Week 2 speaking
Welcome
Learning objective:
You practise watching and listening and taking notes
You practise being a discussion leader
Lesduur is: 30 minOnderdelen in deze les
Welcome
Learning objective:
You practise watching and listening and taking notes
You practise being a discussion leader
Today's programme
Ted Video (Listening and Watching)
discussion in small groups
Practise Oral exam
Grab a pen and a piece of paper and take notes
Individually, write down 2/3 discussion questions while watching this video.
Ted Video
Take notes, come up with questions you can use in a discussion
Key notes Ted Video
A dilemma coined by Philippa Foot in 1967, the 'trolley problem' challenges our moral compass: sacrifice one to save five?
Utilitarianism suggests picking actions for the greatest good. Yet, emotional conflicts arise when choices feel personal.
Emerging tech, like autonomous vehicles, underscores the real-world urgency of ethical dilemmas once considered hypothetical.
In groups
Share your discussion questions and pick at least 2 you feel you can talk about in your group.
Don't start the discussion yet!
Discussion leader:
Introduce the topic (Pitch)
Make sure everyone gets time to speak
Keep the discussion going by asking follow-up questions
Keep the discussion on track
Be neutral
Summarize key points at the end of the discussion
Discussion in small groups (3/4)
Appoint a discussion leader
Use the 2 questions to start a discussion in your group on this topic.
4 minutes
Round up/summarize in last minute
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Moral choice
If you were standing by the switch, would you redirect the trolley (sacrifice one) or do nothing (let the five die)? Why?
How would your decision change (if at all) if:
a) the one person is a stranger versus someone you care about;
b) the five people are people you don’t like, or you know nothing about them;
c) the one person is very young or very old.
4
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Utilitarianism
The video mentions utilitarianism, which says you should choose the action that maximizes overall well-being.
Do you find this utilitarian reasoning convincing in this case?
What are the arguments against a purely utilitarian approach here?
4
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Emotional vs Rational judgement
Do you think our “instincts” and emotions should guide moral decisions, or should we try to override them with rational reasoning?
Give examples where emotion might mislead us, or where rationalism might be too cold.
4
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Ethical implications
Suppose you have to design the ethical software for a driverless car. How would the logic from the trolley problem apply (if at all)? Should the car be programmed to “sacrifice” one person in order to save many?
Who should decide how these ethical trade-offs are handled in machines: engineers, philosophers, politicians, or society in general? Why?
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