Introduction
Signing a class attendant for an absentee to enable them to get extra credit is a moral and ethical dilemma. The extra credit may be essential for the student to pass and achieve an academic goal. However, signing the sheet is a form of cheating, demonstrating a lack of academic integrity. The dilemma is remaining faithful to the values of the institution at the expense of denying a colleague a chance to earn more points. Although applying the utilitarian model to the situation would result in immediate gratification, virtue ethics is a better alternative as it focuses on inherent moral authority, which upholds integrity.
Analysis Using the Utilitarian Approach
A person using the utilitarian approach is likely to reason that signing the class attendance results in more goodness to the student. The ultimate task of the utilitarian approach is weighing the consequences and deciding on the one with the potential to produce the greatest joy for an individual and others (Dimmock & Fisher, 2017). The student will get extra credit which is vital for academic achievement. Moreover, if the student receives additional marks, the performance of others will not be affected. The other goodness is that the average performance of the class will improve. The lecturer will also feel encouraged that many students are attending the classes. The implication is that signing the attendance list will result in more happiness.
However, there is a problem with the utilitarian theory because it results in deception and may encourage other students not to value class attendance. After all, even when they miss their classes, they still get the privileges that the other students had. The discipline of respecting the rules and policies of the institution is likely to deteriorate. In addition, it is not fair to the students who did not attend the class but had no friends to help with the signing. Thus, utilitarianism may maximize happiness at the expense of critical values such as integrity and fairness.
Analysis Using the Virtue Ethics
A student who misses a class will have to deal with the consequence, which is missing the extra credit. The focus is on the inherent moral character in every action regardless of the consequences (Hegde et al., 2020). Signing for an absent student is a form of deception that is morally wrong and compromises the values of the institution. Furthermore, there is no guilt for doing the right thing, and it motivates the absentee to change their behavior and have more respect in class.
The drawback is that the absent student does not get the extra credit. They may fail their final exam and repeat the class. If the student is a friend, they may feel bad, and the action may strain the relationship. Particularly, the absent student may perceive a lack of loyalty to a comrade. As a student, others are likely to despise the action since just signing an attendance list does not sound like a big deal. Therefore, the consequences for upholding academic values may result in a loss of friendship, failure of absent students, and isolation by colleagues.
Conclusion
In conclusion, using a utilitarian approach will result in the ultimate happiness for the student. However, it will compromise the integrity of the institution and encourage a culture of defiance. Therefore, virtue ethics is the best approach as it ensures that the students understand the consequences of their actions. Moreover, it promotes fairness to all students and upholds the integrity of the school. Thus, virtue ethics reinforce positive behavior change as it inspires students to attend classes to learn and increase their chances of getting better grades through hard work, as opposed to the utilitarian approach, which is only interested in promoting happiness without investment.
References
Dimmock, M., & Fisher, A. (2017). Ethics for A-level. OpenBook.
Hegde, A., Agarwal, V., & Rao, S. (2020). Ethics, prosperity, and society: Moral evaluation using virtue ethics and utilitarianism. Proceedings of the Twenty-Ninth International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence. Web.