Explanation should include
- the development of national codes and standards and other checks and balances to ensure ethical practices
- the evolution of ethical solutions based on previous effects of engineering solutions
- examples of everyday ethical conflicts that engineers might face in their professional practice
- examples of large-scale engineering decisions where engineering ethics should have played a more central role in the decision-making process (e.g., AI facial recognition software, deep fake videos)
- the role of professional codes of ethics in the engineering profession and example fundamental tenets from such codes
- the fundamental tenets of the National Society of Professional Engineers Code of Ethics.
Process/Skill Questions:
- What competing values or tensions are at play when an engineer faces an ethical dilemma?
- How might the ethical choice for society be a difficult decision to make?
- What are examples of unethical behaviors that have led to distrust of the engineering profession and/or engineering disasters?
- How could one apply engineering ethics to the design solution?
Teacher Resource:
Online Ethics Center for Engineering and Science