Normative ethics and intellectual property Ethics Education There seems to be a certain consensus that there is a moral crisis in American schools relating to applications of information technology. The crisis revolves around how students are treating so-called intellectual property and the widespread perception that the ethics governing intellectual property are different from those applying to other kinds of property such as physical objects. Authoritioes, on the other hand, argue that property is just property and ought to be subject to the same protections across the board; thus stealing a song or an article online is pretty much the same as stealing bread or sneaking into the circus. This isnt just an academic question; it has enormous financial and social implications, and as information technology becomes ever more pervasive, the question becomes one that we all live with every day. The first step is to become familiar with some working vocabulary. We have prepared a brief lecture about how the terms utilitarian and deontological are applied to ethical premises. Please read this lecture carefully, since it will form the basis of all the modules in this course. Its essential that you have this conceptual structure clearly in mind before leaping out into the wide world of ethical reasoning: Gold, S.J. (2010). Normative ethics: A lecture on utilitarian and deontological reasoning. Unpublished working paper, Trident University. Available here. Now here are two discussions of how these issues of intellectual property access and management ought to be taught in schools: Mintz, S. (2011). Cyber ethics education is a must in todays environment. Ethics Sage. Retrieved from http://www.ethicssage.com/2011/08/cyber-ethics-education-is-a-must-in-todays-environment.html Starr, L. (2011). Tools for teaching cyber ethics. EducationWorld. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech /tech/tech055.shtml Collin, C. (2011, November 15). Cyber command presses for more cyberwar authority. AOL Defense. Retrieved from http://defense.aol.com/2011/11/15/cyber-command-presses-for-more-cyberwar-authority/ When youve explored as many aspects of these issues as you can (perhaps involving your own research on the Internet), you are to write a short paper on the question: Should cyber ethics education be based on utilitarian or deontological foundations or both? In coming to your conclusions, you should review how each approach might treat the general question of the morality of file sharing. EXPECTATIONS: Your paper should be between three and five pages. Take a definite stand on the issues, and develop your supporting argument carefully. Using material from the background information and any other sources you can find to support specific points in your argument is highly recommended; try to avoid making assertions for which you can find no support other than your own opinion. Make sure to spell out the utilitarian and deontological considerations involved, and distinguish between them. Be sure to provide proper citations for any material you reference from other sources! Please be guided by the TUI Guidelines cited in the background information for help in structuring and developing your paper. See also the Purdue University Guide if you are unsure as to how proper citations work.
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