Sample Worksheet - Whistle-blowing

[PART II: Scenario B]

You see a professor in the department downloading child pornography onto his or her office computer.

  1. What are the differences between Scenario A and Scenario B which might influence your response to the situation?
  2. What would you do?
  3. If that didn't work, what would you do next?
[Points to be Covered in Discussion of the 1st Question on Scenario B]

  1. The severity of the action has increased.
  2. The risk to the student has increased if he or she decides to take action.
[Discussion of Scenario B]

  1. Ask students for responses to the event, in the order in which the actions will be taken.
  2. How did the severity of the offense change your responses from those to Scenario A?
  3. How did the risk to you change your responses from those to Scenario A?
  4. How did you verify the actions of the professor were unethical (i.e., the pornography was not being downloaded for some legitimate purpose such as research)?
  5. How would your response change if the professor were the chairman of your department?
  6. How would your response change if the computer were the professor's personal computer and the pornography were being down-loaded in the professor's home?
[Points to be Covered in Discussion of the 2nd Question on Scenario B]

  1. The differences between the scenarios have caused the risks to change for all of the stakeholders.
  2. The changing risks have caused a change in the responses.
Page maintained by: kwb@csee.usf.edu