Exploring Ethics

Hobbes (1651) Viewed ethics as a practical solution to social harmony and good through a social contract. (Ethics Reader, 2011) He believed in order to live within a cooperative society; we needed to adhere to a list of moral rules. I guess similarities can be seen in codes of practice and ethical guidelines put in place within education environments to aid in the making of decision and sustain consistently within working environments. As I have blogged about previously these are just guidelines or professional ethics in which to follow it is primary down to your personal ethics and morals to make a decision and consider the impact these decisions have, on not only yourself but on students, colleagues and parents.

Consequentialism as stated by the internet encyclopaedia of philosophy

‘Of all the things a person might do at any given moment, the morally right action is the one with the best overall consequences.’ (Internet encyclopaedia of philosophy, 2011)

If I look at the concept of Consequentialism within my profession, would I ever tell a student he/she could not be in a dance performance because she was not as technically strong as the others dancers and was letting the group and the overall vision and concept of the piece be compromised because of this. I personally could not live with the fact that although the piece would looked stronger, one child would be left feeling inadequate and isolated. The complete opposite to why I think participation in dance is beneficial. I understand that utilitarianism maximises the overall happiness but at what cost?

In retrospect I have been involved in decisions where the consequences of the whole school are considered, but again it depends on the implications of these decisions and how they adhere to my own moral compass. Do I as a teacher make decisions on my class as a whole all of the time? For example if a few students found an exercise difficult would I press on because most had mastered it? Are we then saying if a Consequentialism view was applied in teaching, that some would get less out of a class than other students because I only work on the minority’s level? Can I really work for the ‘greater good’ within an education setting?

Deontology or duty based ethics is in close contrast to Consequentialism, it looks at what people do rather than the consequences, an action is either right or wrong regardless of consequences or purpose. Immanuel Kant (reader, 2011) ‘argued that the only absolutely good thing is a good will’. Demonologists deem it wrong to lie regardless of whether it produces ‘good’. How can we deem an action either right or wrong without considering the intention of the action?

If I tell my younger students, the students in the previous class found a space without talking in 5 seconds and it resulted in the command to be executed as desired, I am wrong in lying? or distorting the truth. In actual fact the previous class had run around for 20 seconds screaming.

It is hard to believe that it could ever be a duty deliberately to produce less good, when we could produce more. (A A Ewing, The definition of good, 1947)

Virtue Ethics is person rather than action based. The reader states that Plato and Aristotle played great emphasis on being rather than doing. (Ethics Reader, 2011)  I think looking at a person’s virtue or moral character makes more sense to me as an ethical concept, how can we just consider consequences or particular actions. Virtue ethics considers people and every person is different with a different set of morals. The problems I see with Virtue Ethics lye in what the virtues are? There is not set list which leaves us with little guidance or structure and even when we have a set list of virtues, they will be relative to the period and culture they were taken from. 

Ethics affects the way in which we behave; it does not give us right answers but on most occasions many. I think this is something I need to consider when researching into my professional inquiry.