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Here’s a really nice study guide from Coach Michael Andersen with two superb generative AI experiments on the case, as well as a bonus guide on evaluating sources on controversial topics.
Mr. A is going above and beyond per usual! And I think the generative AI engagement stuff is especially cool. Give his strategies a try with other cases and let us know what’s working, what isn’t, etc.
As has been tradition, here’s the first of several superb 2024-2025 NHSEB study guides to come from the always generous supercoach Michael Andersen in Washington state. Thank you, Michael, and happy studying to all!
Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! We’re enjoying it with a little snow here in East Tennessee – have sleds tied to the back of the family 4-wheeler ready to go. Hoping you’re staying cozy wherever you find yourself.
Coming into the home stretch of NHSEB regionals, here are three additional study guides from Coach Michael. His team will be participating in the Oregon HSEB February 3rd and 4th at Portland State.
Special kudos to Michael and team for being willing to share these with the full Ethics Bowl community, including teams they’ll go up against in a few weeks. Now that’s the spirit of Ethics Bowl!
Happy New Year! While Rhode Island, Tyler, Texas (where I teach ethics online) and Virginia held their regional bowls in November or December, everyone else – from Washington D.C. to Washington state, California to the Carolinas – is still prepping for theirs.
So, for teams, coaches and dedicated judges, here are two additional study guides from all-star coach Michael Andersen. Enjoy!
There’s no shortage of morally questionable content on Netflix, and this season the esteemed NHSEB Case Committee decided to invite analysis of Dahmer, the streaming service’s second most-viewed show ever.
How to think it through? With Coach Michael Andersen’s study guide, of course, which happens to link to the below mental juice kickstarting TED talk on the ethics of true crime storytelling and consumption. Enjoy!
Another stellar case analysis study guide from Coach Michael Andersen in Washington.
Matt’s super quick, unsolicited take on the open-closed question distinction offered in the case: no question is “closed” for the true philosopher. We might quickly dismiss certain claims and arguments with good reason. But any idea sincerely expressed deserves consideration. Though my open-mindedness is tested when a friend sends me flat earth videos…
Anyway, the guide is fantastic per usual – thank you, Michael! The link to SchoolofThought.org‘s “Rules of Civil Conversation” alone make it worth every team’s review. In fact, let’s highlight those rather nice rules below… Why isn’t Ethics Bowl partnering with these hilariously (“let’s avoid the apocalypse”? – ha!) good folks? I’m an instant fan.
Could shielding a loved one from a terrible truth be admirable? I would thinks so. But much would depend on the stakes, the relationship, and reasonable assumptions about what our beloved would or wouldn’t want to know.
Could abusing entities that don’t really matter be indirectly wrong out of concern for entities that do matter? Kant thought so. While torturing a cat (which lacks the power of autonomy, and therefore substantial moral value) might not be directly wrong on Kantian grounds, it would probably make a person more callous generally, and therefore more likely to harm human beings.
Such are the core issues in cases 3 and 5. But don’t take my or Kant’s word for it. Think them through for yourself! And do it like a pro using Coach Michael Andersen’s expert study guides.