1. STUDY ON INFORMATION ETHICS OF STUDENTS IN THE E-LEARNING ERA 2006. 1. 5 Hyun-Yong Jung Department of Technology Education, College of Engineering Chungnam National University, Korea

2. I. INTRODUCTION

3.  Since the mid 1990s, the government has invested a vast amount of finances and time on propagating the national infra structure of information.  In the beginning, the internet had spread through colleges and research centers. As time goes by, it came to be provided to elementary and middle schools. Nowadays, every teacher and student can freely use it.

4.  It is positive that e-learning help students' learning. But the internet use also has negative effects.  Hence, reinforcing related laws to forcefully prevent the adverse effects in the internet use is not enough. It is necessary to insulate the willingness of voluntary prevention of students in an e-learning era. They also need to be educated with information ethics that enable themselves to make good decisions and use information effectively.

5. II. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

6. 1. Basic Principles of Information Ethics The basic principles of information ethics can be defined in a various ways but the followings are common elements in them(Information Communication Ethics Committee, 2003): 1) Respect Respect yourself as well as others. 'Respect yourself' implies the concern that one might not take care of life and body damaging his/her healthy because he/she became addicted to cyber space.

7. 1. Basic Principles of Information Ethics 2) Responsibility Responsibility can be divided in proactive responsibility and retroactive responsibility. Proactive responsibility is related to issues of whether one should be cautious or interested before the action is taken. Retroactive responsibility means that one should be responsible for the consequences of the action taken. In the cyber space, both information users and providers need to be considerate about what consequences will follow their actions.

8. 1. Basic Principles of Information Ethics 3) Justice Everyone should seek for truth of information, impartiality, integrity, justifiable expression for what they provide in the cyber space and benefits of information. 4) Non-maleficence Cyber sexual harassment, cracking, and virus circulation are clearly harmful to others. Thus, they should be prevented. Due to the characteristics of information technology, unethical activities in the cyber space cause tremendous damages to many people.

9. 2. Definition and Scope of Information Ethics The motive for academic interest about information ethics is in the computer ethics that deals with ethical issues of computer technology.  Moor(1995) diagnoses that computer technology caused new types of special ethical issues. He defined computer ethics as the study with the goal to analyze the societal essence and influence of computer technology to establish and justify the ways for ethical uses of computer technology.

10. 2. Definition and Scope of Information Ethics  Johnson(1994) divided computer ethics into the work ethic of professionals, ownership of software, privacy, crime/abuse/hacking, responsibility and duty in terms of autonomy and approach as computer's societal impact.  Byeongwan Chu(2001) points out the loss of the sense of balance because ethic education emphases the adverse effects of information. He suggested four broad areas to be considered importantly in the education of information ethics: information community, information ethics, netiquette, and coping ability.

11. 2. Definition and Scope of Information Ethics  The Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity and Promotion proposed the goals and contents of information ethic education in details for the areas of communication etiquettes, unhealthy information circulation, addiction to communication/games, cyber sexual harassment/prostitution, language deformation, abuse of personal information, communication fraud/gambling, hacking, virus circulation, and copyright infringement. (The Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity and Promotion, 2004)

12. 2. Definition and Scope of Information Ethics  The Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity and Promotion(KADO)  http://www.kado.or.kr

13. 3. Education for Information Ethics in Korea  There are two types of education for information ethics in the elementary schools and the middle schools in Korea.  First, information ethic is taught in regular curriculum such as computer class or ethics.  The other case is that each school teaches information ethics in creative free activity classes or special activity classes in accordance with the education administration manual of information and communication for elementary and middle schools.

14. III. STUDENTS IN THE E-LEARNING ERA WHO ARE EXPOSED TO THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF INFORMATION

15.  According to the statistics of Korean Internet Information Center(2002), the reasons for the youth to use the internet is to play games, emailing, information search, and chatting. 1.5% of people used internet for their academic work.  The misbehavior of the youth in the internet is almost unguarded. According to the report of the Police Agency(2003) on the statistics of cyber crime rate in different age groups, the youth showed the highest rate as 37.6% of the total cyber crimes. Accordingly, the fraud cases of the youth appeared to be increasing.

16. IV. METHODOLOGY

17.  I took a training course of Information Ethics at Korea Agency Digital Opportunity & Promotion (KADO).  I have visited schools assigned by the agency and given lectures, since 2004, on information ethics and the dysfunction of informatization.  KADO offers training courses for instructors of information ethics twice a year. The courses are intended for people who have master or doctoral degrees in the fields of ethical education, philosophy, education, and computer science. 40 people can be enrolled each time.  People who complete the courses are assigned to schools where they can teach information ethics.

18.  I teach students and teachers at two elementary, two middle, and two high schools.  I taught parents at an elementary school.  I also taught information ethics during computer-related courses at two universities.

19.  The purpose of the class is to shape a healthy information society by applying information technology in an ethically and morally correct way.  At elementary and middle schools, I used exercises and cases on animation to teach the content of information dysfunction.  At high schools and universities, I give lectures focusing on the cases and precautions of information ethics and informatization dysfunction.

20.  The methods of the classes are as follows:  I give lectures for students and teachers by using visual aids such as computers and beam projectors at an auditorium or gym or by using a broadcasting system.  Teachers in charge of informatization at the school evaluated the classes according to the contents of the lectures and student reaction.  I reported the results to KADO. Individual student evaluations could not be done due to time and environmental factors.

21.  When I read the letters from other lecturers of information ethics in the bulletin board operated by KADO, elementary students showed the highest interest, and middle school students showed higher interest than high school students.  Many lecturers conclude that most high school students already have the knowledge of information ethics, and they are not interested in the classes, so they act against what they know in reality.

22.  Through the questionnaires in college-student- oriented classes, I found out that there is a big difference between what college students know about copyrights and netizen's ethical knowledge, and how they act in reality.

23. V. INFORMATION ETHICS THAT STUDENTS OF THE E-LEARNING ERA SHOULD KNOW

24. 1. Netiquette  With the advanced internet, now people in anywhere in the world can be connected.  On the internet, unlike communication in the real world, people's appearance and personality are not easily revealed.  Due to the negative characteristic of the internet, 'netiquette', internet etiquettes is needed.

25. 1. Netiquette 1) Chatting 2) Cyber Language Deformation 3) Cyber Verbal Violence/Defamation of Character 4) Cyber Sexual harassment

26. 1. Netiquette  Netiquette is a basic manner that is obeyed on the web. Therefore, we should teach our students that they have the same standard and do their behavior online as they live in their real lives, in the consideration of cyber's characteristics, anonymity, autonomy and variety, and that they forgive others' mistakes and respect their time, privacy and character.

27. 2. Copyright & Illegal Copy of Software  It's common that many students in the primary and secondary schools download pictures, photos, MP3, software online for their leisure time and put them onto their individual website, blog, or cafe without their creators' permission.  But this can be accused by the copyright holder because it is the action that violates against the copyright.

28. 2. Copyright & Illegal Copy of Software  Therefore, we should make our students understand about the right copyright and remember that illegal copying without permission is wrong to take out their rights from the software or contents' holders.

29. 3. Online Game/Internet Addiction  Game and internet addiction is resulted from the desires that they possess and keep much more items and higher positions on the web because it makes them come true their desires in the cyber space, unlike in their real world.  Therefore the education for the prevention of game and internet addiction, as well as cure of them, is needed at schools and homes. It's good for them to induce that they decrease the time for playing games and internet and make them higher positions in the real world through various activities like sports, culture, hobbies and learning, than those in the game world.

30. 3. Online Game/Internet Addiction  And we should raise their psychological abilities to solve these problems by themselves.

31. 4. Smut  Computer smut is a thing in the form of photos, novels and videos that someone can see on computer, and be made by computer and into program files. It can be distributed in a fast speed because it can be easily copied in the basic characteristics of computer, e-mailing and internet.

32. 4. Smut  Therefore, it is important that we should carry out the prevention education to the students in the lower classes and illegality and danger of illegal distribution and circulation of smut, its addiction prevention and the education for cure to those in the higher classes.  For operating it, international cooperation through nations is needed, especially to prevent and control the websites that provide these kinds of smut services.

33. 5. Cyber/Computer Crime  Cyber crime means all kinds of crimes committing online including computer crime.  The forms of cyber crime can be divided into cyber terror and general cyber crime.  Cyber crime by teens tends to flow into making economic profit through hacking and illegal programs, beyond their simple curiosity, and their deeds against society and to operate illegal website are done without any consciousness for feeling guilty.

34. 5. Cyber/Computer Crime  Therefore, in the present point that cyber crime is increasing with internet user's increasing, not only everyone has to try their best at school, home and society, but also the government try to have prevention policy for it.

35. VI. CONCLUSION & SUGGESTION

36.  First, the education for information ethics has to begin to the students in the lower classes who begin to learn how to use computer and internet.  To them, we should teach the prevention and managing method of smut, as well as netiquette and copyright, and then with this prevention education, we should enforce the education of cure for the addiction of smut, internet and game in the higher classes.

37.  Second, the education for information ethics is also needed for parents.  The first thing that students come back home after school is sitting at the computer. Their parents usually think that their children study through computers, but they don't in many cases.

38.  Therefore, it is needed that parents should see what their children are doing and what kind of material they are searching. If they don't so, their children can be game/internet addicts or smut addicts, assaulters or victims of cyber crime.

39.  Third, the education of information ethics is not only in charge of home and school. Now, nation and society have to participate in it.  They have to enforce the laws and systems to punish against the deed that infringe copyright, privacy and the defamation of character.  Social organizations also have to participate in inspecting websites that keep and distribute the unhealthy information.

40.  Textbooks are being made, for the public educational system, to teach young people about the dysfunction of informatization and how to use information in the correct way.  In the spring semester of 2006, "Internet Ethics" will be taught at middle and high schools.  In the spring semester of 2006, "Internet Ethics" will be taught at middle and high schools.

41.  Fourth, we need the trained professional teachers who can be exclusively responsibility of teaching and consulting about internet/game addition, cyber crime or violence online, and its victims.  Also we need special institutions for the cyber addicts on internet/game and the victims who are hurt by cyber violence, because they can't do normal school life and have treatment for it properly.

42. Reference  Ahn, Seonghun.(2004). Analysis on the Actual Condition of Information  Communication Ethics of Students, Journal of Computer Education, 7(1), 1-13.  Chu, Beong Wan (2001). Information Ethics Education. Seoul:Ulyuck Press.  Information Communication Ethics Committee(2003). Information Communication Ethics White Paper. Seoul: Information Communication Ethics Committee.  Johnson, D. G..(1994). Computer Ethic. 2nd ed. NJ:Prentics Hall.  Korea Customer Support Center (2002). A Survey on the Internet and E-commerce Use by Minors. [On-Line].http://www.cpb.or.kr  Korean Internet Information Center (2002). Korean Internet Statistics.  [On-Line].http://isis.nic.or.kr  Korean National Police Agency(2003). Cyber Crime Statistics.  [On-Line].http://www.police.go.kr  Moor, J. H,(1995). What is Computer Ethics? Computer, Ethics and Social Values. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:Prentics Hall.

43. Reference  Song, Taeok.(2001). Development of a Network-Based Collaborative Learning System for Education of Information Ethics, Journal of Computer Education, 4(2), 43-52.  The Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity and Promotion(2004).  [On-Line].http://www.kado.or.kr

44. Thank You