EthicsWorks takes a "low tech" approach to courseware, thus enabling a wider variety of students and teachers to avail themselves of its benefits. The "learning curve" is very short (often a half hour will do the trick), and the equipment requirements are extremely minimal. The typical computer lab will suffice for students who have no other computer available to them.
However, this being said, "times are a-changin'"! See one of the later FAQ's below for further details.
The program is designed to allow a considerable amount of writing and interaction with the instructor, far more then in the typical course relying exclusively on lectures and examinations. For, although there are specific answers programmed into EthicsWorks, the program encourages dialogue between the students and instructor whenever there is disagreement over a particular answer. In fact some of the questions can
only be answered with the instructor's assistance.
There are several kinds of exercises with a wide range of skill and knowledge required to answer them. Fill-in-the-blanks, multiple-choice, highlighting, analogies, and the like are designed to minimize (if not eliminate) any reliance on "guessing," and both "right" and "wrong" answers are provided with informative feedback.
Since the instructions in EthicsWorks are often extensive and detailed, approximately one half of the instructor's class time is freed for doing other things, e.g., to deal individually with students who are either having difficulty or who want to progress at a faster than normal pace.
In addition, all of the exercises are graded automatically as the student works in the program. When the student prints out the results, the results are ready for recording. Furthermore, there is a "Grader" program that accompanies the Instructor's package. This might make the instructor's job even easier.
Each disk has a unique identification number for security, and the number is displayed on the printout along with the student's name and course. The disk can not be "opened" without this number. The Philosophy Documentation Center keeps a close check on numbers to ensure that there are no accidental duplications.
When the student begins to work on the disk, he or she must submit to the instructor a unique "tear-out" I.D. card with the disk number affixed. This helps prevent "sharing" of disks, and makes the instructor's record keeping much easier.
Eventually, as instructor's request them, there will be several versions of EthicsWorks, each one designed to complement a specific text and/or anthology. At present there is a Standard Version of EthicsWorks [written to be of use in virtually any ethics course] and one specifically designed for Today's Moral Issues written by Daniel Bonevac and published by Mayfield.
However, all present and future versions will begin with three generic menus designed to assist students learn the basics of ethical theory. Linguistic analysis is the major approach, but there are basic exercises, as well, that work with classical and historically significant moral thinkers.
What happens if a student loses the I.D. for the disk?
You should contact the Philosophy Documentation Center, Robert Pielke or Rob Brady as soon as possible. There are methods that might be of use.
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What are those "Xtra" exercises on the disk?
These [literally] extra menus are for the instructor to add more exercises, exercises uniquely suited to his or her course. The Editor Program is designed to accomplish this, and with a little practice, these additional exercises can be of great benefit. [All new exercises must be added to each individual student disk so that they may be accessed, of course...a comparatively simple procedure, actually.]
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Are there plans for an update?
Even as we "speak," a multimedia CD-ROM is being written, tentatively called EthicsWorks 2000.
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