Concern about student’s ethical education has been present at the Catholic University of Temuco’s law school since it was founded, but a specific mandatory course was introduced after ten years. The paper reflects on the experience with this particular course.
The University is implementing a teaching model based on competencies. Although the Law School has not implemented it yet, competencies were somehow introduced, and one of the core competencies is ethical behavior, so the course contributes to develop it, using an interactive methodological approach.
Along the course, students are required to learn some basic concepts and to know the main contemporary ethical schools of thoughts; to reflect over globalization and the world they will face practicing law; to know the ethical regulations that already exist, and propose some new rules.
During the semester students must do readings, set up and resolve ethical dilemmas, using the see-judge-act methodology, that comes from the catholic tradition, but it’s similar to the mandate given to the courts by the constitution (know a case, resolve it and execute the decision).
The final goal is to develop student’s ethical conscience, building the capacity to discern ethical dilemmas and support their decisions, so they would become autonomous professionals.