Section 7 Post#4

This will be a very brief post at the conclusion of this section's postings. One of the topics of thought for this week was ethics in distance learning. In my mind, I think of student situations that would not be considered ethical or moral, such as having someone else do the work for the student, using somebody else's work, plagerism, etc. But my final thoughts or more a parting question on this particular topic is one that I found in an article ICDE Dusseldorf 2001 Special Presidential Session on Ethics in Distance Education and Open Learning at http://www.learndev.org/ICDE2001-Ethics.html This is from panelist Fredric M. Litto (submitted April 3, 2001, who questions about liability with such concerns as what if the student complains about the distance learning course's poor quality - who is responsible.? One of the concerns we have in our nursing department is the fact that several nursing students that have failed our courses have attempted to sue, based on what they claim is inadequate content and preparation from the courses. That is the main reason our syllabi are so frequently scrutinized by us and our objectives are always aligned with the NCLEX licensing exam. Our courses are reviewed, updated and changed prior to every offering. Our syllabi and assignments never change once a course begins because we feel it is our contract with the student. The only thing that is subject to change (which is clearly written throughout the syllabus) is the calendar because of weather etc.