During this week surrounding Global Ethics Day 2025 (Wednesday 15 October), we are turning the spotlight onto our volunteers to hear about the impact of ethics education in their own lives.

This global celebration highlights ethics as a process for finding solutions in the collaborative and respectful manner often missing in today’s world. It’s about how we learn to live together, respect our differences and together face our major global challenges.

Alokita Shankhar, ethics volunteer northern Sydney for seven years

I started teaching ethics when my daughter began Kindergarten at our local public school at Hornsby. At the time there weren’t enough volunteers, so I decided to train as an ethics teacher and taught my first Year 1 class. Since then, I’ve had the joy of teaching Kindergarten, Year 1, and Year 2 and yes, even the special experience of teaching both my children along the way.

Teaching ethics opens up a window into how children think about the world which is both humbling and enlightening. Hearing their perspectives reminds me to stay curious, patient and open-minded. It has given me so much. In addition to being a weekly circuit breaker to my job, it has helped me grow as a parent and member of the community, reinforcing the importance of listening to understand, not just to respond. And I can also say, there have been many funny and heart-warming moments with the children along the way too, which I also cherish!

Some people say Kindergarten is too early to start ethics, but I have seen firsthand that it’s never too early to nurture curiosity and respectful discussion. At our school, teachers can choose to move up with their cohort and I’ve done that for three years; from Kindergarten through to Year 2. Watching the children develop not only in confidence but also in their ability to listen, question,and consider others’ viewpoints is a benefit of the program.

Ethical decision-making is more important now than ever. The world is changing rapidly and that includes socially, environmentally and technologically, with developments like AI reshaping how we live and work. As technology moves faster than we can sometimes process, helping children develop curiosity, empathy and critical-thinking skills becomes essential. Through ethics, they learn that there is no right answer but that they can get to a good answer by asking thoughtful questions and weighing consequences and then make decisions that consider different perspectives.