Ethics in Education Featured in World-Press Reports

Feb 16th, 2009 • Posted in: News

U.S. college divests holdings in firms dealing with Israel, but there’s controversy and disagreement over the reason; in Australia, parents may be prosecuted for attempting to bribe teacher; new survey shows teens say they are ethically prepared to make decisions in workplace — but many still think it’s necessary to “break the rules”

VARIOUS DATELINES
A mix of education-ethics stories made news last week. Among them:

• Hampshire College in Massachusetts, long viewed as a bellwether in social trends, last week broke financial ties with several companies that do business with Israel, the Boston Globe reports. Trustees, however, say the move was not political. Instead, trustees contend that the fund that was divested held stocks that broke the college’s policy on socially responsible investments, including unfair labor practices, environmental abuses, and weapons manufacturing, according to the Globe report. But some student activists had pushed for the divestiture by specifically claiming that the college had profited from “the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory.” In 1977, Hampshire was the first U.S. college to divest holdings in South Africa.
• The Sydney Morning Herald reports that two Australian parents apparently were so intent on getting their son into a prestigious school that they tried to bribe one of his teachers. A commission has recommended prosecution of the parents, who allegedly handed the teacher a note containing about $1,300 in cash on one occasion and $300 on another, according to the Herald. The teacher reported both incidents. The couple accused of proffering the bribes are of Chinese descent, and said they had been told by other parents that it was necessary for Chinese parents to bribe teachers for good grades, but when questioned could not name the other parents, notes the Herald.
• A survey from consulting firm Deloitte and the civic group Junior Achievement shows that 80 percent of teens either “somewhat” or “strongly” agree that they are prepared to make ethical decisions when they enter the workplace. At the same time, though, the survey shows more than a third of the teens surveyed agree that “you have to break the rules at school in order to succeed.” And only a quarter say they would be “very likely” to reveal unethical behavior.

Editor’s Note: Deloitte is a corporate sponsor of Ethics Newsline®.

Sources: Boston Globe, Feb. 13 — Sydney Morning Herald, Feb. 13 — Deloitte press release, Feb. 11.

For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Jan. 5 — Related Newsline story, Dec. 15, 2008 — Related Newsline story, Dec. 8, 2008 — Related Newsline story, Nov. 17, 2008 — Related Newsline story, Nov. 17, 2008.

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2 Responses »

1. Ethics Newsline® » News » News About Education Centers on Ethics on February 23rd, 2009 at 11:10 pm:

   [...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, Feb. 16 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 5 — Related Newsline story, Mar 24, 2008 [...]

2. Ethics Newsline® » News » Ethical Aspects of Economic Crisis Covered by World Press on April 6th, 2009 at 6:55 pm:

   [...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, Feb. 16 — Related Newsline story, Dec. 8, 2008 — Related Newsline story, Oct. 6, [...]

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