> Yes it should be semester 1 in every single CS and SE course.
to, what, make sure it is forgotten by the time you graduate?
is there even any evidence that making somebody take a class on ethics will make them more ethical? most college courses are grading you on your ability to write about a subject, not on how much you care about it, or decide to alter your future behavior.
> to, what, make sure it is forgotten by the time you graduate?
That seems a little dismissive. Did you forget everything you were
ever taught? I doubt it. Maybe let's be charitable toward others.
> is there even any evidence that making somebody take a class on
ethics will make them more ethical?
Yes of course. Same as there's evidence that teaching cookery makes
better chefs and people who take a driving lesson crash their cars
less. Education is a real, actual thing, as you well know.
> most college courses are grading you on your ability to write about
a subject, not on how much you care about it, or decide to alter
your future behaviour.
Most college courses are rubbish. They're training camps there to take
your money and give you a piece of paper to boost your fragile ego. I
know that because I'm a university professor. You can read what I
think about the current state of education the Times HE.
Maybe one in five students actually take anything meaningful from
school. They're the ones who care about stuff and focus on their
future behaviour as successful individuals and members of society
rather than on ephemeral "knowledge" or getting grades. Don't fall for
the certificate scam and don't let schooling get in the way of your
education.
> making somebody take a class
Now, that's a telling word you use. Not wishing to psychologise, but
are you maybe afraid of someone making you take a class in this
useless subject?
If so I agree with you. "Ethics" is widely abused as a stand-in for
whimsical "policy" that can't be backed up rationally, or to conceal
hidden political agendas. Many classes are tedious finger-wagging
checklists and plenty of "ethics boards" are sham kangaroo-courts run
by cardigan wearing Kevins and Karens [1] who sit down with tea and
biscuits to decide the future of a department of PhD's based on how
they "feel" about some keywords in a checklist (I've sat in those
meetings).
You should be afraid of "ethics" when someone else co-opts it as way
to tell you how to think.
That's not what my project is about. If you're sceptical about ethics
in tech you'd probably like it. It's about ethics empowering you as
a decision maker - to back that up with 8000 years of human wisdom -
to be wholeheartedly motivated by projects that can make the world a
better place, and confidently, courageously say no to tedious
dehumanising schemes of extraction and surveillance that passes for
computing these days.
to, what, make sure it is forgotten by the time you graduate?
is there even any evidence that making somebody take a class on ethics will make them more ethical? most college courses are grading you on your ability to write about a subject, not on how much you care about it, or decide to alter your future behavior.