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Ethics Bowl Etiquette

The document outlines etiquette guidelines for participants in an Ethics Bowl competition, which aims to foster ethical understanding and democratic deliberation. It provides guidance for all participants to treat each other with respect. Students are told to engage courteously with other teams and accept judges' scores graciously. Coaches should help students develop morally and keep a balanced perspective. Judges should thoroughly understand cases and use questioning to aid learning. Moderators are tasked with enforcing rules consistently and addressing issues privately.

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Marlon Musngi
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45 views1 page

Ethics Bowl Etiquette

The document outlines etiquette guidelines for participants in an Ethics Bowl competition, which aims to foster ethical understanding and democratic deliberation. It provides guidance for all participants to treat each other with respect. Students are told to engage courteously with other teams and accept judges' scores graciously. Coaches should help students develop morally and keep a balanced perspective. Judges should thoroughly understand cases and use questioning to aid learning. Moderators are tasked with enforcing rules consistently and addressing issues privately.

Uploaded by

Marlon Musngi
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Ethics Bowl Etiquette

Everyone
The Ethics Bowl is primarily an educational experience, with two fundamental purposes,
“(a) the development of ethical understanding in connection with complex, ambiguous,
and difficult to resolve issues; and (b) the fostering of key virtues associated with
democratic deliberation.”* These purposes should shape all of your actions in
association with the Ethics Bowl. All behavior during the Ethics Bowl should
demonstrate respect toward all participants.

Students
Although the competition may be intense, you should always treat the other team with
courtesy. For example, it is inappropriate to whisper loudly during the other team’s
presentation, or to use rhetorical ploys designed to belittle the other team.
While you may disagree with the scores that judges assign, keep in mind that judging
complex arguments drawing on diverse facts and theories in real-time is a demanding
task. You should think of it as part of your task to communicate your reasoning
effectively to judges with ethical expertise from a wide range of sources.

Coaches
Your team will follow your example. Take this opportunity to help your students in their
moral development. While you should sympathize with unjust (and just) defeats, you
play a critical role in helping students to keep everything in perspective and maintain
balanced emotions. Pass along concerns you have about particular cases of problematic
judging to the Ethics Bowl organizers in a private setting.

Judges
The students have worked hard to gain an understanding of the case. You need to read
the cases with due care, and make sure that you have a sound understanding of the issues
and facts involved prior to the Ethics Bowl. While the teams might not approach it in the
way that you have, it is part of your task to understand what approach they have chosen.
The question period is an important part of the learning experience; use it to gain a better
understanding of the team’s approach, or to highlight points they failed to address, or just
to clarify points that seem signficant to you. While you will not be asked to justify each
score that you write down, it is a good thought experiment to pretend that you will have
to do so. Should you get the opportunity to explain your scores to a team, do so in a
positive manner that gives them greater insight into your reasoning about the case.

Moderators
You are uniquely situated to help create a respectful and thoughtful environment.
Explain and enforce the rules clearly and consistently, and set a friendly tone by the way
you run the session. Where necessary, mediate in a judicious fashion when conflicts
arise. Where you observe problematic behavior, touch base with coaches and judges in a
private setting to pass along your concerns.

*”The Educational Significance of the Ethics Bowl,” Robert F. Ladenson, in Teaching


Ethics (1:1: 2001). This article can also be found on the IEB website.

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