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Responsibility Project

In: Business and Management

Submitted By FisherFam2010
Words 580
Pages 3
University of Phoenix
The Responsibility Project
Student
Ethics 316
Jun 4, 2012
Week 3
Dr. Been There Done That

The Responsibility Project The following paper will examine the short film “Our World” from the Responsibility Project featuring singer John Legend. Specifically, the paper will provide insight into the organizational issue of education and how ethical principles, external social pressures, relevance of organizational, and personal decisions affect this societal problem. Why are the issues in the film important? The issues with this film center on our ailing educational systems in and around low income, poverty stricken inner cities throughout the United States. Ensuring each child receives a quality education regardless of ethnicity or social background is extremely important issue. John Legend is using his success and resources to address these exact concerns within the political arena in Washington. What role do external social pressures have in influencing organizational ethics? External social pressures can steer organizational ethics, both in negative and positive manner. For example, as John Legend highlights society (external social pressure) tends to have several pre-conceived notions on inner city education activities. One such negative notion is poor black, white or Hispanic children will not do well within the education system because of the influence of the geographical area, standards of living, and the lineage of their parents so we should just give up on them because they will not do well. Additionally, recent political initiatives (external social pressures) from the President of the United States on down have reinvigorated our focus as nation on equal and fair education for all children. As John Legend stated, we need to re-humanize our perspective of inner city children and not just see them as a statistic. How might these issues be relevant to organizational and personal decisions? The issues of external pressures are unquestionably relevant to organizational and personal decisions. The example above of recent political initiatives has already had an influence on both decision points. Changing the organizational ethics of inner city schools from simple “drop out factories” to institutes where the potential of each child to excel is the norm will influence organizational and personal decisions on inner city school systems. Specifically, organizational decisions to ensure retention of students through graduation will by default inspire the personal decisions of the faculty to bring out the best in each child and nurture his or her education. What is the relationship between legal and ethical issues as shown in the film? The relationship is a simple one between the legal and ethical issue of equal education for every child. Each student within the public school system no matter the neighborhood should receive the same books and opportunity to excel as any other child. This is the ethical perspective of what is right and legal side of it could result in possible lawsuits for the educational disparity if prevalent. The ethical perspective is exactly what John Legend advocates; specifically ensuring people understand issues and challenges of the inner city educational system. In conclusion, the short film “Our World” demonstrates how ethical principles can address organizational issues, specifically the issue of equal education for all children. Fully embracing how ethical principles, external social pressures, and relevance of organizational or personal decisions can influence positively change to this issue. As a society we can right this continuing wrong toward our children’s education within the inner cities. References
The Responsibility Project. (2012). Retrieved from http://responsibility- project.libertymutual.com/films/our-world#fbid=LW44XXQL_2r

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