3. THE ETHICAL PRINCIPLE:
This solution was discussed based on the Kantianism ethical theory, i.e. that
an individual should strive to do the right thing because it is one’s duty
and obligation to do so.
5. It is the prerogative of the lecturer to use quizzes as assessments with the
intention of evaluating the knowledge of his/her students
The students should use this quiz as a benchmarking tool to gauge how well
they know the subject and to identify which areas to improve
The rules of the quiz were:
The answers are strictly your own
You are only allowed to use the lecture notes and textbooks as a reference
The passing score is 80%. Retakes are allowed.
7. Quite simply, John may just be plain lazy to exercise any effort into the quiz,
preferring to ask Mary for the answers instead.
Is it ethical?
No it is not
By asking for the answers from another party, John is circumventing 2 rules of the quiz:
doing it yourself and using only the lecture notes and textbook as reference materials
No actual effort was employed into answering the quiz, therefore defeating the overall
objective of John taking the quiz in the first place, which is to learn and evaluate oneself
Understandably, even if Mary did not give the answers to John, he would look
for other easier alternatives to get the answers.
9. Was Mary’s decision to give the answers to John morally acceptable?:
No, it wasn’t
By giving the answers to John, Mary defeated the purpose of the lecturer giving the quiz in
the first place
By giving those answers, she also facilitates John’s negative behaviour of wanting
something without having to do what he’s supposed to do.
Irrespective of John’s possible reactions to Mary denying him the answers, she should still
have said no.
To conclude, Mary’s decision was morally wrong because by giving John the answers, she
put John in a position where he would break the rules for the quiz.
