (Hobbes, Locke,
Hume, and Mill). Kitchener, Ontario: Batoche Books, 2001
Scarre, Geoffrey F. Utilitarianism. NY: Routledge, 1996
Sjoholm, Cecilia. Antigone Complex: Ethics and the Invention of Feminine
Desire. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2004
Treviano, Linda Klebe and Gary R. Weaver. Managing Ethics in Organizations: A
Social Scientific Perspective on Business Ethics. Stanford, CA: Stanford
University Press, 2003
 Periodicals
Periodicals > EbscoHost >
 Ethics
An international journal of social, political and legal philosophy; reviewed articles from philosophy, social
and political theory, theories of individual and collective choice, social and economic policy analysis,
jurisprudence, international relations.

Philosophical Explorations
An academic journal containing: Psychology & Psychiatry; Sociology & Social
Work; Anthropology; Politics & Political Science.

Philosophical Review
Features articles on philosophy and book reviews of philosophical works.
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Syllabus

Philosophy of Science
Essays, discussion articles and book reviews in the general area of philosophy of
science for members of the Philosophy of Science Association.

Philosophy of the Social Sciences
Publishes articles, discussions, symposia, literature surveys, translations, and
reviews of interest both to philosophers concerned with the social sciences and
to social scientists concerned with the philosophical foundations of their subjects.
 Philosophy Today
Articles reflecting the trends and interests of contemporary philosophy.

Other Resources

Websites: Companion Website at: http://wps.ablongman.com/long_waller_ce_1
All links to web references outside of the virtual library are always subject to change without prior notice.
Evaluation & Grading
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1.
Attendance and Participation
Regular attendance and participation are essential for satisfactory progress in this course. This
course is taught in an asynchronous online model, which means your students will not all be
completing their online lessons at the same time. They may be working through your lessons in
the evening, while another student may be working at 6 o'clock in the morning.
In an online course, it's easy to become confused about the concept of "attendance." Obviously, it
may be measured differently than if students were sitting in a classroom with other students and
instructor present.
To motivate your students to get the most from the learning experience, urge them to make every
effort to use the discussion forums as they would an in-class discussion. Encourage students to
ask questions of their classmates, respond to their comments, and add their own experiences.
Each person in this class brings unique experiences and skills that will enrich the learning
experience for everyone.
2.
Completed Assignments
Each student is responsible for completing all assignments on time. Each course has required
assignments. You will want to encourage students to refer to the course “Activity and Grade
Report” located on the course dashboard, for the due date of an assignment.
3.
Team Participation (if applicable)
Each student is responsible for participating in team assignments and for completing the
delegated task. Each team member must honestly evaluate the contributions by all members of
their respective teams.
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Syllabus
Evaluation Criteria Table
The final grade will be based on the following weighted categories:
CATEGORY
WEIGHT
Writing Assignment
Discussions
Project – Reflections and
Personal Code of Ethics
Quiz
Total
25%
30%
30%
15%
100%
Grade Conversion Table
Final grades will be calculated from the percentages earned in class as follows:
A
B+
B
C+
C
D+
D
F
90 - 100%
85 - 89%
80 - 84%
75 - 79%
70 - 74%
65 - 69%
60 - 64%
<60%
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.0
Course Outline
1
1
Lesson
Title
Lesson
Wk
Note: The check marks in the table below indicate the number of assignments assigned in the week. For
example, two checkmarks under Discussion in Week 1 indicates that there are two discussions assigned
in Week 1.
Introduction
to Ethics
Content Topics
that will be
covered in the
online course
Reading (Pages from
the textbook)
Assignments
Writing
Assess
ment
A. Ethics and
Morality: An
Overview
Chapter 1
Thinking about Ethics:
pp. 1-6
B. Ethical
Thinking
Studying Ethics pp. 6-9
5
Discuss
ion
Project
x
x
x
Quiz
Date: 1/7/2009
Syllabus
Lesson
Title
Lesson
Wk
Ethics
Content Topics
that will be
covered in the
online course
A. Morality:
Contrasting
Views
Looking at
Ethical
Living
2
1
B. Ethical Living:
Different
Perspectives
Reading (Pages from
the textbook)
Assignments
Writing
Assess
ment
Discuss
ion
X
x
Project
Quiz
Textbook: Chapter 1:
Thinking about ethics God’s commandments
and ethics
pp. 9-13
Textbook: Chapter 2
pp.18-27
x
Textbook: Chapter 12
pp. 176-182
3
4
5
1
1
1
The Battle
Between
Emotion
and Reason
Utilitarian
Ethics:
Truth and
Consequen
ces
Social
Ethics: The
War of All
Against All
A. Reasoning
and Ethical
Dilemmas
B. Objective and
Subjective
Feelings
A. Consequences
for Utilitarianism
B. Pros and cons
of Utilitarianism
A. Defining the
Social Contract
B. The Group vs.
the individual.
A. Egoism and
Relativism
6
7
Textbook: Chapter 3
pp. 32-41
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
<Adorno, Theodor W.
Kant's Critique of Pure
Reason>
Textbook: Chapter 4
pp. 47-57
x
x
x
(due)
x
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
<Scarre, Geoffrey f.
Utilitarianism>
Textbook: Chapter 5
pp. 64-73
X
x
x
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library: <James,
William and Giles B.
Gunn, Pragmatism and
other Writings>
Textbook: Chapter 6
pp. 79-90; Chapter 8
pp. 114-123
X
x
x
x
Whither
Thou
Goest?
B. Care Ethics
1
1
Perfect
People:
Virtue
Ethics
A. The meaning
of Virtue Ethics
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
<Graham, Keith,
Practical Reasoning in
a Social World>
Textbook: Chapter 7
pp. 96-105
B. Virtue theory
Reading from the ITT
6
x
x
x
x
x
(due)
x
x
Date: 1/7/2009
Syllabus
Lesson
Title
Lesson
Wk
Ethics
Content Topics
that will be
covered in the
online course
and medicine
A. Moral
Consideratio
n?
8
1
Beginning
and End:
The Scope
of Morality
B. Environment
al Ethics.
A. Moral Diversity
9
1
0
1
1
Does
Morality
Really
Exist?
Moral
Realism
and Science
B. Simple
Arguments
1
1
1
Assignments
Writing
Assess
ment
Discuss
ion
Quiz
<Centore, FF. Two
Views of Virtue>
Textbook: Chapter 9
pp. 133-148
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
x
x
x
<Fern, Richard, Nature,
God, and Humanity:
Envisioning the Ethics
of Nature>
Textbook: Chapter 10
pp. 151-159
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
A. Defining
Moral Realism
<Gottlieb,Stephen E.
Morality Imposed: The
Rehnquist Court and
the State of Liberty in
America>
Textbook: Chapter 11
pp. 164-171
B. Facts Inspire
Science
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
B. Freedom,
Moral
Responsibility,
and Ethics.
Project
Virtual Library:
x
A. Free Will and
Determinism
Are You
Really Your
Own
Person?
Reading (Pages from
the textbook)
x
x
(due)
x
x
(due)
x
x
<Foster, Claire, Ethics
of Medical Research on
Humans>
Textbook: Chapter 13,
14
pp. 185-224
Reading from the ITT
Virtual Library:
x
<Rickaby, S.J. Rev.
Joseph, Free Will and
Four Philosophers
(Hobbes, Locke, Hume,
and Mill>
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Project description
PROJECT
INTRODUCTION
The final project for this course is to design a personal code of ethics using theories in this course
to determine personal beliefs. Students will write journal reflections that address the theories and
their personal beliefs at given intervals during the course. The reflections are graded. The final
paper should include a refinement of these reflections, ethical issues researched in the ITT Tech
Virtual Library, and issues of contemporary concern gathered from newspapers or other sources.
OBJECTIVES
o
Design a personal belief system or a code of ethics based on ethical theory using at least
three modern ethical problems.
1.1 Describe moral beliefs that relate to self.
1.2 Describe moral beliefs that relate to other individuals.
1.3 Describe a personal ethical approach to contemporary societal problems.
COMPONENTS/DELIVERABLES
Deliverable 1
Title: Reflection One
This week you will submit the first reflection of topics from lessons one through three. Let’s review
our requirements for this project.
Write a reflection paper, using your own ideas as well as ideas and thoughts from weekly lesson
presentations and readings for Weeks 1, 2, and 3.
Your reflection paper must be about two pages long. Consider the following questions when
writing this week’s reflection. The responses to these questions should find mention, not
necessarily in this order, but somewhere in your reflection.
o
o
o
o
What does ethics mean to you?
What are some of the tools of critical thinking for ethics? Have you ever used these? How?
Describe some different beliefs about ethical living. Which ones do you tend to agree with
more? Is it hard to live ethically?
What role do reason, emotion, and intuition play when making ethical decisions? Have you
experienced these, and have you ever felt a conflict between the three? Why or why not?
Keep these points in mind when writing your reflection:
1. Your paper should bring out a summary of the key concepts and ideas from the lessons
covered in Weeks 1 to 3 that relate to the questions above. Ensure that this is very concise
and to the point. Specifically include ideas and concepts that are new for you and have
significantly enhanced your previous understanding of ethics.
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Syllabus
2. Choose an ethical dilemma from your personal experience or a contemporary societal
problem. When writing your paper, refer to this issue and describe what you think could be
the cause of this problem. If you were to think of a solution to this ethical dilemma, what
would it be?
3. Use your responses to show your own personal belief system. Begin to think about your
personal belief system now, so that you can start to build on it for your final project
submission in Week 11, of a personal code of ethics.
Deliverable 2
Title: Reflection Two
Write a reflection paper, using your own ideas as well as ideas and thoughts from weekly lesson
presentations and readings.
For this week’s project assignment, consider the readings and topics from lesson presentations
covered in Weeks 4, 5, and 6.
Specifically examine the following topics:
Utilitarian ethics
Social ethics
Egoism
Relativism
Care ethics
In your reflection, do the following:
1. Summarize these topics in your own words. What does each one of them mean to you? How
have the lessons and readings from Weeks 4, 5, and 6 enhanced your own understanding of
these topics? Provide examples from your own personal experience where you may have
witnessed concepts or ideas from any of these theories in action. Are you now able to relate
theory with practice?
2. Consider these concepts in relation to society. Choose one contemporary societal dilemma.
The dilemma can be a new one or one that has been mentioned in the lesson presentations
so far. Use the above concepts to explain the dilemma. Can you, as an individual, influence a
solution to this societal dilemma? If yes, then how?
3. Remember that one of your goals with the reflections is to create a blueprint of your belief
system. Relate all concepts to your own personal beliefs. This paper is about you and your
personal understanding of ethics.
Your reflection paper should be approximately two pages long.
Deliverable 3
Title: Reflection Three
Write a reflection paper using your own ideas as well as ideas and thoughts from weekly
lesson presentations and readings. This week’s reflection will integrate ideas from topics
covered in Weeks 7, 8, and 9.
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Ethics
Syllabus
Specifically consider the following topics:
Virtue ethics
Who deserves moral consideration?
Does morality really exist?
Environmental ethics
In your reflection, do the following:
1. Summarize virtue ethics in your own words. Ensure that this is very concise.
Specifically include ideas and concepts for virtue ethics that are new for you and
have significantly enhanced your understanding of ethics.
2. Describe your understanding of who deserves moral consideration. What is your take
on the scope of morality? Answer these using supporting examples from your
personal experience. How would your views on this issue impact other individuals?
How would they impact society?
3. Choose one contemporary environmental dilemma. Use your understanding of the
scope of morality and environmental ethics to explain the cause for this dilemma and
a possible solution. What part, if at all, can you, as an individual, play in effecting
such a solution?
4. Continue to build on your personal belief system when responding to the questions
for this reflection.
Your reflection paper should approximately be two pages long.
Deliverable 4
Title: My Personal Code of Ethics
This is the week for the final submission of the project, My Personal Code of Ethics.
Throughout this course you have been reading, doing activities, writing, and participating
in discussions. Assimilate your insight and ideas from the concepts presented to you in
this course while writing your final assignment.
You may use any of the graded materials that you have, as the source material.
The assignment is to write a paper describing your personal code of ethics. With a blend
of theory, examples, and references to personal experience, create a comprehensive
structure of your ethical belief system.
Organize the paper into the following sections:
o
o
o
Your beliefs and obligations to society
Your beliefs and obligations to other individuals
Your beliefs and obligations to yourself
In establishing the positions, refer to at least three specific contemporary ethical
concerns- one in each of the three categories. Also relate your beliefs to the ideas of
theorists that you agree with.
When writing this paper, you may borrow ideas and thoughts from the reflections that you
wrote as project assignments in Weeks 3, 6, and 9.
The paper should be approximately 10 pages long.
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Ethics
Syllabus
PROJECT TIMELINE
Project Deliverable
Title: Reflection One
Title: Reflection Two
Title: Reflection Three
Title: My Personal Code of
Ethics
Start
Week 1
Week 4
Week 7
Week 9
Due
Week 3
Week 6
Week 9
Week 11
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