2022 Volume 44 Issue 2 Pages 130-136
Ethics as a topic of discussion has grown in recent years against a background of research misconduct and the need for thoughtful dissemination of ideas on such timely issues as diversity and inclusion. Practitioners of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) must be alert to the potential for abuse in research and particularly considerate of their students as likely research subjects.
In this roundtable, four presenters shared their perspectives on (1) educational ethics, (2) research on human subjects, (3) university research ethics review procedures and nursing education research, and (4) advocating the SoTL. They discussed with other participants not only how to avoid research misconduct, but also the role of university teachers as the main actors who build a foundation of ethics and the appropriate use of data about students in the SoTL.
As expected, most of the discussion reflected a need for exceptionally high standards of educational ethics in order to achieve research and teaching goals. Although discussants felt some discomfort at recognizing the glaring gap between where they are and where they want to be, they found the exchange most meaningful and a necessary preliminary step to effectively pursuing their goals. Hopefully, ongoing discussions will promote not only improvement in the SoTL but also the enhancement of ethics in higher education.
