ITECH 3203 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CRICOS Provider No. 00103D 2 itech 3203 ethics assign 2018-17 Page 1 of 4
Assessment 2: Ethics Assignment
Task
The ethical impact of Artificial Intelligences (AI) within businesses and online communities.
Overview
The purpose of this task is to encourage students to explore a variety of ethical theories and apply them to a
contemporary ethical issue in an area of business or social computing.
Timelines and Expectations
Percentage Value of Task: 20% (35 marks)
Due: Week 7 – Friday 16:00 pm
Minimum time expectation: This task will take approximately 20 hours to complete.
Learning Outcomes Assessed
The following learning outcomes for ITECH 3203 are assessed by completing this assessment: K1,
K2, S3, and A2.
Assessment Details
Background
Machine learning algorithms are everywhere. It is not just Facebook and Google. Companies are using them to
provide personalized education services and advanced business intelligence services, to fight cancer and to
detect counterfeit goods. From farming to pharmaceuticals. From AI-controlled autonomous vehicles to clinical
decision support software.
The technology will make us collectively wealthier and more capable of providing for human welfare, human
rights, human justice and the fostering of the virtues we need to live well in communities. We should welcome it
and do all that we can to promote it.
As with any new technology, there are ethical challenges. Will the new technologies be fair and transparent? Will
the benefits be distributed to all? Will they reinforce existing inequalities?
(Source: https://www.cio.com/article/3273324/artificial-intelligence/the-ethical-challenges-of-ai.html, viewed: 12-
Jul-2018)
Requirements
Students are required to undertake an ethical analysis of issues associated with Artificial Intelligences (AI) and
further consider the issues from a software developer, business, online communities or government context.
Students will prepare a business style report of approximately 2000 words, which analyses companion through the
lens of each of the FOUR (4) ethical philosophies presented in lectures, and ONE (1) element selected from the
Australian Computer Society’s (ACS) code of ethics.
ITECH 3203 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CRICOS Provider No. 00103D 2 itech 3203 ethics assign 2018-17 Page 2 of 4
When analysing Artificial Intelligences (AI) in businesses and online communities, consider any ONE (1) of the
following ethical questions:
What are the implications of a growing trend of AI use within business technologies and online communities?
Do perceived societal costs outweigh benefits associated with AI?
What are the potential implications of AI use for the notion of humanity?
Another issue to be approved by course lecturer and tutor.
For assistance in report writing techniques, see: http://unilearning.uow.edu.au/report/4b.html
A suggested report structure is as follows.
title page
executive summary
table of contents
introduction
ethical analysis of companion robots
o utilitarianism
o deontology
o social contract
o character based
o ACS code of ethics
conclusion
references
appendices
The introduction section should provide context and background on the issue of AI use within business
technologies and online communities. It should clearly indicate the dilemma being discussed and provide an
overview of how you propose to address the problem and proposed solution(s).
The body section of the report should contain a brief overview of each of the four ethical theories, and the ACS
code of ethics. It should include a discussion and proposed solution for the dilemma, from each of the four ethical
theoretical viewpoints, and the ACS code of ethics. The discussion should show an analysis and synthesis of
research undertaken and your own ideas.
Writing should be validated with concepts from other people’s work. Gather these references from various sources
such as the Internet, assigned text books and readings etc. For assistance with in-text referencing and formatting
your reference list in APA format.
Background Reading
Bryson, J.J. (2018). “AI Ethics: Artificial Intelligence, Robots, and Society”,
http://www.cs.bath.ac.uk/~jjb/web/ai.html, last revised: June 2018, retrieved: 12-Jul-2018.
Collins, P. (2018). “We need a more open debate on AI and ethics in the boardroom”,
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/we-need-a-more-open-debate-on-ai-and-ethics-in-theboardroom/news-story/863457fc5886bd552f1c687be1399186, created: 17-Apr-2018, retrieved: 12-Jul-2018.
Dignum, V. (2018). “Ethics in artificial intelligence: introduction to the special issue”. Ethics and Information
Technology, 20(1):1–3.
Dignum, V. (2017). “Responsible autonomy”. Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth International Joint Conference on
Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI’2017), pp. 4698–4704.
ITECH 3203 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CRICOS Provider No. 00103D 2 itech 3203 ethics assign 2018-17 Page 3 of 4
Karsten J. & West D.M. (2018). “How robots, artificial intelligence, and machine learning will affect employment and
public policy”. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2015/10/26/how-robots-artificial-intelligence-and-machinelearning-will-affect-employment-and-public-policy/, created: 26-Oct-2015, retrieved 12-Jul-2018.
Rossi, F. (2016). ” Artificial Intelligence: Potential Benefits and Ethical Considerations”.
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2016/571380/IPOL_BRI(2016)571380_EN.pdf, retrieved: 12-
Jul-2018.
Submission
This task will be marked by the course lecturer and/or tutors. Students will be required to submit an electronic copy
of their report in docx or pdf format via Moodle.
ITECH 3203 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CRICOS Provider No. 00103D 2 itech 3203 ethics assign 2018-17 Page 4 of 4
Marking Criteria/Rubric
Criteria Marking Scale
Poor Excellent
1 …………………….. 5Outline of theory, discussion and application of utilitarianismOutline of theory, discussion and application of deontologyOutline of theory, discussion and application of social contractOutline of theory, discussion and application of character basedOutline of ACS code of ethics, discussion and application of codeQuality of academic writingReferencing and bibliographyDeductionsIncorrect or incomplete report structure – up to 2 marksIncorrect or inconsistent citation/referencing style – up to 2 marksNo clear analysis and synthesis of research – up to 2 marksNo clear proposed solution to dilemma – up to 2 marksTotal [35 marks]Total Worth [20%]Feedback
Feedback and marks will be provided in Moodle. Marks will also be available in FDL Marks.
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism is the presentation of the expressed thought or work of another person as though it is one’s own without
properly acknowledging that person. You must not allow other students to copy your work and must take care to
safeguard against this happening. More information about the plagiarism policy and procedure for the university
can be found at http://federation.edu.au/students/learning-and-study/online-help-with/plagiarism
Please refer to the Course Description for information regarding late assignments, extensions, and special
consideration. A reminder all academic regulations can be accessed via the university’s website, see:
