Author: Rob MacDougall

Announcements: New Written Report Due Date, homework, etc

Dear Class: 

Please note that there are two homework assignments due next class: a short quiz on academic integrity that you should take on Blackboard, and a written assignment that requires drafting a thesis and arguments for your written report. You can find the details for both assignments under “Homework.” 

I am moving the due date for the written report to midnight on Sunday, 4/14. This will give you nearly an extra week to work on it, and will give you time to incorporate feedback from your draft thesis and arguments. 

See you next Monday! 

Dr. M

Homework Assignment 3, ALSO due Monday April 1 (bring to class)

Create a draft thesis and arguments for your paper

Note: you do NOT need to hand this assignment in to turnitin.com YET. Please bring a hard copy with you to class, where you will work on it in pairs. You will need to upload a revised version to turnitin.com by midnight on Wednesday, 4/3.

Please read the Written Report assignment on OpenLab (also found under “Assignments”—“Case Project”)

We have practiced identifying the thesis and supporting arguments for articles we have read and for articles summarized in the annotated bibliography. Now it is time for you to develop a draft thesis for your written case report, along with supporting arguments.

For the homework assignment, please do each of the 4 parts below. Please be as concise as possible—there is no need to write more than 150 words total.

  1. Background: in about 2 sentences, give a brief background explaining what your case is about. This should be clear enough that a student who is not familiar with your case can read it and gain familiarity with the most important facts of the case.
  2. Main Ethical Dilemma: In 1 sentence, explain what you think the main ethical dilemma in your case is. An ethical dilemma is a choice that must be made in which all possible decisions violate some ethical norms. It should be worded as a question (e.g., “should the doctor do X or Y?”). The main ethical dilemma is the most important ethical dilemma in the case.
  3. Thesis: please formulate your thesis in one sentence. The thesis should summarize your main recommendation for what should happen in your case. It should respond to the main ethical issue. It should be a truth claim that is concise and appropriately specific. These are characteristics of any good thesis, as we discussed in class. The thesis should also be normative. It should explain what someone in the case—usually the health professionals—should do.
  4. Arguments: please formulate 2-3 brief arguments (1-2 sentences each) in support of your thesis. It should be clear to someone not familiar with your case how these arguments support your thesis.

Homework 2: Quiz on Academic Integrity, due before class next Monday (4/1)

There is a short quiz on blackboard covering the discussion of academic integrity from class and the Openlab page, Understanding Academic Integrity.
 
Please read the Openlab page before beginning the quiz. Once you begin this quiz, you have 15 minutes to complete it. 
 
The quiz will become available after class today (3/25). 

Midsemester Marks Added in Blackboard

Dear Class,

The school requires me to post midterm marks on Blackboard. These scores are based on a calculation of the percentage of points you have earned on the total points available so far, to this point in the semester. This includes half of your participation grade for the year, your homework grade so far, the midterm exam, and your Annotated Bibliography. You can see the marks and their meaning below:

P: Passing. 65-100%

BL: Borderline. 55-65%

U: Unsatisfactory <55%

SA: stopped attending

If your grade is BL or U you are in danger of failing the class. I recommend setting an appointment with me to discuss how you can improve your grade. 

These grades reflect your performance on only the 40% of the course that has been graded so far, so that means that 60% of the grade is still to be determined. If your grade is not where you want it, please note that there is still time to make major improvements. Also, if you have outstanding homework assignments or papers, submitting them as soon as possible may significantly help your grade.

Please let me know if you have any questions, see you tonight.

Best,

Dr. M

Reading Questions for 3/25


Boorse, C. 1975. On the distinction between disease and illness.

Boorse discusses the idea that healthy conditions are good conditions, an idea he calls “weak normativism.” Explain one of Boorse’s two major counterexamples to weak normativism.

Engelhardt, H Tristram. 1974. “The Disease of Masturbation: Values and the Concept of Disease.”

Engelhardt discusses two ways of understanding the guilt associated with masturbation: essential guilt and adventitious guilt. What is the difference between these two?

Reading Questions for 3/18

Navin, Mark Christopher, and Jason Adam Wasserman. 2017. “Reasons to Amplify the Role of Parental Permission in Pediatric Treatment.”

What disease do Navin and Wasserman use to illustrate the idea that parents often bring important facts into medical decision making that help illuminate the child’s interests? Why, according to Navin and Wasserman, might parents be in the best position to report such facts?

Schuklenk, Udo. 2015. “Physicians can justifiably euthanize certain severely impaired neonates.”

According to Schuklenk, when is continued life no longer in a severely impaired neonate’s best interest?

Reminder: Midterm Exam tonight, 6-8:30pm

The Midterm Exam will be available tonight from 6-8:30pm on Blackboard. You must begin the exam on a computer between 6pm and 8:30pm. I will be available during the exam in the classroom and also via email. 

You can see more information about the exam here.

Good luck on the exam, see you all in a week!

Dr. M

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