What happens in Ethics Classes?

Ethical questions ask what we ought to do and how we ought to live.

In New South Wales public schools, a timeslot is set aside each week for teaching ethics at the same time as scripture. Ethics classes are impartially facilitated by our trained volunteers, using lesson materials approved by the Department of Education.

In the lessons, children listen to a range of stories and scenarios pitched at their age level and then share ideas on what they think they ought to do in these situations. The focus is on students developing the skill to identify ethical issues and to think critically in developing their own reasoned opinions, as they engage in respectful discussion with the other children.

What teaching methods are used?

Our approach combines two key evidence-based teaching elements:

  1. The teaching of critical thinking (or logical reasoning) skills, together with the opportunity to apply those skills to everyday topics.
  2. A community of inquiry approach amongst the children, supported by questions from the teacher, which underlies our curriculum and our teacher training.

A significant body of research shows that such an approach leads to improvement in general reasoning skills as well as in ethical reasoning capabilities. Research also  demonstrates that there are positive flow-on effects from the style of education employed in ethics classes. These include significant improvements in student performance in mathematics, reading comprehension and writing tests.

Read about our curriculum in more detail
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Frequently asked questions

ETHICS DISCUSSION RULES

  1.  Only one person speaks at a time.
  2.  Pay attention to the person who is speaking.
  3.  Build on other people's ideas.
  4.  Speak to other students, not just to the teacher.
  5.  No put downs.
about ethics classes

All about our lessons and teaching method

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[The Primary Ethics program is] an innovative example of ethics education in primary school: because classes are led by volunteers from the community, including parents and grandparents, the program also makes a distinctive contribution to broader public ethics education and ethics literacy.

BioEthics for Every Generation: Deliberations and Education in Health, Science and Technology. US Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues Report, May 2016.

Why Choose Ethics for your Child?

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How do I enrol my child in ethics classes?

Every student who attends a public primary school in NSW has the right to attend an ethics class in the weekly Special Religious Education/Special Education in Ethics timeslot (also known as SRE/SEE or ‘scripture’).

Where there is already an ethics program up and running, send a request for enrolment to your school office. If classes are full, your child’s name will be added to a waitlist until another class can be formed – we rely on enough volunteers, especially parents, training for the ethics teacher role to meet demand. Read about becoming a volunteer here.

Sign up for our @Home bulletin for parents of children who do ethics

Once a term, we’ll send you our Primary Ethics @Home email bulletin to give you news about the topics being discussed in your child’s ethics lessons.

    How do I start Ethics classes at my school?

    If ethics classes are not yet running at your local school, we can help you get them started. Here’s what to do.

    Step 1 – let us know

    Register your interest with Primary Ethics (complete the form below). One of our volunteer managers will be in contact to assist you with the process of setting up an ethics program at your school.

    Step 2 – speak to other families at your school

    Start the conversation and find out if there is interest in starting a class. Refer other interested parents to our website and encourage them to get involved. Keep talking to the Primary Ethics manager, who will help you along the way.

    Step 3 – notify the school

    Speak to your school’s Scripture/Ethics (SRE/SEE) Coordinator or your principal to let them know you would like the option of ethics classes for your child and to engage their support.

    Step 4 – volunteer to teach ethics

    The fastest way to get ethics classes up and running is to volunteer as a teacher or coordinator. Apply and train as a volunteer (you can do the training online). Talk to your personal and wider networks to help find other volunteers (grandparents, friends etc). Remember, for every ethics teacher we train for your school, up to 22 children will gain access to ethics classes.

    Step 5 – enrol your child in ethics!

    Send a request for enrolment letter to your school.

    Start ethics at my school

    Watch a stage 2 ethics class in action

    The overall aim of ethics classes is to help children develop a lifelong capacity to make well-reasoned decisions about ethical issues. In ethics lessons, children learn that it’s okay to have a different opinion from their classmates and that it’s also okay to sometimes change your mind.

    WATCH THE VIDEO

    Information for school staff

    Primary Ethics is the approved provider of Special Education in Ethics (SEE) in NSW public primary schools. Our curriculum is based on a community of inquiry learning model supported by volunteer-teacher-led questioning. The curriculum contains 79 topics with over 250 lessons – our volunteer teachers use detailed lesson materials for every lesson.

    Primary Ethics’ lesson materials are aligned to the following general capabilities in the Australian curriculum and the NSW syllabus:

    • Ethical understanding
    • Critical and creative thinking
    • Personal and social capability.

    The Department of Education Implementation Procedures instructs principals to make general information on all SRE and SEE options available to all parents and carers via enrolment information, the school website and school newsletter. The Department of Education has a participation letter which lists all SEE and SRE options on the same form.

    If you would like to have an ethics program in your school, please complete the form below, we’ll be back in touch promptly.

    Download the school teacher's ethics guide to ethics classes
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    Ethics for High Schools

    about ethics classes - high school

    While our main focus has been primary schools, we are now able to provide high school ethics lessons in response to many requests from  principals, parents and students.

    Ethics programs can run in high schools where there is an existing weekly or fortnightly Special Religious Education (SRE) program and:

    • school support for SRE/SEE
    • family support for SRE/SEE
    • trained volunteers available to facilitate the discussion-based classes.

    Current legislation gives parents of all NSW public school students the right to seek ethics lessons for their children. Primary Ethics is dedicated to supporting parent choice wherever possible.

    We are always keen to hear from parents, schools and community members interested in our high school ethics program. Please complete the form below to register your interest and our High School program manager will be in touch with you soon.

    Our high school ethics lessons:

    • give choice to families by providing a high-quality option in the SRE/SEE timeslot
    • support students to develop skills in critical thinking, respectful discussion and ethical reasoning – skills which are transferable to the key learning areas of the secondary curriculum
    • support students in making the transition from primary to secondary school
    • assist with development of interpersonal and decision-making skills as well as the consideration of ethical dilemmas that can loom large in the adolescent years.
    Download our guide for high school families
    Download our guide for high school teachers
    Guide to our ethics clubs for high schools

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      Which school would you like to start ethics at?