Towards teaching computer ethics

Abstract

With the advent of the lnformation Age and global connectivity, the ethical use of Information and Communication Technologies (/CI) has become essential. As the drive towards the establishment of a so-called IT profession gains momentum, ethical conduct and codes of ethics have recently been formulated and introduced formally. Forerunners in this initiative are the ACM and the IEEE. Of particular significance is the lmpactCS Project commissioned by the joint taskforce of the ACM and IEEE, and funded by the USA National Science Foundation. The increased globalisation and inherent nature of JCT, transcend physical and cultural borders, making it increasingly difficult to enforce accepted laws, regulations, and codes of conduct. It is thus the responsibility of Computer Science and Information Systems instructors to teach and instill values and ethics in each and every student. Therefore, we investigate some issues pertaining to the teaching of computer ethics. We conclude this paper by presenting a possible model to be used in the teaching of computer ethics, and apply this model to our own institution.