Ethics Classes

Ethics at Darlington School 

In 2014 Ethics has been extended to students in years 1-6 with   five classes comprising of:

• 1 x Stage 1 class ( Years 1 & 2)
• 2 x Stage 2 classes (Years 3 & 4)
• 2 x Stage 3 classes (Years 5 & 6)

Ethics classes are on Tuesdays from 2pm to 2:30pm.

The ethics curriculum has been developed by Primary Ethics. It offers primary school children in NSW and Queensland who do not attend Special Religious Education the opportunity to use reasoned discussion to consider a range of ethical issues in a community of enquiry led by a trained volunteer teacher. 

As new teachers are trained we can continue to offer more classes. If you, or someone you know, is interested in becoming an Ethics teacher to help us offer more ethics classes, please get in touch with the Ethics Coordinator Rebecca Shanahan rks@wideopen.net.au.

In 2014 we have three new ethics teachers joining existing teachers Kate Texilake and Ginette Carrard: Heather Clement, Alice Crawford and Vivian Smith.

Kate has a professional background in media and communications. She completed university degrees in creative arts/literature, philosophy and communications and has recently begun a PhD in philosophy. Given her love of philosophy, of which ethics is a central thread, Kate is excited to have the opportunity as a Primary Ethics teacher to facilitate students' development of ethical reasoning, moral decision-making and critical thinking skills - skills that the children can benefit by in many aspects of their lives, now and in the future. Kate has two children at Darlington, Loki in Year 2 and Miyazaki in preschool.

Ginette is a music educator and currently teaches flute in a K-12 girls' school and at home. She completed music and education studies through the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and University of New England. She is keenly interested in philosophical ethics, loves encouraging young people to think on many levels and looks forward to lively discussion in Primary Ethics classes. Ginette has two children, Sam in Year 1 and Marc who is 3 years old.

Teaching notes from Kate:

The Stage 3 ethics class has seen very lively discussion, with the children enjoying the opportunity to share their opinions and experiences. Through questions and discussion they’re practising their reasoning skills as well as developing their ability to articulate the reasons for their opinions. As this term progresses, they’ll be encouraged to consider and respond to their peers' class contributions as part of a community of inquiry and to build upon each other’s ideas.

We recently wrapped up our first topic, homelessness. Through the curriculum material and active discussion, the students developed their understanding of homelessness - how it’s defined, who are the homeless and what are its causes and effects - in order to consider from a more informed perspective the challenging ethical question of how much and what kinds of support we should extend to people who are homeless.

Now we’re looking at the issue of killing animals for food. This topic invites students to think about the moral status of this common social practice and encourages them to identify, consider and evaluate different arguments.

The Primary Ethics website http://www.primaryethics.com.au is comprehensive and contains the curriculum content and information about volunteering to teach. You may also wish to refer to this Ethics flyer.

If you’re interested in teaching or have any further questions, please contact Ethics Coordinator Rebecca Shanahan any time at rks@wideopen.net.au.