Issues in Professional & Applied Ethics

Subject PHIL90015 (2011)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2011.

Credit Points: 12.50
Level: 9 (Graduate/Postgraduate)
Dates & Locations:

This subject is not offered in 2011.
Time Commitment: Contact Hours: Five 4 or 5 hour seminars held on Saturdays at regular intervals throughout the semester, 24 hours in all.
Total Time Commitment: An average of 10 hours each week.
Prerequisites: None.
Corequisites: None.
Recommended Background Knowledge: Students enrolling in this subject must have completed a Bachelor of Arts degree or equivalent.
Non Allowed Subjects: None.
Core Participation Requirements: For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Contact

Andrew Alexandra

a.alexandra@unimelb.edu.au

Subject Overview:

This course will examine some of the central debates in applied ethics. Topics discussed may include ethical issues associated with intellectual property, self-regulation and meta-regulation, social responsibility of the professionals, defamation, racial vilification, climate change, treatment of animals problems raised by new developments in biotechnology, treatment of asylum seekers and suspected terrorists and the ethics of war and military intervention. The course will also introduce students to normative ethical theories as an aid to developing coherent position on the controversies discussed.
Objectives:

Students who successfully complete this subject will

  • have developed an understanding of the fundamentals of philosophical argumentation and theory.
  • be able to demonstrate a substantial knowledge of one or more areas in the study of professional and applied ethics.
  • understand the theoretical sources of the key concepts in these areas of study.
  • understand the application of these concepts to their professional field or study area.
  • have developed research and analysis skills to enable further study in the area of applied ethics at a higher academic level.
  • present theories and arguments concisely and critically.
Assessment:

5,000 word essay due at end of semester, and a class presentation.
Hurdle Requirement: Students are required to attend a minimum of 75% of classes in order to qualify to have their written work assessed. Students who fail to meet this hurdle requirement will be deemed ineligible to submit the final piece of assessment for this subject. Regular participation in class is required.

Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 2% per working day. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.
Prescribed Texts:

A booklet of prescribed readings will be issued to students.
Recommended Texts:

A booklet of prescribed readings will be issued to students.
Breadth Options:

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.
Fees Information: Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills:

Students who successfully complete this subject will

  • understand and analyse complex ethical issues.
  • detect ambiguity, vagueness, inconsistency, and other weaknesses in the expressions of ideas.
  • distinguish different types of question, claim or argument, and respond to them appropriately.
  • distinguish what is relevant to a given issue from what is not.
  • see ways in which an argument or explanation could be improved.
Links to further information: http://www.philosophy.unimelb.edu.au/cappe/
Related Course(s): Master of Arts (Professional and Applied Ethics)
Master of International Business
Master of Public Policy and Management (Coursework)
Postgraduate Certificate in Professional Ethics
Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Ethics

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