Nature of Struggle: Parents are concerned about the potential ‘ads’ and ‘banners’ that appear on websites, and concerned that these features could be explicit, or of an adult nature that is inappropriate for their student. Parents are also concerned of the confidentiality and nature of information placed online.\n\nWhen students are in school, their actions and behavior while online are under constant supervision of the teacher, and the majority of sites that could present explicit and inappropriate material are locked preventing access. Like with this assignment, when it comes to students expressing personal opinions and anything of a personal nature, avatars, false identities and such can easily solve the confidentiality issue. Teachers using such technology should also have the technological skill to effectively place settings where they need to be. \n\nDiscussions and reminders about how to tell the difference between quality and trash sites are held consistently throughout the school year, especially when new or especially controversial topics are being discussed, so that dishonesty and misinformation obtained from online resources can be kept at a bare minimum and ideally not exist at all. \n\nFinally, online etiquette is a brief course that students must take periodically throughout the year, especially if it is their first time using a school computer. \n\nGo to Start [[Start|Start]].\nGo to [[Story One|Fluffy&Sparkle]].\nGo to [[Story Two|Rex&Appleseed]].\n

Ethical Considerations with Technology in Environmental Science.\n\nGo to [[Start|Start]].\nGo to [[Author|Sheila Lambert]].\n

Nature of struggle: Submitting work that commits or borders on plagiarism.\n\nBased on the work previously submitted by both students, it appeared as though there were no intent to plagiarize, rather a lack of understanding about appropriate citing of references and how to paraphrase. Due to the honesty of these anonymous students, it came to my attention that there are more likely additional students, that also struggle to understand the issues surrounding copyright, plagiarism, and paraphrasing. Citing references is not something that is required, alarmingly so, in secondary English classes so most of the students are clueless about how to go about using referenced information.\n\nThis experience led to a break in the average content of the class so that these important aspects could be explained and understood by the students. For practice, students were then required to have a minimum number of references for every written assignment, and a reference page that adequately cited the references used. This ethical lesson actually extended beyond virtual space and into the real classroom.\n\nGo to start [[Start|Start]].\nGo to [[Previous story|Fluffy&Sparkle]].\nGo to [[Next Story|Rocko&Youkai]].\n

\n\n\n\n EDU 697\n \n Instructor Dr. Niesiobedzki\n\n January 23, 2014\n\n\nGo to [[Start|Start]].

Nature of struggle: Political and Religious beliefs conflicted with what science was supporting.\n\nThis is a very sensitive issue that can commonly appear in environmental discussions. \n\nIt is unethical for any teacher to offer their religious opinions and perspectives as a way to influence learning. \n\nThe ethical solution for this issue is to request the student to further research their own beliefs and find exactly where in the teachings do they conflict and how. \n\nThis way they are led to their own best drawn conclusion, and the experience of seeking truth forms a memory, that will remember the scientific knowledge that is important to remember. Both sides are satisfied and no religious toes have been stepped on.\n\nGo to [[Start|Start]].\nGo to [[next story|Rex&Appleseed]].\nGo to [[last story|Rocko&Youkai]].\n\n

This story involves a study group, consisting of six students, in a synchronous environment. The six students were participants because they all struggled with the controversial content currently being covered in an environmental science class. Beyond helping the students overcome their individual struggles, there were also ethical considerations to keep in mind due to the technological tools involved, and the fact that many aspects of the controversial issues were sensitive and must be addressed delicately. \n\n As we addressed each area the students were struggling in, we also made note of the ethical considerations involved, the first was that of confidentiality. I wanted students to feel free to openly discuss what they were struggling with, without the fear of embarrassment, etc., so the study group was designed so that no-one knew who each other was. Taking advantage of the technology of avatars, each student had their own uniquely created avatar that had a false name. \n\n Three main areas of struggle existed between the six students, so there are three different stories, with two students involved in each struggle. Each story states the nature of their struggle, the ethical considerations, and what actions will be made to ensure the ethical use of technology for all parties involved. \n\nTo go to [[Story One|Fluffy&Sparkle]].\nTo go to [[Story Two|Rex&Appleseed]].\nTo go to [[Story Three|Rocko&Youkai]]. \nTo go to [[Title|Ethics, Technology, and Environment]].\nTo go to [[Author|Sheila Lambert]]. \n