Decision Making ( 6 Assiagnments)

Intellectual Standards

(READ) Universal Intellectual Standards Article, select one standard. 

Describes how using that standard has helped you in your:

1. Work life

2. School life

3. Personal life

 Write three paragraphs, one each for your work life, school life and personal life. 

Each paragraph should contain at least one example

Assignment #5

The need for thinking and problem-solving skills dominates our lives. Individuals must analyze problems in the workplace, at school, as a parent, and in many other daily situations. You have an opportunity to practice your problem-solving skills through this assignment.

Assignment:  Select one problem from the following list or define your own problem. 

1. Design a new textbook for a psychology class, science class, etc.

2. Invent a new telephone.

3. Design a new suitcase.

4. Design new clothes for soldier/teacher/cook/student/ etc.

5. Invent a new style for a video game.

6. Create a short story.

7. Design a new computer.

8. Invent a new way to protect computers from viruses.

9. Create a new type of credit card.

10. Work on solving a problem of your own choosing - a problem that is related to your major field of study.

Requirements:

11. Remember that you don’t need to create anything physically. You may use images or just descriptions of your ideas.

12. What is important for this assignment is your ability to generate ideas.

13. Number your ideas 1 through 21.

14. Generate 21 ideas about solving it, using the 21 Synectics steps listed below:

15. Response should be 500-600 words

Note: The 21 Synectics steps were developed by SynecticsWorld, inc.

Using the 8 elements of reasoning that were outlined in week 2 (Purpose, problem, information, concepts, assumptions, inferences, points of view, implications or consequences) choose a news article and break it down according to those elements.

OR

You will describe how each of the 8 intellectual standards (clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, and fairness) were used or not used in the article, supported by an example.

For either option you choose:

Write a conclusion of your paper to describe how you feel the article is biased. Please be sure to include the URL for the article that you have chosen. Your response should be at 500-600 words.

Keep in mind you are being asked to analyze the article/author itself, NOT the topic discussed

Assignment # 7

The following is a true story - and it made national headlines several years ago. A Houston Texans football player and his wife got the call from a hospital in Dallas that his wife's mother (the football player's mother in law) was dying and only had a few minutes left to live. They hopped in the car and sped toward the hospital around midnight. Not many cars were on the road. As they were approaching the hospital, they ran a couple of red lights to get them there faster. A police officer saw this, and pulled them over as they were pulling into the hospital. The couple seeing the lights called ahead to the hospital to have a nurse meet them to substantiate their story that their mother was dying and only had a few minutes left.

When the couple jumped out of their car, the police officer drew his gun and told them to get back into the car. He walked over to them and they explained the situation. The police officer said he did not care, and they drove wrecklessly and broke the law. The nurse substantiated the claim, and the doctor came out as well and substantiated the claim. The police officer called for back-up and told everyone to stay in their car. He gave the football player a ticket. After the process, they ran inside but it was too late and the mother had died.

From your lectures and readings this week, what type of moral reasoning was the police officer using? What type of moral reasoning was the football player using? What would you have done in this situation? Was the police officer in the right to hold them and do his job as a police officer to enforce the laws, despite a mitigating circumstance? Discuss the moral and ethical ramifications of the decisions and what you think you would have done as not only the police officer but the driver. This assignment should be 500-600 words long and directly integrate the readings and vocabulary from the readings at least once in your assignment.

Assignment #8

Read the following three situations. Describe what you would do in EACH situation. Integrate the elements of reasoning and intellectual standards in your writing to show an understanding of the material behind your personal example.

Your essay should be 500-600 words in length and include the use of at least two (2) elements of reasoning and two (2) intellectual standards for EACH of the three (3) scenarios you will be discussing.

Do not worry about your answers being right or wrong – your work will be evaluated on its connection to the material – not the behavior you would engage in if you found yourself in these situations.

Scenario A:You are deployed in a country. A raid went wrong, and your squad opened fire on several innocent people. Your commander asks you and the rest of the squad to make it look like they opened fire up on you first. How would you respond?

Scenario B:As a police officer, you pull someone over. After searching their vehicle, you confiscate several ounces of marijuana. The computer system is down so you cannot chronicle this bust. Your partner tells you that his wife is sick and he could really use that marijuana at home for medicinal purposes to help her with her pain. How would you respond to your partner?

Scenario C:As a parent, your child has a first year teacher who gives ridiculously hard assignments. Your kid has a four year scholarship waiting for him if he can pass this last course – even with a C. The last assignment is an assignment that you did your graduate work on – so you know there’s no way a high schooler should be expected to do this assignment – but if your child fails this assignment, they would lose a four year scholarship. Do you actively help them complete the assignment – or let them do it themselves – knowing they can’t do the assignment themselves and the assignment is likely to be poor because it was an inappropriately assigned paper.