Research ethics

Scientific knowledge and research involving human beings raise a whole range of ethical questions, at the crossroads of ethics, epistemology and professional deontology.
Biology makes use of animals; in medicine, clinical trials are conducted with patients; at school, pupils and teachers test approaches that feed into the educational sciences; citizen-users are exposed to technologies that exploit their personal data; and so on. 

Taken in a broad sense, research ethics thus concerns a whole range of questions linked to science-society relations, and issues that are as old as they are new. The "Research Ethics" UE combines teaching on the foundations of research ethics (science/value relationships; foundations of ethics; concept of risk and precaution) with more applied aspects. In particular, students will study examples taken from the history or current events of science (scientific fraud, manipulation and controversy, North/South justice issues, etc.). They will become familiar with the various normative frameworks that seek to regulate the conduct of research activities today, particularly those that directly involve living beings (human or otherwise). They will be made aware of the approaches to be implemented in their own research (restitution to participants, respect for anonymity, secondary uses of research data, etc.) and will be led to develop their reflexivity skills and know how to position themselves critically in the "innovation society". 

In particular, educational researchers are increasingly using audiovisual documents to illustrate their work or as research materials. They particularly need to know the legal and ethical framework governing the use of these audiovisual documents (image rights, protection of privacy, right to be forgotten, etc.). In some cases, the application of this framework poses particular difficulties, especially with the development of digital technology and the possibilities for capturing images. 

Another need, shared by all fields of academic research, concerns plagiarism - a phenomenon that is also linked to digital technology and current transformations in documentation and resource-sharing practices. 

The module will focus on case studies from the field of educational research. It will also involve confrontation with ethical review frameworks developed in universities abroad (e.g. Canada, Holland, etc.) and reflection on their relevance to research practices in education and the social sciences. 

100% Final test: Oral presentation of a case study, prepared in group. 

Proven skills (specific, cross-disciplinary)  

• Carry out a reflective and distanced analysis, taking into account the issues, problems and complexity of a request or situation, in order to propose appropriate and/or innovative solutions in line with changes in regulations
• Apply and promote the principles of ethics, professional conduct and environmental responsibility