University of the Philippines Visayas

Miagao 5023, Iloilo Philippines

College of Arts and Sciences

Ethics 1 – Ethics and Moral Reasoning in Everyday Life

Study Guide/Learning Materials

Introduction to the Course

Welcome to Ethics 1, a course designed to introduce students to the

nature, development, sources and frameworks of ethics and moral
reasoning and their application to various issues and contexts.

From the course title, you may expect already that this class focus on
ethical thinking by highlighting real and everyday concerns, balancing both
the normative and applied dimensions of ethics.

The course covers both introductory modules on ethics, frameworks of

moral reasoning and applied ethics. Course content and activities are
designed to be sensitive to local and moral sensibilities to help make
informed decisions in life.

This course is part of the required GE subjects for UP Visayas and is

consistent with UP’s mission of developing ethical persons and lifelong
learners. The course attempts to build on the students’ prior knowledge
and questions on ethics, and then seeks to describe and explain them by
providing real-life situations and cases. Hence, the course offers a
thematic, problem-oriented and learner-centered treatment of ethics so
that students develop a habit of reflection and clarification of personal,
inter-personal, cultural and global values that impact everyday decision
making.

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Objectives of the course:

(1) The student is able to explain basic ethical concepts, principles and
processes involved in ethical reasoning.

(2) The student is able to identify cultural and indigenous knowledge in

relation to ethical concepts and frameworks within various contexts.

(3) The student demonstrates skills and competencies that underpin

critical and reflective thinking, and ethical reasoning.

DIRECTIONS:

(1) Make sure that the your answers for the activities found in this material are
computerized and are highlighted in red.

(2) ☐ Put a check or a mark on boxes once you have finished the reading parts.
You may leave a mark such as this example: X☐

(3) Once you are done with reading and answering the activities in this module,
make sure that you save the file as PDF and attached to an email to be sent
to your instructor’s email using the file name: SECTION (_), SURNAME,
FIRSTNAME, MODULE _ Part

(4) Please note that this course pack is a guide intended only for your use as a
student currently enrolled in Ethics 1. You are NOT ALLOWED to share,
reproduce or distribute it to anyone else. Should you need to use the course
pack for any other purpose than class, you should seek permission from the
Author/Editor.

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 Week 1. Course Orientation and Introduction
Week 2-3 Nature of Ethics & Moral Reasoning

The first two parts introduce students to Ethics as a field of inquiry

and the moral dimensions of everyday life. Basic issues and
concerns of ethics are also surveyed including competing theories on
moral reasoning.

Study Schedule:

Course Orientation and Introduction

Feb 13-24 Course Orientation
Nature of Ethics and moral reasoning
Feb 23/24
1.Definition, Scope 1. Introduce Ethics as a field of
and Relevance of Ethics inquiry and moral dimension of
life
2. Basic Question and 2. Survey basic issues and
Problems of Ethics questions that concerns ethics
3. The Nature of 3. Discuss competing theories
Moral Reasoning on moral reasoning

n 1.1 Definition, Scope and Relevance of Ethics

☐ How does this module work (1/2)

(Put a mark in the box once you have finished this section)

Classes that will predominantly use a comination of f2f and online

discussions. Submission of activities and requirements that employ online
means have set instructions . Zoom meetings , if ever there is one, will be
given specific dates to be announced later. Other methods of learning such
as unmoderated chats with a combination of independent reading are
made available for downloads. Additionally, submissions

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of requirements will have to be submitted through identified
submission links.

Lessons and discussions here are study guides on how to proceed from
one topic to another . When required by the teacher , you will be asked to
submit the documents in the dates to be identified later. Actively participate
in our class forum discussions . Make yourself available to answer phone
calls from your teacher and attend group calls in specific dates as our way
of making sure you understand the reading and writing activities found in
this module.

n 1.1 Definition, Scope and Relevance of Ethics

☐ Can ethics be found everywhere? (1/2)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

Ethical issues and concerns permeate everyday life. We encounter them in

the household, school, workplace, and the various situations where we
relate with other human beings and with nature. Most ethical issues are
also global in scale. To be able to deal with these ethical issues, make
decisions, and take action, we need to develop our moral capacities
through systematic reflection and reasoning.

This module introduces you to the nature of ethics and the nature of moral
reasoning. This introduction to ethics includes a consideration of its nature,
scope, and relevance. Here you will learn why ethics is more fundamentally
known as engaging with the problem of how to live well . The basic
questions and problems that are the concern of ethics as a field of rational
inquiry are explored , such as the prevalence and authority of norms in
society , the pursuit of goodness and rightness in our actions , the
importance of keeping promises , duties and obligations , the necessity of
treating others fairly , and the meaning of value and the things we care
about.

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Activity:

Write exactly five words that you can think of from each of the photo below.

(1)

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Activity:
(2)

Credit: https://images.app.goo.gl/46rP7S7YQC9qG4No6

Activity

(3)

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Reflection:

(1) Go back to your answers in activity 1. What do you think is a common pre-
disposition or perpective from most of your answers? (I.e. may answers
are mostly (skeptical/critical, or respectful of each circumstances as
presented in the pictures)

(2) What do you think Ethics 1 expect from you in terms of your moral
reasoning in everyday life?

n 1.2 Basic Question and Problems of Ethics

☐ What is the general claim of ethics? (1/2)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

Ethical issues are present in everyday life. The reference to the moral
dimension of everyday life becomes much more important when ready-
made decisions seem absent or where the available answers
nonetheless remain disputable.

Because of this, the study of Ethics becomes important, if not necessary, in

these moral dimensions. Moral agents respond to moral problems and seek
to resolve them by engaging in reasoning.

From Activity 1, you must already have felt the need to provide an
explanation as to why you chose to write the words you felt strongly about
the different circumstances shown by the picture. Regardless of the
differences or contradictions you found in your answers, there is always
that higher level of concern to “oughtness” or the “ought to be” principle in
everday life. Asking yourself the question “How or what should it be in the

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most ideal sense” is another way of thinking about the “ought to be” claim
of ethics and philosophically, is a way to respond to Socrate’s famous
question “How should one live?”. It can also be rephrased as “You ought to
do/be/follow"

☐ What is Ethics? (1/2)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

Ethics is broadly understood as reflection about the good life that a

human being ought to live. The following characteristics constitute the
term:

• Latin ‘Moral’ emphasizes the sense of social expectation and Greek

‘Moral’ favors that of individual character

• Critical examination of convictions and beliefs we invoke in

explaining/justifying actions

• Practical thought that is radically first - personal

• Reflective, dialogical and deliberative process

• Normative - it follows standards or values

In short, ethics is the study of morality and what is required of us to live a

good life. This is captured by the basic premise of ethics which is “You
ought to do/be/follow [certain principles]”. The term ought is examined in
the sentence below:

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The reference again to the claim of Ethics “You ought to do/be/follow
[certain principles]” is important as it also provides a structure of how this
course will progress for the semester. There will be discussions falling
under the the word “ought”, “do/be/follow” wil be also explored in detail
including the deepening of “certain principles” that include both normative
and appliced ethics.

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☐ What is Moral Reasoning? (1/2)
(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

Ethics is broadly understood as reflection about the good life that a

human being ought to live. The following characteristics constitute the
term:

• Latin ‘Moral’ emphasizes the sense of social expectation and Greek

‘Moral’ favors that of individual character

• Critical examination of convictions and beliefs we invoke in

explaining/justifying actions

• Practical thought that is radically first - personal

• Reflective, dialogical and deliberative process

• Normative - it follows standards or values

In short, ethics is the study of morality and what is required of us to live a

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good life.

n 1.3 The Nature of Moral Reasoning

☐⇒What is moral reasoning? (1/4)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

It was dicussed that everyday life has its moral dimension and because of
this the study of ethics becomes important.

As a methodology of ethics, moral reasoning is concerned with content of

reasoning, regardless of its abstract structure of patterns.

Overlapping categories or kinds of reasoning (Audi 2004, Korsgaard 2008)

include:

• Motivational reasons are the substantive reasons an agent has

(beliefs, desires, intention) which may or may not serve as the actual
basis for his/her decisions or actions

• Explanatory reasons are the reasons why an agent decides or acts

the way s/he did; typically motivating —that is, they actually motivate
an agent to decide or act in a particular manner

• Normative reasoning - rational principles that determine whether the

reasons the agent count as reasons to pursue a particular course of
action

☐⇒ Ethics as normative reasoning (2/4)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

While there are different categories of reasoning as enumerated above, the

main concern of ethics is normative reasoning.

Normative reasons are principles that specify what constitutes good or

appropriate reasons for action and, as such, determine what we ought to
do in virtue of one or more of these reasons. More importantly, normative
reasons are taken as the primary material that constitutes the process of
moral reasoning, may that be a deductive one or otherwise

Normatives reasons are both:

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 • Objective - in the sense of being independent of what the agent
wants

• Justificatory - reasons that agents use to justify their acting in a

particular manner

Specifying what exactly these normative reasons are, their substantive

contents and their sources, will be the central focus of subsequent
modules. These different modules include the following:

Reflection:

In what ways would moral reasoning be limited or not limited by

a) age, education and background?

_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________

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b.) Education and background?
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________

c) socio-economic background?
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________

☐⇒ How does ethical thought and moral awareness develop? (3/4)

(Put a mark on the box once you have finished this section)

There are two empirical studies that attempts to explain how ethical
thinking and moral awareness progress throughtout one’s lifespan.

The first is The Moral Judgment of the Child (1932), which Piaget argued,
based on his empirical study of children of various age-groups’ conception
of moral rules:

Our moral understanding and thinking changes from the relatively

subjective and perception-based during early childhood to ways
of thinking that are more objective, principled, and abstract
during late childhood

Children’s judgments about what is right and what is wrong

undergo some kind of progress in the course of the child’s
development, a progress consisting of the development of an
individual from heteronomous egocentricity to rational
autonomy rooted in respect of moral law and the dignity of
others.

The second theory is Kohlber’s Moral Stages (1983) where he dentified six
stages of moral development organized into three principal levels of moral
thought. He identified progressive stages of development of morality which
includes:

a) level of pre-conventional morality which consists of the

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 obedience and punishment stage and self-interest stage

b) level of conventional morality consisting of the interpersonal

accord/conformity stage and social-order maintaining stage

c) level of post-conventional morality which consists of the social

contract stage and universal principles stage

In terms of the processes of moral reasoning materializes at the individual

level, there are at least two competing models which include;

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Reflection:

Is vaccine competition among pharmaceutical companies and it’s

eventual commercial distribution ethical? Complete the matrix below
to analyze your response.

My reasoning What How is your Is the though

reasoning did answer? process you
you employ? (answer both) employed?
(one answer (one answer
only) only)
Motivational Objective Deduction

Explanatory Justificatory Reflective

Equilibrium

Normative

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nConclusion of Module 1

☐ Summary

Congratulations on completing your first offline module! At this stage, you

must have familiarized yourself with how the lessons progress in an
asynchronous class as well as how completing the alternative offline writing
activities are important for your study progress. The hey here is to
remember that there are other four modules to complete for the semester
and more or less the presentation of topics and assessment questions are
very much like what is found in the first module. You just have to allocate a
portion of you time in a week to read and complete the modules so that you
are able to keep track of the pacing and progress of the class.

In this module, the field of ethics has been contextualized as an inevitable

part of everyday life. You also must have learned that ethics is more
fundamentally known as engaging with the problem of how to live well or
have a good life.

The general claim of ethics “you ought to do/be/follow _________” was

also discussed not only as an important reference to what Ethics as a field
of inquiry expects from us but as well as a conceptual anchor on how this
class and the subsequent modules are organized.

The nature of moral reasoning, development of ethical thought and

processes of moral reasoning has also been discussed to equip students
with a basic appreciation of how our taken for granted habits of thinking
and reasoning ethics are seen in a more objective manner.

Expect that the next module entitled Ethics 101: Key terms, assumptions
and development of th field would introduce key vocabulary and thinking
frames about and against Ethics as well as discussions that ground the
philosophical evolution of the field spanning ancient and modern ways of
morality.

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Reference materials:

Gordon, J.S. (2020). “Modern Morality and Ancient Ethics”. The Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, ISSN 2161-0002. Retrieved from:
https://iep.utm.edu/anci-
mod/#:~:text=Ancient%20ethics%20is%20about%20living,the%20idea%20
of%20deontological%20constraints.

Panza, C., & Potthast, A. (2010). Ethics for dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley
Publishing, Inc..

Image references:

https://images.app.goo.gl/46rP7S7YQC9qG4No6

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Guide Criteria for evaluating activities/responses and assesments

Rating Criteria
A = Excellent • Focused, Succinct Thesis
• Organized from the beginning to end to Support Thesis
• Effective, Germane Use of Textual Support
• Originality of Ideas
• Clear, Well Formulated Sentences
• Correct Citation Form, Well Documented
• Precise and Effective Language
• Fluid Transitions
B = Good • Focused, Succinct Thesis
• Adequately Organized to Support Thesis
• Some Originality of Ideas
• Textual Support not always Effective, Germane
• Mechanical Problems that do not Interfere with Readability
• Clear, Well Formulated Sentences
• Correct Citation Form, Well Documented
C = Fair • Unfocused, Weak Thesis
• Partially Organized to Support Thesis
• Paucity of Original Ideas
• Ineffective Textual Support
• Incomplete, Poorly Formulated Sentences
• Informal, inappropriate Language
• Careless Editing, Incorrect Citation Form
• Mechanical Errors that do not Interfere with Readability
D = Poor • No Thesis
• Lack of Organization
• No Original Ideas
• Little Textual Support, Irrelevant Appeal to Text
• Mechanical Errors that Interfere with Readability
• Lack of Editing, Incorrect/Missing Citation
• Inadequate Length, Underdevelopment of Ideas
U = Unacceptable • Plagiarism
• Inappropriateness
• Unintelligibility
• No Thesis
• No Organization/Structure
• Failure to Submit

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