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Employees, Taxes, and Ethics Lesson 13: Ethics 1
Lesson: 13 Ethics Getting Started Lesson 13, Ethics, is the third lesson in Employees, Taxes, and Ethics, the fifth unit within the AOF Principles of Finance course. Lesson 13 introduces students to the principles of ethical business practice, and to the kinds of ethical dilemmas often faced by financial professionals. Students study and discuss how businesses deal with ethical lapses when they occur, the consequences that can accrue to businesses that engage in unethical practices, and how businesses can prevent unethical practices from occurring. This lesson will likely require four of the ten class sessions planned for this unit. Getting Started This section includes: Objectives Prerequisites Major Topic Standards Key Concepts Key Vocabulary Key Skills Habits of Mind Curricular Integration 2
Profit Lesson: 13 Ethics Getting Started Objectives Discuss the importance of ethics in business Identify the kinds of ethical dilemmas that financial professionals may face Discuss how businesses should respond to these problems when they occur Discuss the consequences that can accrue to businesses that engage in unethical practices Prerequisites There are no prerequisites for students. Major Topic Why is ethics important in business? Standard(s) Use correct grammar, punctuation, and terminology to write and edit documents (States' Career Clusters: Finance) Develop and deliver formal and informal presentations using appropriate media to engage and inform audiences (States' Career Clusters: Finance) Apply active listening skills to obtain and clarify information (States' Career Clusters: Finance) Statement: Practice ethical behavior to instill trust and confidence (States' Career Clusters: Finance) Statement: Analyze practices of the finance industry to determine ethics and social responsibilities (States' Career Clusters: Finance) Key Concept(s) Taught Ethics in business Financial management ethics 3
Lesson: 13 Ethics Getting Started Key Vocabulary Age discrimination Child labor Ethics Ethics in business Exporting environmental problems Financial management ethics Gender discrimination Inhuman working conditions Intellectual property infringement Patent infringement Racial discrimination Unsafe working conditions Key Skills Taught Thinks critically and solves problems Communicates successfully with others Demonstrates integrity and ethical behavior Acts responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind Habits of Mind Thinking flexibly Questioning and posing problems Applying past knowledge to new situations Thinking and communicating with clarity and precision 4
Lesson: 13 Ethics Getting Started Curricular Integration Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics). (National Council of Teachers of English) Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes. (National Council of Teachers of English) Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and non-print texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience. (National Council of Teachers of English) Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge. (National Council of Teachers of English) 5
Lesson: 13 Ethics Materials and Resources Materials & Resources This section includes: Teacher Resources Student Resources Supplies Additional Resources Teacher Resources Teacher Resource 13.1: "Guide: Ethical Issue Scenarios" Teacher Resource 13.2: "Rubric: Business Ethics Memo" Teacher Resource 13.3: "Rubric: Peer Reviews" Student Resources There are no Student Resources for this lesson. Supplies Whiteboard, chalkboard, or flip chart Additional Resources Computer lab with Internet access 6
Lesson: 13 Ethics Assessment Assessment This section lists the student assessment products for this lesson and the criteria by which they should be assessed. Assessment Product Group business ethics memos Assessment Criteria Teacher Resource 13.2: "Rubric: Business Ethics Memos" Student reviews of group business ethics memos Teacher Resource 13.3: "Rubric: Peer Reviews" 7
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity CLASS PERIOD 1 1 5 Lesson Overview: Introducing Business Ethics Begin this lesson by briefly introducing students to ethics and their role in business. Explain that: Ethics are an essential part of the business world. Broadly defined, ethics refers to issues of right and wrong in human conduct. While laws regulate some aspects of business, many workplace practices are based on trust or social norms. Knowing what society considers acceptable behavior in the business world not only furthers an individual s career, but it may also keep you out of jail. For businesses, ethical behavior has significant consequences for the bottom line as they try to manage their finances. 8
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity 2 25 Small Group Activity: Exploring Workplace Scenarios With this foundation established, first suggest to students that they begin a look at business ethics. Class members will together take part in an activity in which student teams explore several real-world ethical issues in the workplace. First, explain to students that their student team will have approximately 10 minutes read and discuss a specific workplace scenario and reach consensus on what their group thinks should be done about the situation described. Next, split students into groups of three or four and give each group one Ethical Dilemma Scenario Card from Teacher Resource 13.1, "Guide: Ethical Issue Scenarios. Then, after 10 minutes, facilitate a brief reporting-out session in which groups read their scenario and report on their resolution. 9
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity 25 Class Discussion: Establishing Business Ethics Themes Next, facilitate a class discussion in which student teams in turn present the scenario they ve considered to their classmates and then describe their response to the situation presented. When all of the scenarios have been presented, ask the class their thoughts about each of the following questions: What do all of these ethical issues have in common? What factors contribute to unethical behavior in the workplace? How can unethical workplace behavior impact an employee? How can unethical workplace behavior impact a company? 10
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity CLASS PERIOD 2 4 55 Internet Research: Exploring Real-World Ethical Issues Before class begins, write on the board a list of specific work-place specific ethical issues that students can use as springboards for continued research and exploration. Examples of such ethical issues might include: Falsification of reported revenues and expenses Timing of adverse announcements that will effect stock prices Child labor as a means of profit Environmental problems caused by businesses that want to save money Exporting environmental problems to other countries Destruction of innocent parties assets and businesses Investor losses Inhuman working conditions Unsafe working conditions Patent infringement Intellectual property infringement Age discrimination Gender discrimination Racial discrimination [Continued] 11
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity When students arrive, review the list of ethical issues displayed, and then tell students that they will have a chance to work together in small groups to research one of these issues. First, organize students into new working teams, each composed of three to five students. Next, ask each group to select one of the issues from the list to research. To ensure coverage of all issues, you may prefer to assign topics to each team. Be sure to record each team s selections. Then, encourage each group to use the Internet to research the selected topic. Ask them to search for one specific real-world instance of the issue they have selected, and to determine for this specific instance: What were the circumstances in this situation? What ethical lapse(s) was/were the cause of the problem? How did the business respond after the unethical behavior became publicly known? What were the consequences for individuals and for the company? How might the business prevent the problem in the future? Finally, ask the work teams are to write a one- to two-page memo to the shareholders of the company profiled in the article they have found. Their memo should briefly address the questions above with particular emphasis on the final question: How can the behavior in question be prevented in the future? In addition to their recommendations, students should include a supporting memo to record the links to all source material used in the memo. Ask students also to include a cover page which includes the names of all members of the work team and states the ethical issue that was researched. 12
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity CLASS PERIOD 3 5 55 Internet Research: Presenting Real-World Ethical Issues When class resumes, encourage student work teams to continue and complete the memowriting activity begun in the previous class session. Tell students that their group essay will be collected at the beginning of the next class period and that their memo will be used as the basis for a peer review activity. 13
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity CLASS PERIOD 4 6 45 Peer Review Activity: Reviewing Student Recommendations When class resumes, tell students that their memo will now be used as the basis for a peer review activity. First, collect all student papers and briefly ask students to present their thoughts about the activity. Next, code each essay by placing the same unique identifying number on the cover page and on the page(s) containing the essay and supporting references. Then, remove all cover pages. Hand out one essay to each student team, making sure the essay did not come from that group. Finally, ask teams are to read the memo and: Briefly review the source material. Assess if they agree with the observations/conclusions. Look for important facts that may have been missed that would cause a reasonable person to come to another conclusion. Ask student teams to work together to prepare a brief three-paragraph critique which addresses each of the considerations previously presented. (Write the above bullet points on the board as students begin their work.) Use Teacher Resource 13.2 "Rubric: Business Ethics Memo " to grade the work team memos. Use Teacher Resource 13.3 "Rubric: Peer Reviews" to grade the individual student critiques. 14
Lesson: 13 Ethics Lesson Steps Step Minutes Activity 7 10 Lesson and Unit Closure With about ten minutes left in the class session, briefly review the lesson and unit. Ask students to reflect on their learning on each of the lessons presented in Unit 5. 15
Lesson: 13 Ethics Extending the Lesson Extending the Lesson Give students a list of suggested readings and suggest that students write a paragraph in their journals summarizing the reading they chose. 16