Starter quiz
- 'Philosophy' literally means 'love of ______'.
- 'wisdom' ✓
- Why is 'What is the right thing to do?' considered an ultimate question?
- It produces a simple, clear answer for everyone.
- It requires deep thinking and does not have an easy or clear answer. ✓
- It only applies to specific situations.
- It is about personal preference, not right or wrong.
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- What is reason?
- the ability to make decisions based on emotions
- the ability to think, understand, and form judgements logically ✓
- the ability to memorise facts
- the ability to follow instructions without thinking
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- Ethics helps us decide what the ______ thing to do is.
- 'right' ✓
- Which of the following is an ethical question?
- How can I make more money?
- Where should I go on holiday?
- What should I eat for dinner?
- Should I have a shower before bedtime?
- Is it right to lie to protect someone's feelings? ✓
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- Why is ethics often about moral character?
- it focuses only on our actions, not who we are inside
- it focuses on the decisions we make and how they show who we are as a person ✓
- it teaches us the best ways to achieve personal success
- it teaches us how to avoid consequences for bad actions
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Exit quiz
- The word ‘deontology’ comes from the Greek word ‘deon’, meaning ______.
- 'duty' ✓
- Which of the following best describes deontological ethics?
- deciding based on the consequences of actions
- making decisions based on rules or duties, regardless of the outcomes ✓
- acting in a way that makes everyone happy
- choosing what feels right in the moment
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- Which of these ethical decisions align with Kant's idea of acting out of duty?
- helping a friend because it feels good
- telling the truth because you believe you should be honest ✓
- cheating on an exam to get a higher mark
- returning a lost item to its owner because it is the right thing to do ✓
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- Why did Kant argue that lying is always wrong?
- it goes against personal happiness
- it disrupts trust in society and breaks the rule of honesty ✓
- it is sometimes necessary to avoid harm
- it can result in severe consequences
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- Sort the actions below into the correct order according to Kant’s decision-making process.
- 1⇔Consider the action you are planning.
- 2⇔Identify the rule you would be following.
- 3⇔Decide if the world would work well if everyone followed this rule.
- 4⇔Decide on your action.
- Kant's ______ imperative means acting in a way that you think everyone should act.
- 'categorical' ✓
Worksheet
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Deontology means we should act in ways that could be good rules for everyone, like always telling the truth.
- Deontology means intentions are more important than results; doing something because it’s right is what counts.
- Deontology encourages us to think about what’s right for everyone, not just what benefits us personally.
- Kant's deontology teaches that doing the right thing means following certain duties or rules, no matter the outcome.
- Kantian ethics can be criticised in a number of ways, e.g., it ignores acting on the basis of certain motives.
Common misconception
Kant's deontology means that actions such as killing are always wrong.
The categorical imperative doesn’t mean the same in every situation because it takes the context into account, e.g., killing is generally wrong it can be justified where the intention is to protect life.
Keywords
Deontology - a way of thinking about ethics that focuses on following principles or duties to make good choices
Duty - something you should do because it’s the right thing, like telling the truth or keeping a promise
Ethics - the study of right and wrong
Immanuel kant - an 18th-century philosopher who believed that doing the right thing means following important rules or principles, no matter what
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