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The Rejuvenation of Business Education

The Rejuvenation of Business Education . Robert Shaw. Our discussion . 1 The justification of a curriculum Skills Let us examine the business curriculum The American Business School debate Business ethics. The justification of a c urriculum . Philosophical

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The Rejuvenation of Business Education

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  1. The Rejuvenation of Business Education Robert Shaw

  2. Ourdiscussion 1 The justification of a curriculum Skills Let us examine the business curriculum The American Business School debate Business ethics

  3. The justification of a curriculum • Philosophical • The natureof knowledge (mind) • Liberal education (Paul Hirst) • Knowledge or skills? • Sociological • Relate adequately to society • Who does it advance? • Psychological • Implicit learning theory • Spiral curriculum • Rhythmic claims of freedom and discipline

  4. Structure of knowledge • Learning domains • Aristotle • Current base structure • science • mathematics • humanities • aesthetics • applied • medicine • law • accounting • Primary & secondary education (literacy fad) • Unity of human understanding – PhD, German tradition, corruptions

  5. Skills – a reminder of the basics • The current premise of tertiary education • Public or private benefit • Treasury determination, 1989 • Control of the curriculum • Transfer of skills • What is a skill? • Physical skills • Cognitive skills • Reading • Thinking • Business? • Tanks & Yanks

  6. Justification of curriculum • Levels of assessment/justification • Award objectives • Course objectives • Student objectives • Award / course objectives

  7. Business curriculum - international context • Some trends • America - massive dissatisfaction with Business Schools • Europe - holds to traditional awards / course structures • Australia - massive commercialisation • Calls for greater insight & leadership (bygovernment, by business & in education) • Science – more about less • Entrepreneurship example • Western metaphysics / English • Pathway strategies

  8. Business curriculum - studentcontext • Student diversity • Expectations • Force grade, objective and award deflation & inflation • Cross-cultural meanings • Textbook problems (Daft/motivation, subordinates/NZ) • Student dishonesty • Universal • Challenge of the West – Eastern and Asian • Students not with traditional or “our” values • Distance education most vulnerable • New methods of dishonesty • Cheating culture • Login/password transfer • Purchasing assignments ($120 or less) • Memory enhancers – Modafinil ($39.12 for 30) & Retalin

  9. Let us examine the business curriculum First we need a theory. Any of the dimensions of justification mentioned earlier might be relevant, but we are going to pick on Kant’s theory.

  10. A Kantian model for curriculum assessment • Immanuel Kant • Enlightenment, 1784 • Rational justification • Theories of ethics • The moral person according to Kant • Autonomous OR • Heteronomous

  11. Heteronomous or autonomous • The moral person / leader / manager is • EITHER Heteronomous– follows rules • OR Autonomous – independent in thought and action • If you are morally autonomous, you • Make your own decisions • Do so rationally • Have strength-of-will sufficient to act as you decide • The ethical theory became a theory in psychology - moral development • Piaget – 3 stages • Kohlberg – elaborates 3 to 6

  12. Kant’s theory Piaget’s levels Kohlberg’s stages

  13. The big debate • What is the purpose of a Business School? • Teach traditional knowledge & skills (accounting , planning …) ☺ • Should graduates be • Honest and reliable (Heteronomous) • Creative & independent (Autonomous) • Business ethics is the battle ground

  14. Business ethics pedagogy • Two basic pedagogical strategies • Examples / issues → Theory OR • Theory → Examples • The theory of ethics • Well understood • Well structured • Same theory for medicine, engineering, law, education, public policy, environmental ethics, accounting, business … • Corporate social responsibility (not just about ethics)

  15. Poor approach • Lesson 1: Business Calling • Lesson 2: The Morality of Capitalism • Lesson 3: Organizational Ethics • Lesson 4: Social Responsibility • Lesson 5: International Ethics • Lesson 6: Employee Relations • Lesson 7: Advertising Ethics • Lesson 8: Financial Ethics • Lesson 9: Conclusion • But, Sandel takes this approach and does well: government bailouts, same-sex marriage, surrogate pregnancy, immigration reform.

  16. Outline of an ethics curriculum • Greek ethics – what is the good life? • Theories about decision-making - stoicism, cynicism, hedonism, Christian ethics, utilitarianism, virtue ethics,pragmatics, deontological theories • “Modern ethics” - topics: free will/determinism (moral responsibility), objectivity/subjectivity, naturalism, emotivism, rationality • Continental philosophy – Nietzsche, Foucault Adam and Eve by Albrecht Dürer (1507)

  17. Thank you.

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