Outline

Overview

This unit of study provides students with a foundational understanding of the methods employed in bioethical analysis and argumentation. This unit explores the meaning of 'bioethics' as a concept and practice, both historically and in contemporary discussions. The seminars introduce a diverse range of normative, argumentative, and empirical methods used in bioethics. We consider the relationship between scholarship, advocacy, and activism in bioethics, as well as epistemic justice, reflective equilibrium, and critical approaches to bioethics. We consider the role of theology and metaphysics in contemporary bioethical debate. Learning activities will include intensive workshops and small group discussions.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Public Health
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Supriya Subramani, supriya.subramani@sydney.edu.au

Assessment

The census date for this unit availability is 31 August 2026

Details
Criteria

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length	Use of AI
Practical skill	In-Class Writing These writing sessions are designed as a scaffolding activity, with prompts based on weekly readings and discussions, followed by brief peer feedback and a structured class conversation.	25%	Multiple weeks Due date: 13 Aug 2026 at 17:00 Closing date: 24 Sep 2026	500 words	AI allowed
Outcomes assessed:
Written work	Short essay A short argumentative essay on a choice of topic.	30%	Week 10 Due date: 12 Oct 2026 at 23:00 Closing date: 16 Oct 2026	1500 words, +/- 10%	AI allowed
Outcomes assessed:
Oral exam	Viva Voce A 20-minute oral examination covering the content of the unit of study.	45%	Week 12 Due date: 29 Oct 2026 at 19:00 Closing date: 29 Oct 2026	20 minutes (oral)	AI prohibited
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

In BETH5000, Written Assessments are graded in accordance with the marking matrix used for all BETH Units of Study. A copy of this matrix is available in the Canvas site for this UoS.

Grading Table

Result Name	Mark Range	Description
HD	85-100	Awarded when the relevant learning outcomes for assessments are demonstrated at an exceptional standard.
DI	75-85	Awarded when the relevant learning outcomes for assessments are demonstrated at a very high standard.
CR	65-74	Awarded when the relevant learning outcomes for assessments are demonstrated at a good standard.
PA	50-64	Awarded when the relevant learning outcomes for assessments are demonstrated at an acceptable standard.
FA	0-49	Awarded when the relevant learning outcomes for assessments are not satisfactorily demonstrated.

For more information see guide to grades.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

You can use generative AI tools for open assessments. Restrictions on AI use apply to secure, supervised assessments used to confirm if students have met specific learning outcomes.

Refer to the assessment table above to see if AI is allowed, for assessments in this unit and check Canvas for full instructions on assessment tasks and AI use.

If you use AI, you must always acknowledge it. Misusing AI may lead to a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy.

Visit the Current Students website for more information on AI in assessments, including details on how to acknowledge its use.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The University expects students to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

Our website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. This includes advice on how to avoid common breaches of academic integrity. Ensure that you have completed the Academic Honesty Education Module (AHEM) which is mandatory for all commencing coursework students

Penalties for serious breaches can significantly impact your studies and your career after graduation. It is important that you speak with your unit coordinator if you need help with completing assessments.

Visit the Current Students website for more information on AI in assessments, including details on how to acknowledge its use.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Support for students

The Support for Students Policy reflects the University’s commitment to supporting students in their academic journey and making the University safe for students. It is important that you read and understand this policy so that you are familiar with the range of support services available to you and understand how to engage with them.

The University uses email as its primary source of communication with students who need support under the Support for Students Policy. Make sure you check your University email regularly and respond to any communications received from the University.

Learning resources and detailed information about weekly assessment and learning activities can be accessed via Canvas. It is essential that you visit your unit of study Canvas site to ensure you are up to date with all of your tasks.

If you are having difficulties completing your studies, or are feeling unsure about your progress, we are here to help. You can access the support services offered by the University at any time:

Support and Services (including health and wellbeing services, financial support and learning support)
Course planning and administration
Meet with an Academic Adviser

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity	Learning outcomes
Multiple weeks	Topics varies by weeks (week 2 to week 9). Detailed outline will be provided on Canvas	Seminar (27 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

For each module, students are expected to:

Do the readings in preparation for the seminars.
Attend the seminars in person or remotely. They will be held weekly on Thursdays from Week 2 to Week 9, 5.00pm - 8.00pm
- Location:
  
  A31.03.3003.Sydney Nanoscience Hub (SNH).SNH Lecture Theatre 3003
Be prepared with questions and comments, and engage actively in discussions during seminar.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Week 2

Mandatory Readings

Gordon, L. R. (2015). Introduction. Disciplinary decadence: Living thought in trying times. Routledge.

ten Have, H.A.M.J. (2022). ‘The Establishment of Bioethics’ in Bizarre bioethics : Ghosts, monsters, and pilgrims. Johns Hopkins University Press.

McMillan, J. (2018). 'What Is Bioethics?' In The Methods of Bioethics. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780199603756.003.0002Links to an external site.Links to an external site.

Reich, W. T. 1995. The word “bioethics”: The struggle over its earliest meanings. Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 5 (1):19–34.

Week 3

Mandatory Readings

Pettit P. Two Sources of Morality. Social Philosophy and Policy. 2001;18(2):102-128. doi:10.1017/S0265052500002922

Smith, R. S. (2014). Moral Knowledge in the Reformation and the Enlightenment Shift. In search of moral knowledge: Overcoming the fact-value dichotomy. InterVarsity Press.

Audi, R. (1997). Chapter 4. Moral Epistemology and the Supervenience of Ethical Concept. Moral knowledge and ethical character. Oxford University Press.

Week 4

Mandatory Readings

Walker, M. U. (2000). Naturalizing, normativity, and using what “we” know in ethics. Canadian Journal of Philosophy Supplementary Volume, 26, 75-101.

Held, V. (2002). Moral subjects: The natural and the normative. In Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association (Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 7-24). American Philosophical Association.

Meghani, Z. (2023). Intersectionality, intersectional standpoints, and identity politics. Hypatia, 38(4), 871-895.

Week 5

Mandatory readings

Phillips, David, 'Sidgwick’s Project and the Three Methods (Methods I.I and I.VI)', Sidgwick's The Methods of Ethics: A Guide (2022; online edn, Oxford Academic, 19 May 2022),

Urban Walker, Margaret, 'Where Do Moral Theories Come From? Henry Sidgwick and Twentieth-century Ethics', Moral Understandings: A Feminist Study in Ethics, 2nd edn, Studies in Feminist Philosophy (New York, 2008; online edn, Oxford Academic, 1 Sept. 2007),

Beauchamp, T. L., & Childress, J. F. (1979). Part 1. Moral Norms. Principles of biomedical ethics. Oxford University Press. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/usyd/reader.action?docID=5763592&ppg=16&c=UERG

Week 6

Mandatory Readings

Jaggar AM (2000) Ethics naturalized: feminism’s contribution to moral epistemology. Metaphilosophy 31(5):452–468

Racine E (2008) Which naturalism for bioethics? A defense of moderate (pragmatic) naturalism. Bioethics 22(2):92–100. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8519.2007.00604.xLinks to an external site.

Hilde Lindemann, et al.(2008). Chapter 1. Introduction. Naturalized Bioethics: Toward Responsible Knowing and Practice. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/usyd/detail.action?docID=367101.

Week 7

Mandatory Readings

Hilary Putnam. The Fact/Value Dichotomy and the Future of Philosophy. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315666297-9/fact-value-dichotomy-future-philosophy-hilary-putnamLinks to an external site.Links to an external site.

Mertz, M., Schildmann, J. Beyond integrating social sciences: Reflecting on the place of life sciences in empirical bioethics methodologies. Med Health Care and Philos 21, 207–214 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-017-9792-z

De Vries, & Van Leeuwen, E. (2010). Reflective Equilibrium and Empirical Data: Third Person Moral Experiences in Empirical Medical Ethics. Bioethics, 24(9), 490–498. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8519.2009.01721.xLinks to an external site.Links to an external site.Links to an external site.

Week 8

Mandatory Readings

Code, L. B. (1981). Is the sex of the knower epistemologically significant? Metaphilosophy, 12(3/4), 267–276.

Subramani, S. (2025). Practising reflexivity: Ethico-epistemological and political practice? Methodological Innovations, 18(1), 17–30. https://doi.org/10.1177/20597991251316584Links to an external site.

Subramani, S. (2026). Complicity or accountability? The limits of positionality statements. PLOS Global Public Health, 6(2), e0006042. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0006042Links to an external site.

Week9

Mandatory Readings

Haslanger, S. (1999). What knowledge is and what it ought to be: Feminist values and normative epistemology. Philosophical Perspectives, 13, 459–480. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2676113Links to an external site.

Walker, M. U. (2008). The politics of transparency and the moral work of truth. In Moral Understandings: A Feminist Study in Ethics (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.

Simpson, A. (2007). On ethnographic refusal: Indigeneity, “voice” and colonial citizenship. Junctures: The Journal for Thematic Dialogue, 9. https://junctures.org/index.php/junctures/article/view/66

Detailed link will be provided via Canvas.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Have developed and enhanced skills in the use of philosophical methods in bioethics, particularly the use of analysis and argumentation
LO2. Describe and critically reflect on the role of moral theory in bioethics
LO3. Articulate and critically engage with a range of methods and framings used in contemporary bioethics
LO4. Assess the legitimacy of various critical perspectives on ‘bioethics’ research and scholarship

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

This Unit of Study has been updated significantly since the previous iteration. The module topics, assessments, and reading list have all been updated to reflect the new delivery mode, changes in the literature, and student feedback.

Additional information

Work, health and safety

No special issues are expected.

Disclaimer

Important: the University of Sydney regularly reviews units of study and reserves the right to change the units of study available annually. To stay up to date on available study options, including unit of study details and availability, refer to the relevant handbook.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Work, health and safety

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

BETH5000: Methods in Bioethics

Semester 2, 2026 [Online] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Work, health and safety

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links