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A professional development activity for faculty and school leadership

Step 1: Introduce your audience to the Schools of Integrity project and to the ten research findings that the project uncovered. You can find these at http://ethical-literacy.org/schools-of-integrity/. Discuss the basic notion of ethics as “being good or doing good.” Refer to research, such as IGE’s core shared ethical values from around the world, as appropriate. Also if you have not already done so, describe the Ethical Literacy® learning community (need help describing the community email us: education@globalethics.org).

Step 2: Explain that ethics is not easy and does not happen overnight. When faced with a task as daunting as changing the ethical culture of a school, people may have an easier time getting started if they recognize and appreciate their accomplishments, rather than focusing on what is lacking. Also explain that the following method of idea generation is designed to provide a step-by-step structure, to replace the wide-open, intimidating blank page brainstorm so often suggested.

Step 3: Small group work. Divide into small groups, based on these school constituents: students, faculty, administration and staff. Provide flip chart paper and markers or post-its for each group. Assign each group the following task:

“Take five minutes to brainstorm and list some instances of your constituency group acting in an outwardly ethical manner over the current or previous school year. What has been done that should be heralded as evidence of this school constituency exhibiting integrity?”

Time the groups for five minutes. Encourage each group to record as many ideas as possible. Use your judgment as facilitator. Provide more time if needed.

Step 4: Assign someone from each group to share/explain results. (Consider providing the group that generates the most examples with some small token of recognition, like a gold star or sticker, as appropriate, to make the activity more fun.)

Step 5: Explain to your audience that now the bar is set. These great examples constitute the bar, and this school year we look forward to exceeding it, by putting plans in place to increase the evidence of integrity school-wide.

Step 6: Break the large group back into smaller groups again, but this time create mixed groups, so each has all constituencies represented. Explain that mixed groups will provide an increased range of perspectives, representing all constituencies. (Consider using this quote by way of explanation: “Only the insights of the outsider will correct the inevitable errors of the insider.” William James.) Provide flip chart paper and markers or post-its for each group. Then assign each group the following task:

“Your group is now charged with brainstorming to identify ways to promote ethics over the remainder of the current (or the upcoming) school year. The number of examples generated by each constituency group must equal or exceed the winning number from the earlier exercise (Step 3).”

Step 7: Conclude this activity by assigning someone from each group to share/explain their list of ideas. As facilitator, keep track of the ideas that the groups have in common. After all the groups have shared, provide a summary of the common ideas, and engage the groups in planning the next steps, using the following questions.

• Who will be in charge of implementing each idea?
• When should we touch base on this work again, if at all?
• How will we know if our work has been effective?

© 2008 Institute for Global Ethics®. All rights reserved.

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Intended activity outcome: To increase content area teachers’ awareness about the possibilities for integrating ethics.

Audience: Middle and high school level faculty

Activity Steps:

1. Review the definition of ethics as “the study of what is right and what is good.” Discuss teachers’ understanding of the broadest aims of education. Ask:

• Beyond basic competencies, what’s the purpose of school?
• Based on the definition we just discussed, what do ethics have to do with this purpose?

2. Small Group Work: Have teacher’s divide into “mixed” groups–with different content areas represented in each group. Ask them to discuss this question:

• Do you think every content area has a connection to ethics?
• If so, provide examples for each content area represented in your group.
• If not, provide examples for why not.

3. Keep participants in small groups. Explain that math teachers often have a heard time connecting their lessons to ethics because much of their work is around specific instruction with no room for interpretation, like Algebra. Ask each small group to brainstorm the ethical dimensions of:

• Accounting
• Financial services such as credit cards and other loans
• Rounding in advertising, and other “small print” aspects
• Statistics
• Gender in math-related fields

4. Have each group choose their three favorite ideas from #3 and de-brief as a large group.

5. Ask everyone to be on the lookout for more examples of the ethical dilemmas of math. Ask for these examples to start your next meeting.

© 2008 Institute for Global Ethics. All rights reserved.

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