Program Overview

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Program Overview

The program in question appears to be a university course titled "Ethics in a Faith-Based Context" (PHIL506). This course is designed for leaders and aspiring leaders of Catholic organizations, aiming to provide them with a developed awareness of their own ethical commitments and the skills to make ethical decisions.

Unit Rationale, Description, and Aim

The unit draws on the history of philosophical ethics and employs examples of practical decision-making to enable participants to develop their own response to the fundamental ethical question, "How should I live?" Case studies drawn from the specific context of the participants' professional experience are analyzed to engage the fundamental theories in normative ethics, which are essential to understanding the Catholic moral tradition.

Learning Outcomes

To successfully complete this unit, participants will be able to:

• Describe the sources and methods of moral decision-making in the Catholic tradition, noting comparisons and contrasts with the fundamental philosophical theories.
• Analyse moral issues arising in their own professional and personal contexts using scholarly language appropriate to the discipline of ethics.
• Evaluate moral issues arising in their own professional and personal contexts using the sources and methods of the fundamental normative theories and insights gained from the Catholic moral tradition.

Content

Topics covered include:

• The Catholic moral tradition and its relationship with normative ethics.
• The history and nature of ethics.
• The Catholic moral tradition and its distinctive sources.
• Relationships between the Catholic moral tradition and contemporary secular theories regarding the moral life and ethical decision-making.

Assessment Strategy and Rationale

The assessment strategy aims to facilitate participants' incremental and scaffolded appropriation of unit content in relation to their personal and professional experience and learning needs. Two assessments are utilized:

1. Short Written Task (40%): For example, a critical précis or analysis of an issue, focusing on Learning Outcomes 1 and 2.
2. Extended Written Task (60%): For example, an essay, annotated bibliography, or review, focusing on Learning Outcomes 1, 2, and 3.

Learning and Teaching Strategy and Rationale

This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning, including formally structured learning activities such as lectures, workshops, case studies, class discussions, and supervision. The unit is offered exclusively in intensive mode to cater to the needs of working professionals and managers.

Representative Texts and References

A list of representative texts and references is provided, including works by Aquinas, Baron, Gula, Hornsby-Smith, Kant, Pojman, and others, covering topics in ethics, moral philosophy, and Catholic moral tradition.

Locations and Credit Points

The course is available online and is worth 10 credit points.

Year

The information provided is relevant for the year 2026.