ART101-Fundamentals of Design II

Lincoln University

Philosophy Program

Department of History, Political Science, Philosophy and Religion

Course Title:	Contemporary Moral Problems	Course number:	PHL 216
Credit Hours	3	Prerequisite (s):	None
Term:	Spring 2016	Co-Requisite (s)
Course Method	Lecture and Discussion	Meeting day and Time:	MWF 11 am
Instructor:	Safro Kwame, Ph.D.	Classroom/lab/Studio Location:	Grim Hall 306
Office location:	GRIM HALL 310	e-mail:	kwame@lincoln.edu
Office Hours:	MWF 3 – 5 p.m.	Phone Extension:	7569

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course examines a selection of contemporary moral issues in the following areas: abortion, euthanasia, suicide, sexual relations, terrorism, affirmative action, genetic engineering, treatment of animals, the environment, and capital punishment.

REQUIRED TEXT: Satris, S. (2012) Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Moral Issues, 13th Edition, New York, McGraw-Hill. (ISBN-13: 978-0078050091 ISBN-10: 007805009X).

REQUIRED MATERIALS: Textbook, Pen and Pencil (No other additional materials.)

Assessment Criteria & Alignment (usE Numbers only)

Course SLO	PSLOs (indicate #only)	ILOs (indicate #only)	Direct and Indirect Assessment Methods
CSLO 1	PSLO 1 and 6	ILO 5	Course and homework assignments, Examinations and quizzes, Term papers and reports
CSLO 2	PSLO 2	ILO 1	Course and homework assignments, Examinations and quizzes, Term papers and reports, Class discussion participation
CSLO 3	PSLO 3	ILO 5	Examinations and quizzes, Term papers and reports, Class discussion participation
CSLO 4	PSLO 4 and 5	ILO 8	Course and homework assignments, Examinations and quizzes, Term papers and reports, Class discussion participation

Course Student Learning Outcomes (CSLO):

Upon successful completion of this course the student will: 1. Analyze contemporary moral issues and problems. 2. Create clear and cogent oral and written presentations on contemporary moral problems. 3. Critically evaluate arguments and claims about contemporary moral problems. 4. Apply ethical theories and normative principles to contemporary issues and problems.

Program Student Learning Outcomes (PSLO):

1. Analyze philosophical and logical problems. (Program SLO 1)

2. Create clear and cogent oral and written presentations. (Program SLO 2)

3. Critically evaluate arguments and claims in philosophical and non-philosophical contexts. (Program SLO 3)

4. Apply philosophical theories and normative principles to current events and broader issues pertaining to the individual and society. (Program SLO 4)

5. Interpret and appraise major texts and philosophical systems in the history of philosophy. (Program SLO 5)

6. Analyze and critique major texts and positions in the areas of epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. (Program SLO 6)

Institutional Learning Outcomes (ILO):

Effective Communication (ILO 1).

Critical Thinking (ILO 5).

Integrative and Life-Long Learning (ILO 8).

Calculation of Final Grades:

Final Exam 40%

Midterm Exam 30%

Paper/Essay 15%

Class Participation 15%

GRADING SCALE: (Should follow Department and/or College Template)

Grade	A	A-	B+	B	B-	C+	C	C-	D+	D	F
GPA Points	4.0	3.7	3.3	3.0	2.7	2.3	2.0	1.7	1.3	1.0	0.0
%	100-93	92.9-90	89.9-88	87.9-82	81.9-80	79.9-78	77.9-72	71.9-70	69.9-67	66.9-60.1	60 and under

SCHEDULE OF LEARNING topics covered

See supplement or addendum to syllabus for specifics, updates and changes.

Class Meets: •ASSIGNMENT SELECTION & SCHEDULE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE•
Week 01:	Issue 1. Is moral relativism correct?
Week 02:	Issue 2. Does morality need religion?
Week 03:	Issue 3. Must sex involve commitment?
Week 04:	Issue 5. Is it right to prohibit same-sex marriage?
Week 05:	Issue 6. Should human cloning be banned?
Week 06:	Issue 7. Is cloning pets ethically justified?
Week 07:	Issue 8. Should Congress allow the buying and selling of human organs?
Week 08: Midterm	Mid-term Week
Week 09:	Issue 9. Should drugs be legalized?
Week 10:	Issue 10. Is price gouging wrong?
Week 11:	Issue 11. Is affirmative action fair?
Week 12:	Issue 12. Should the death penalty be abolished?
Week 13:	Issue 13. Is torture ever justified?
Week 14:	Issue 14. Is physician-assisted suicide wrong?
Week 15:	Issue 15. Does morality require vegetarianism?

University ATTENDANCE POLICY:

Lincoln University uses the class method of teaching, which assumes that each student has something to contribute and something to gain by attending class. It further assumes that there is much more instruction absorbed in the classroom than can be tested on examinations. Therefore, students are expected to attend all regularly scheduled class meetings and should exhibit good faith in this regard.

http://www.lincoln.edu/registrar/2014Catalog.pdf

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES STATEMENT:

Lincoln University is committed to non-discrimination of students with disabilities and therefore ensures that they have equal access to higher education, programs, activities, and services in order to achieve full participation and integration into the University. In keeping with the philosophies of the mission and vision of the University, the Office of Student Support Services, through the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) Program, provides an array of support services and reasonable accommodations for students with special needs and/or disabilities as defined by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The Services for Students with Disabilities Program seeks to promote awareness and a campus environment in which accommodating students with special needs and/or disabilities is natural extension of the University’s goal.

Any student with a documented disability should contact the Office of Student Support Services.

http://www.lincoln.edu/studentservices/index.html

UNIVERSITY ACADEMIC INTEGRITY STATEMENT:

Students are responsible for proper conduct and integrity in all of their scholastic work. They must follow a professor's instructions when completing tests, homework, and laboratory reports, and must ask for clarification if the instructions are not clear. In general, students should not give or receive aid when taking exams, or exceed the time limitations specified by the professor. In seeking the truth, in learning to think critically, and in preparing for a life of constructive service, honesty is imperative. Honesty in the classroom and in the preparation of papers is therefore expected of all students. Each student has the responsibility to submit work that is uniquely his or her own. All of this work must be done in accordance with established principles of academic integrity.

http://www.lincoln.edu/registrar/2014Catalog.pdf

POLICY ON ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN CLASSROOM:

Use of electronic devices are prohibited unless approved by the instructor for purposes directly related to the course. Texting, searching the internet, recording, taking pictures or videos, talking, and playing games, among other things, are specifically prohibited. During exams, all electronic devices must be turned off.

Syllabus Supplement/Addendum/Revision

Dr. Safro Kwame, 484-365-7569, kwame@lincoln.edu, Office Hours: MWF 3-5 in GH310

Department of History, Political Science and Philosophy and Religion

COURSE SYLLABUS: PHL-216-01 Contemporary Moral Problems

Textbook: Satris, S. (2012) Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Moral Issues, 13th Edition, New York, McGraw-Hill.

Schedule of Learning Opportunities (Assignments) Supplement/Addendum/Revision to Syllabus:

Day	Date	Discussion Topic/Learning Opportunities
Wed	01/13/2016	Prologue.
Fri	01/15/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 1. Is Moral Relativism Correct? YES: Gilbert Harman, from 'Moral Relativism,' in Gilbert Harman and Judith Jarvis Thomson, eds., Moral Relativism and Moral Objectivity
Mon	01/18/2016	MLK Day: NO CLASS
Wed	01/20/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 1. Is Moral Relativism Correct? NO: Louis P. Pojman, from 'The Case Against Moral Relativism,' in Louis P. Pojman and Lewis Vaughn, eds., The Moral Life
Fri	01/22/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 2. Does Morality Need Religion? YES: C. Stephen Layman, from The Shape of the Good: Christian Reflections on the Foundations of Ethics (1991)
Mon	01/25/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 2. Does Morality Need Religion? NO: John Arthur, from 'Religion, Morality, and Conscience,' in John Arthur, ed., Morality and Moral Controversies, 4th ed. (1996)
Wed	01/27/2016	Discussion.
Fri	01/29/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 3. Must Sex Involve Commitment? YES: Vincent C. Punzo, from Reflective Naturalism (Macmillan, 1969)
Mon	02/01/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 3. Must Sex Involve Commitment? NO: Alan H. Goldman, from 'Plain Sex,' Philosophy and Public Affairs (Spring 1977)
Wed	02/03/2016	Discussion.
Fri	02/05/2016	Classwork 1: Quiz on Readings and Classes.
Mon	02/08/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 5. Is It Right to Prohibit Same-Sex Marriage? YES: Jeff Jordan, from 'Is It Wrong to Discriminate on the Basis of Homosexuality?' Journal of Social Philosophy, vol. 26, no. 1
Wed	02/10/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 5. Is It Right to Prohibit Same-Sex Marriage? NO: David Boonin, from 'Same-Sex Marriage and the Argument from Public Disagreement,' Journal of Social Philosophy
Fri	02/12/2016	Discussion.
Mon	02/15/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 6. Should Human Cloning Be Banned? YES: Michael J. Sandel, from 'The Ethical Implications of Human Cloning,' Perspectives in Biology and Medicine (Spring 2005)
Wed	02/17/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 6. Should Human Cloning Be Banned? NO: John A. Robertson, from 'Human Cloning and the Challenge of Regulation,' The New England Journal of Medicine (July 9, 1998)
Fri	02/19/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 7. Is Cloning Pets Ethically Justified? YES: Autumn Fiester, from 'Creating Fido's Twin: Can Pet Cloning Be Ethically Justified?' Hastings Center Report (2005)
Mon	02/22/2016	Spring Break: NO CLASS.
Wed	02/24/2016	Spring Break: NO CLASS.
Fri	02/26/2016	Spring Break: NO CLASS.
Mon	02/29/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 7. Is Cloning Pets Ethically Justified? NO: Hilary Bok, from 'Cloning Companion Animals Is Wrong,' Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science (vol. 5, no. 3, 2002)
Wed	03/02/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 8. Should Congress Allow the Buying and Selling of Human Organs? YES: Lewis Burrows, from 'Selling Organs for Transplantation,' The Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine (September 2004)
Fri	03/04/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 8. Should Congress Allow the Buying and Selling of Human Organs? NO: James F. Childress, from 'Should Congress Allow the Buying and Selling of Human Organs? ( 2001)
Mon	03/07/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 9. Should Drugs Be Legalized? YES: Meaghan Cussen and Walter Block, from 'Legalize Drugs Now! An Analysis of the Benefits of Legalized Drugs,' (July 2000)
Wed	03/09/2016	Comprehensive Midterm Exam.
Fri	03/11/2016	Midterm Break: NO CLASS.
Mon	03/14/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 9. Should Drugs Be Legalized? NO: Theodore Dalrymple, from 'Don't Legalize Drugs,' cjonline.com (The City Journal) (Spring 1997)
Wed	03/16/2016	Discussion.
Fri	03/18/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 10. Is Price Gouging Wrong? YES: Jeremy Snyder, from 'What's the Matter with Price Gouging?' Business Ethics Quarterly, vol. 19, no. 2 (April 2009)
Mon	03/21/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 10. Is Price Gouging Wrong? NO: Matt Zwolinski, from 'Price Gouging, Non-Worseness, and Distributive Justice,' Business Ethics Quarterly, vol. 19, no. 2 (April 2009)
Wed	03/23/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 12. Should the Death Penalty Be Abolished? YES: Michael Welch, from Punishment in America: Social Control and the Ironies of Imprisonment (Sage, 1999)
Fri	03/25/2016	Easter Break: NO CLASS.
Mon	03/28/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 12. Should the Death Penalty Be Abolished? NO: Ernest van den Haag, from 'The Death Penalty Once More,' U.C. Davis Law Review (Summer 1985)
Wed	03/30/2016	Discussion.
Fri	04/01/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 13. Is Torture Ever Justified? YES: Mirko Bagaric and Julie Clarke, from 'Not Enough Official Torture in the World?' University of San Francisco Law Review (Spring 2005)
Mon	04/04/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 13. Is Torture Ever Justified? NO: Philip E. Devine, from 'What's Wrong with Torture?' International Philosophical Quarterly, vol. 49 (September 2009)
Wed	04/06/2016	Discussion.
Fri	04/08/2016	Classwork 2: Quiz on Readings and Classes.
Mon	04/11/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 14. Is Physician-Assisted Suicide Wrong? YES: Richard Doerflinger, from 'Assisted Suicide: Pro-Choice or Anti-Life?' Hastings Center Report (January/February 1989)
Wed	04/13/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 14. Is Physician-Assisted Suicide Wrong? NO: David T. Watts and Timothy Howell, from 'Assisted Suicide Is Not Voluntary Active
Fri	04/15/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 15. Does Morality Require Vegetarianism? YES: Michael Allen Fox, from 'Why We Should Be Vegetarians,' International Journal of Applied Philosophy (vol. 20, no. 2, 2006)
Mon	04/18/2016	Read this before today's class: Issue 15. Does Morality Require Vegetarianism? NO: Holmes Rolston III, from Environmental Ethics: Duties to and Values in the Natural World (Temple University Press, 1988)
Wed	04/20/2016	Discussion.
Fri	04/22/2016	Review. Final Exam could be on any day at any time from 4/26-4/29. See Registrar's Exam Schedule.

Calculation of Final Grades: Mid-term grade will be determined by a mid-term exam and semester grade determined by final examination (40%), midterm exam (30%), term paper comparing and evaluating any three of the readings listed on the syllabus, not just from the textbook, and applying those readings to a current event that took place this year (15%) and class participation/presentation (15%) minus absences or lack of attendance and/or poor participation -- unless stated otherwise on supplementary details. Unless you officially withdraw or formally request an incomplete (in writing) and submit appropriate documentation before the end of the semester, you will receive a passing or failing grade based on performance and attendance. There is no makeup for classwork, quizzes, or extra-credit.

Grading Scale: A=100-93, B=92-82, C=81-72, D=71-60, F=59-0 or for difficult exams A=100-80%, B=70-60%, C=50-40%, D=30-20%, F=10-0%. (+/- determined by curve.) Note: Each unauthorized use of an electronic device in class -- including the use of a mobile or cell phone -- may count as an absence or, in the case of class exercises (such as exams, tests and quizzes), an act of academic dishonesty (cheating) and sanctioned appropriately. It may result in failure in a project or course.

Class/Course Website: https://philosophydepartment.tripod.com/ or kwame.50webs.com/ or http://kwame.atspace.com/ Moodle: http://lincoln.mrooms.net/ To check your grade on the computer or internet, go to any one of the websites listed above and follow the instructions there. Note that some of the websites may be down and not updated.

Contemporary Moral Problems