Ethics

To me, ethics means sacrifice.  So many times I have found myself in a situation where the right thing or moral choice to make was neither what I wanted to do nor the easiest to do.  In class last week, we had the chance to share with each other what ethics means to us.  Some talked about rights and wrongs, others mentioned conscience decisions, and we even had a metaphor of the miniature devils and angels sitting atop our shoulders.  I must say, I was in agreement with every mentor’s outlook.  Ethics is a complex topic—we were all raised in different environments and taught different values.  We all might have different opinions about what is the right decision to make in certain situations, why it is right or wrong, and the possible consequences and outcomes of the decisions we make.

When one is faced with a decision that requires reliance on ethics, it is important that they consider every possible direction to go and each the potential results.  The activity that Alex and Easton lead demonstrated this well.  We were put into groups and asked to analyze a specific problem, all of the options, and their consequences. 

As a peer mentor or any type of educator, ethics will play a large role in many of the decisions we make.  During this activity, the scenario that my group had brought up a very important point in regards to ethics and peer education—knowing where to draw the line when determining what is appropriate for the mentor-mentee relationship.  The scenario was that the student wanted their mentor to become their workout partner.  We decided that it was not ethical for the mentor to take on this position, because as an educator we have a responsibility to make sure there is no confusion about the type of relationship there is between the two.  Although some of the mentors did not think there was anything wrong with meeting a student to work out, others felt that a one on one activity like that would not be appropriate.  The different opinions on the topic that was clear to me, was a fine example of the difference in viewpoints and ethical behavior.