CS 240 Homework 6 - Ethical Reasoning Paper

DRAFT Due Mon Dec 01 at 11:59pm

FINAL Due Mon Dec 08 at 11:59pm

Overview

For this assignment, you will write a short (~3 page) paper applying two different forms of ethical reasoning to an ethical dilemma related to the field of Software Engineering (and Computer Science more broadly). This will give you an opportunity to dig more deeply into a software-related social issue, and to practice using effective written communication in regards to technical systems.

You will be required to turn in a draft of the paper, as well as a revised copy. Iterate your writing!

Note: this homework assignment will be given twice the weight of a regular assignment (it counts as double).

Objectives

Practice applying ethical reasoning to the development of software systems
Consider multiple systems for making ethical decisions
Practice with persuasive writing about technical systems

Assignment Details

In this assignment, you will be writing about a single ethical decision (of your choice) posed by an aspect of a software development project. For example, you might consider the decision to utilize social network members as participants inpsychological/sociological experiments You may choose your own situation (e.g., based on the readings from class or your own interests/experience). Note that your situation should be reflect an actual real-life dilemma; it will not be a simple case study as in the Brinkman reading. (The situation may be hypothetical, but should be grounded in actual events). I recommend you check in with me before your first draft is due to make sure it will have sufficient depth for analysis.

Once you have chosen a situation, you should analyze the situation using two (2) different ethical theories that we dscussed in class:

Virtue Ethics
Utilitarian Ethics (act or rule)
Deontological Ethics

You will apply each of these ethical systems to the situation and determine the ethical course of action, comparing and constrasting the results.

Paper Content

Your paper should briefly (in a few sentence) describe the situation to situate the reader--however, do not spend too much time before getting into your analysis!
- Be sure and identify the dilemma! What decision is being made, and what conflicting set of motivations make this a dilemma?
- If there is only one "obvious" choice, then it isn't an ethical decision!
Use ethical reasoning (as described by Brinkman) to determine the best course of action each of your chosen ethical theories in isolation.
- Note that ethical reasoning using a particular ethical system may not lead you to a conclusion that you personally deem "correct" (e.g., that matches with your own personal ethical code). That is okay and even expected--the goal is to consider a situation from an alternative point of view.
- The two ethical systems may come to either the same or different conclusions on which course of action to take. This is normal---indeed, ethical systems often agree with one another, just with a different basis for the decision!
You should conclude your essay with a short consideration of the distinctions between these systems for your situation. Did they come to different decisions or the same? Are those decisions based on similar or different factors? Would one theory be more "applicable" than another in this situation?

Writing Iteration

You will be required to turn in a draft copy of your paper. This is to encourage you to iterate your writing, and to make sure you get some feedback on your analysis.

Your draft should be a complete document. This should not just be an outline or notes (though I recommend you create those as well). Your analysis should all be in place, though some components may need to be developed further.
I will not be copy-editing your drafts. Remember that it's a good idea to proof-read your writing (even a draft) before turning it in, so I can get you feedback without getting lost in typos!

Submitting

Both drafts and final papers should be submitted to your personal homework repository on GitHub.

Place the files in .pdf format in the top-level directory of the repository. Please name the files "Hwk6" or "Ethics paper" or something similar so that I can easily identify it!
If you're having problems submitting to your Github repository, let me know in advance of the deadline. Extensions will not be granted for technical problems with git--you should be comfortable enough with the system so that these issues should be resolved.

Please remember to put your name on your papers (and to give your final submissions one last read-through for typos and writing issues!)

Grading

This assignment will be graded out of 25 points:

Content
[3pt] Your paper explains the situation being considered
[3pt] Your paper identifies the ethical dilemma presented by the situation
[3pt] Your paper accurately applies two separate ethical theories
[3pt] You come to a resolution based on sound ethical reasoning
[3pt] You compare the decision suggested by each theory and evaluate the appropriateness of each
Writing
[2pt] You turned in a completed draft of your paper
[3pt] Your argument is clearly laid out, with ideas flowing logically and effectively from one to the next
[3pt] Your writing has effective style and cadence, using words and rhetorical devices appropriately
[2pt] Your paper is free of grammatical errors and shows evidence of proofreading