Stephen Downes
Stephen's Web
Getting Right Down To It
Dave Warlick posts a "Student and Teacher Information Code of Ethics." I personally think that a code of ethics is not useful, because if one believes in the ethics, the coded is not needed, and if one doesn't, the code will not be followed. Moreover, there is no need, again in my view, for an "Information" code of ethics - the basic principles apply in all areas of life: be honest, and take care not to harm others. And some of the specifics of this proposed code are, in my view, just wrong. To sample a few: "Always question the sources' motives?" No, because the motives are often irrelevant. "Consider all possible outcomes to the information you express?" Nice, but requires omniscience. "Encourage the information consumer to voice grievances about your information products?" Ack, ack ack! "Never use information from another person without proper citation and permission?" A bad principle; I would not be able to criticize most people and companies. Dave Warlick, 2 Cents Worth, August 23, 2006 4:01 p.m.. [Link]Comments
Re: Getting Right Down To It
You're right about the code of ethics (cf Shankara, which I will blog about on http://www.ictineducation.org), but I don't see how your position actually helps anyone working in schools.
I disagree with your comment about the motives. Maybe they are "often" irrelevant, but that implies they are SOMETIMES relevant -- and as you don't know in advance which is the case, surely it is right to question the sources' motives?
What does "ack" mean? (I'm a Brit)
Regarding citation/permission: surely the starting point is to instil the ethical value of citing sources with permission, before bringing in the obvious exceptions?
Interestingly enough, I covered some of the same ground in http://terry-freedman.org.uk/artman/publish/article_818.php, so I would think you would probably disagree with that also.
Terry Freedman [Comment]
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Re: Getting Right Down To It
I agree with a fair amount of what you have to say, but would just like to raise my voice on one issue: "take care not to harm others". I have learned the hard way that it is not always given to us to know what harm we do to others by our words, actions, silences and inactions. In the absence of that omniscience, I think a code of conduct/ethics/whatever is a helpful alternative. [Comment]
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Re: Getting Right Down To It
Like the previous commenter, I am sympathetic to some of what you say (I found the code a little stodgy) but there is an interesting discussion to be had about 'what and whose code of ethics'. You seem to be saying that you have a simple code of ethics and it is universal (for you at least). I wouldn't like to label you as such (that's your call), but when a libertarian ethic dominates online communication that does not give everyone the opportunity to avoid harm and feel able to be 'honest' i.e. say what they think. A lot of the research that was done on early CMC on USenet had a somewhat skewed demographic of mainly youngish white middle class males. This is obviously changing but a code or some recognition that ethics is important to the group. It's difficult to achieve but (as Kim and Preece have said) codes/social policies can have a place (alongside observing norms from people's behaviour) as long as they are developed by the collective.
The other thing Dave Warlick seemed to be doing was guiding students on being critical consumers of information and reliable providers of it. That has to be a good thing, though there are other ways to achieve it.
Frances Bell [Comment]
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