This year, the six ethics class rules have been replaced by five discussion rules. In this short video, trainer, ethics teacher and curriculum author Kelby Mason talks us through those rules.
First some important context: these discussion rules are for stages 1, 2 and 3 (which is Years 1- 6). They aren’t for Kindy or secondary students (who have separate rules and guidelines).
Why have we updated the rules?
- We now call them discussion rules as they are primarily a roadmap for the type of discussion we want to see in all ethics lessons. This name will help students see how they’re different to the school rules and any classroom behaviour rules you might have.
- We’ve reduced them to five to help students focus on what’s most important.
- We’ve clarified the language to make it as meaningful as possible to today’s children.
The rules are displayed in every class and referred to regularly throughout the lesson.Why’s that?The rules are our important grounding tool and roadmap for helping create a genuine community of inquiry.
When teachers notice a student – or the entire class – veering off course, they can point their attention to the relevant rule and remind them to follow it. If necessary at any point, teachers can start a discussion about a particular rule and our reasons for following it.
What are the ethics discussion rules?
- Only one person speaks at a time.
- Pay attention to the person who is speaking.
- Build on other people’s ideas.
- Speak to other students, not just to the teacher.
- No put downs.