Overview of the Discipline of Computer Science - Guide to Teaching Computer Science: An Activity-Based Approach - page 33

− Case 1
One of your pupils downloads a software tool from the Web that helps your
students in their understanding of one of the complicated topics studied
in the high school computer science curriculum. The rules state that the
software should be paid for after 30 days of trial usage. As it turns out,
your school does not have the required budget to pay for it. It is, however,
possible to reinstall the software in 30-day cycles and avoid payment.
- How can the ethical dilemma (if exists) be solved?
- How would you behave in such a situation?
- Formulate (one or more) ethical principles that will help you make a decision
in similar cases.
− Case 2 (based on Tomayko and Hazzan 2004)
Your friend works for a software house that specializes in the development
of computer games. Recently, several publications have indicated that
these games influence some children negatively. These games, however,
are the main products of your friend's company and without them the com-
pany may not be able to survive. The company's management is aware of
these publications and gathers all the employees to discuss the future of the
company. You are invited to the meeting as a representative of the educa-
tional system.
- Suggest different opinions that might be expressed in the meeting. What
(if at all) ethical consideration does each of them represent?
- What (if at all) conflicts of interest are presented in this case?
- What is your opinion with respect to this case?
- How would you behave in such a case?
- Formulate (one or more) ethical principles that might help make a decision
in similar cases.
• Stage B: Presentations and discussion
After the students work on the task, the different groups present their
works and express their opinions with respect to the different questions.
Specifically, after the source of ethical dilemma is observed in each case,
the focus is placed on specific solutions that might solve it. This discus-
sion delivers the message that ethical considerations should be part of the
profession of computer science teaching and that different solutions can be
found that eliminate the ethical dilemmas (at least partially).
3.5.2 Diversity
Diversity is expressed in different ways in any community, and, in particular in any
computer science class that the prospective computer science teachers may teach in
their future professional life. Diversity can be exhibited, for instance, in terms of
students' fields of interest, ways of thinking and perspectives, background, gender,