The International Information & Library Review ISSN: 1057-2317 (Print) 1095-9297 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ulbr20 Rethinking information ethics education in Ghana: Is it adequate? Perpetua S. Dadzie To cite this article: Perpetua S. Dadzie (2011) Rethinking information ethics education in Ghana: Is it adequate?, The International Information & Library Review, 43:2, 63-69, DOI: 10.1080/10572317.2011.10762881 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/10572317.2011.10762881 Published online: 02 Dec 2013. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 240 View related articles Citing articles: 1 View citing articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=ulbr20 The International Information & Library Review (2011) 43, 63e69ava i lab le at www.sc iencedi rec t .com journa l homepage: www.e lsev ier . com/ locate / i i l rRethinking information ethics education in Ghana: Is it adequate?Perpetua S. DadzieDepartment of Information Studies, P.O. Box lg 60, University of Ghana, Legon, GhanaKEYWORDS Information Ethics; Information ethics Education; Ghanaian universitiesE-mail addresses: psdadzie@ug. com. 1057-2317/$ - see front matter ª 201 doi:10.1016/j.iilr.2011.04.002Abstract This paper highlights the importance of information ethics and gives an overview of the various aspects of the subject taught at various institutions of higher learning in Ghana. The study notes that information ethics is not taught as a specific or whole subject at any level in the tertiary institutions and questions the depth of education given to students in the light of some serious information ethics violations such as plagiarism, copyright violation, cyber crime and social network abuses. Data for the study were collected mainly from the different university websites, university handbooks, course outlines as well as interviews with librarians and a few faculty members of the respective universities. The study recommends the introduc- tion of information ethics as a university required course for all freshmen, a stand-alone course in information ethics at the Department of Information Studies, adequate sensitization pro- grammes on academic integrity and plagiarism policies, and the enforcement of laws and polices in Ghana. These measures are meant to safeguard individual rights to ownership, privacy, confidentiality and security. ª 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Introduction There is no doubt that the rapid advancement of informa- tion and communication technologies (ICT) has brought in its wake an information society capable of exploiting information resources for a wide range of activities such as education, business, leisure, entertainment and many more. Though information may be widely available, indi- viduals need to be guided by ethical principles and values which should inform them as to who should use informa- tion, what information should be used, where information should be used, and when information should be used. Thisedu.gh, psdadzie@hotmail. 1 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reservedsentiment is strongly supported by the Geneva’s World Summit on Information Society (WSIS, 2003). While acknowledging the potential role of ICT in promoting sustainable development; increasing productivity; gener- ating economic growth, job creation and employability; and improving the quality of life of all, the WSIS also cautions about the ethical use of information. The state- ment concerning the “Ethical Dimensions of the Informa- tion Society” reads as follows (WSIS, 2003, Section B10): 57. We acknowledge the importance of ethics for the Information Society, which should foster justice, and the dignity and worth of the human person. The widest possible protection should be accorded to the family and to enable it to play its crucial role in society. 58. The use of ICTs and content creation should respect human rights and fundamental freedoms of others,. 64 P.S. Dadzieincluding personal privacy, and the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion in conformity with relevant international instruments. 59. All actors in the Information Society should take appropriate actions and preventive measures, as determined by law, against abusive uses of ICTs, such as illegal and other acts motivated by racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance, hatred, violence, all forms of child abuse, including paedophilia and child pornography, and trafficking in, and exploitation of, human beings. The whole idea of thinking ethically around information is influenced by the desire to develop and sustain an information society. Ethics in society can be described as promoting what is good in people, averting chaos and providing norms and standards of behavior based on morals and values that are unifying (Ocholla, 2009). In other words, ethics is concerned with what is right or wrong, good or bad, fair or unfair, responsible or irresponsible, obliga- tory or permissible, praiseworthy or blameworthy (Online Ethics Center, 2006). Ethics ensures that an action that is designed to achieve a certain objective will do so without violating a value. The right or wrong actions people take are usually modeled around four major ethical theories described as consequences, duties, rights and virtues-based theories (Fallis, 2007). Fallis further argues that an under- standing of these ethical theories is valuable as they all bear weight in information practice. Relating ethics to information, Babik (2006) describes information ethics (IE) as a field that concerns all human activity related to information, in other words, our rela- tionship with information, what we do with information, or how we generate, process and distribute information in the form of new technologies and innovations, which contain a great deal of processed information. Information ethics concerns all stages of information and communication processes. Thus, it should be regarded as a field of critical reflection on moral values and practices with regard to the production, storage, distribution and access to knowledge as well as to all kinds of processes, systems and media of information and communication. According to Moore (2005), information ethics is the field that investigates the ethical issues arising from the devel- opment and application of information technologies. It provides a critical framework for considering moral issues concerning information privacy, moral agency (for example, whether artificial agents are moral), new envi- ronmental issues (especially how agents should behave in the infosphere) and problems arising from the life-cycle (creation, collection, recording, distribution, processing, etc.) of information, especially ownership and copyright in view of the digital divide. The creation of the concept of information ethics has been credited to Koenig et al. (1981), Robert Hauptman, the founder of the Journal of Information Ethics and Rafael Capurro, who in 1988 published an article entitled “Infor- mationethos und Informationethik” (Froehlich, 2004, as cited in Floridi 2008; Kaddu, 2009, chap. 35). The concept was used to discuss issues surrounding information (or data) confidentiality, reliability, quality and usage. It was not surprising that the concept evolved initially with library andinformation science and later was embraced by many other disciplines.Today, information ethics can be seen as a confluence of the ethical concerns of media, journalism, library and information science, computer ethics (including cyberethics), management information systems, business and the Internet (Froehlich, 2004). Information ethics has essentially become cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural. Issues of access and ownership, intellectual freedom, privacy and confidentiality, concerns with social equity and justice are among the areas that are overlapping in many disciplines. These areas also pose different ethical dilemmas not only for information professionals and knowledge workers but also for consumers of knowledge products and services. It is as a result of some of the underlying concerns of the appreciation of moral values, individual rights to ownership, privacy, confidentiality and security that infor- mation ethics education is very important. A number of studies have been carried out on informa- tion ethics education (Buchanan, 2004; Carbo, 2004; Fleischmann, Robbins, & Wallace, 2009). Buchanan surveys ethics courses and their coverage in accredited schools of LIS in the United States. Major considerations of ethical issues such as privacy, censorship, aspects of intellectual freedom, information rich and poor are re- flected in the majority of the syllabi. The courses reveal that information ethics is a complex and diverse field of study and for that matter, should not be incorporated into existing courses. A stand-alone course is recommended for LIS curricula. Carbo, on the other hand, discusses different models as well as challenges encountered in teaching information ethics to a very diverse student body at the University of Pittsburgh. A practical approach is adopted by Fleischmann et al. when they describe ten educational cases used in an information ethics course taught at the University of Maryland. The cases include having students face multiple interdependent decisions while playing culturally diverse roles. The findings of this research reveal preliminary evidence supporting four key themes for preparing students to confront intercultural information ethics dilemmas: diversity, perspectives, values, and pluralism. The conclusion of the research is that the educational case design can be successful used in preparing future information professionals to confront intercultural information ethics dilemmas. IE education has become increasing important as advances in ICT have posed fundamental ethical questions. One such question is on the influence that ICT usage has on moral values. Capurro who has been championing this concern has called for a discourse on intercultural ethics regarding critical issues such as privacy, secrecy, intellectual property, online communities, mobile phones, etc. In his opinion, these issues vary in interpretation and relevance to local cultural, political and geographical settings. He calls on African educational and research institutions to reflect crit- ically on these issues as they have the potential of under- mining traditional cultural values (Capurro, 2010). Similar sentiments are also expressed by Brey (2009) when he investigates thedescriptive cultural relativity of three values that are of significance tomany studies in information ethics, namely, privacy, intellectual property and freedom of information. He concludes that significant differences exist among moral systems of different cultures and that these Rethinking information ethics education in Ghana 65differences have important implications for moral attitudes towards uses of information and information technology. Another fundamental ethical question relates to the unequal access to and use of ICT. This has been popularly referred to as the digital divide and is defined in the context of three fundamental information ethics concerns, namely, the right of access, literacy and information literacy (Koehler, 2001). As noted by Fuchs and Horak (2008), digital divide solutions require more fundamental changes of society and cannot be achieved by technology alone. Incidentally, only a few studies have been carried out on information ethics education in Africa (Hikwa, 2010; Limo, 2010; Mabawonku, 2010; Ocholla & Bothma, 2007; Ocholla, 2009) as this is an emerging area of study. In Ghana, with the exception of studies on copyright issues (Akussah & Tamakloe, 2007; Adusei, Anyimadu-Antwi, & Halm, 2009; Darkey & Akussah, 2008; Oduro, 2005) no study has as yet been identified on information ethics education. This study thus addresses the limitation by examining information ethics education in Ghana and questions its adequacy in meeting the dilemmas of the ethical use of information. It is significant at three levels: First, it will draw the attention of the only library school in Ghana and the universities in general to the fact that issues of access, privacy, copyright, trust and confidentiality need our collective attention. Second, it will add to the current knowledge as not much thought has been given to the subject. Third, it will contribute to enhancing the African dialogue on informa- tion ethics education which is in its tender age. Indeed, the theme of the 2010 conference in Botswana on Teaching Information Ethics in Africa-Current Status, Opportunities, and Challenges’ sought to provide a dialogue on topical issues of information ethics with a view to developing a curriculum for Africa in this field. Data for this paper were collected from three main sources, public universities, some private universities and professional institutions in Ghana as these institutions run several programmes and courses and also have large enrollment numbers. Institutions which were not covered include polytechnics and colleges of education, nursing, agriculture and theology. Data were taken from the different university websites, university handbooks, and course outlines, as well as interviews with librarians and a few faculty members of the respective universities. The rest of the paper presents an overview of the status of information ethics education in Ghana and highlights some IE violations in Ghana, discussing the challenges as well as the opportunities available to improve upon infor- mation ethics education in Ghana.Status of information ethics education in Ghana Information ethics tends to be taught in the context of broader course modules in Ghana. There are no courses devoted specifically or wholly to information ethics. A look at the curricula of some of the 134 tertiary institutions in Ghana (National Accreditation Board, 2010) points to various aspects of information ethics taught in units such as Information Studies, Communication Studies, Business Administration, Law, and Computer Science. The tertiaryinstitutions providing aspects of IE education in Ghana include public and private universities and professional institutions. The public universities are the University of Ghana (UG), the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), the University of Cape Coast (UCC), the University College of Education, Winneba (UEW) and the University for Development Studies (UDS). Some of the private universities are Ashesi University College (AUC), Central University College (CUC), Valley View University (VVU) and Methodist University College, Ghana (MUCG). The professional institutions include the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS) and the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ). Table 1 summarizes aspects of IE taught in the various universities in Ghana. There are five main subheadings, namely: University; School/Faculty/Department; Course Level (that is, Under-graduate or Post-graduate); courses embedded with ethical issues; and, specific IE issues taught. From Table 1, it is clear that a number of courses have aspects of IE embedded in them and prominent among the issues taught are referencing, plagiarism and copyright. This also reflects the piecemeal fashion in which IE education is carried out in Ghana. In spite of the education given on the various aspects of IE, there are serious infor- mation ethics violations prevalent in our society. Some outstanding ones mentioned by the librarians and faculty members interviewed include:  Plagiarism e borrowing words, sentences and even paragraphs from many sources without acknowledge- ment. Plagiarism in particular, according to one librarian, has been facilitated by the easy access to the Internet and online databases even though access to technology is still a problem nationwide. Virtually all the universities cited in this study and some of the professional institutions in Ghana subscribe to the databases through the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries (CARLIGH) which started in 2004 (Asamoah-Hassan, 2010). The availability of Internet cafés on campus, as well as personal mobile phones with Internet connectivity, has facilitated access to information.  Copyright violation e photocopying whole textbooks, downloading, copying music. The argument has always been with the practicality of enforcing copyright laws as against the issues of unavailability of textbooks and inadequacy of funds to acquire textbooks. The key reasons for excessive photocopying of books and other materials according to the librarians include the limited stock of materials in the libraries, exorbitant prices of available titles, poor book-buying habits of students, and meager loans given to students. Akussah and Tamakloe (2007) also share the view of the librarians.  Computer/cyber crimes e This is referred to as “Sakawa” e a popular Ghanaian term for cyber fraud or“419”. “419” refers to the article of the Nigerian Criminal Code (part of Chapter 38: “Obtaining Property by false pretences; Cheating”) dealing with fraud. Many librarians interviewed expressed concern about this 66 P.S. Dadzie Table 1 Aspects of IE taught in Ghanaian higher education. University Faculty/Dept/ Course Level Courses embedded with Specific IE issues taught School ethical issues UG Information Undergraduate  Information in Society Brief discussion of Studies  Collection Development censorship, access,  Information Services and copyright, referencing User Studies and plagiarism; software  Research Methods piracy, information  Automation of espionage, digital divide, Information ethical use of databases Systems  Database Management  Introduction to I nformation Technology  Introduction to Computing All universities UG, Undergraduate &  Research Methods Referencing and plagiarism UCC, KNUST, UCC, Post-graduate UDS, MUC, IPS UCC & UG School of Medical Undergraduate  Information literacy Copyright, referencing Sciences and plagiarism UG, KNUST GIMPA Faculty of Law Undergraduate  Intellectual property Copyright law and neighboring rights, patents, trade marks and unfair competition, confidential information and trade secrets KNUST Department of Undergraduate Copyright, patent rights, Publishing censorship, plagiarism and Studies defenses UG KNUST, UCC AUC  Academic Writing (UG), Organization of information,  Communication Skills access to information, (KNUST, UCC) referencing, copyright and  Leadership Seminar plagiarism. Rights, Ethics and the Rule of Law UG, GIJ Post-graduate &  Media Ethics Accuracy and fairness in Undergraduate reporting, privacy vs. public interest, plagiarism and fabrication, subterfuge and deception, defamation, ethics in advertising and public relations, ethics in cyberspace UG, MUCG, GIMPA, IPS Post-graduate &  Management Information Business and professional Undergraduate Systems ethics, ethics regarding  Accounting advertising, accounting,  Human Resource reporting practices, insider Management trading, financial disclosure,  Marketing product safety and liability MUCG Undergraduate &  Information Technology Information security and Post-graduate  Management Information cyber fraud activities Systems VVU Undergraduate  Computer ethics Intellectual property UEW Undergraduate  Guidance and Counseling Confidentiality, privacy & security of information, copyright, code of ethics in Guidance and Counseling Rethinking information ethics education in Ghana 67recent very serious problem which is destroying the social and ethical fibre of the youth in Ghana. Those engaged in such negative practices view this act as being “smart and innovative” in generating money and are not seeing anything wrong with defrauding others.  Social networks abuse e The popularity of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter has given rise to another ethical dimension in Ghana. Whereas in the past it was socially unacceptable to chat freely with “strangers” or adults, the prevalence of modern tech- nology has given rise to such activities. The risk to children in particular includes indecent exposure to pedophiles and also to pornography. This view on social networks abuse seems to support Capurro’s (2010) and Brey’s (2009) stance on intercultural information ethics where ICT is influencing traditional moral values. Similar concerns are raised by Limo (2010) when he examines the impact of the emerging new media technologies such as the Internet, mobile phones and digital TV on the youth in Kenya and the challenges and opportunities that come with these technologies. Additionally, these social networks have also raised the moral issue with regard to lack of privacy and confidenti- ality to people’s information. Thus, people posting infor- mation about themselves on the Internet should be aware of the potential consequences.Institutional policies on IE Apart from the courses that are embedded with aspects of IE, there are some institutional policies on information ethics in general. One university that highlights this policy is the University for Development Studies (UDS). Its comprehensive Research Ethics Policy (2008) stipulates, among others, the ethical principles and safety consider- ations of research as well as the responsibility and code of conduct for the researcher. The policy further stresses the nature of data storage and retention of materials as well as penalty for research misconduct. According to the UDS librarian, no student has as yet been penalized for research misconduct. Though most graduate schools of the universities have policies on plagiarism, these are not strictly enforced. Indeed, students are not even aware that they exist. Measures being adopted by the University of Ghana, for example, include capturing the policy on CD ROM for students and subscribing to an anti-plagiarism software. Even before all these materialize, faculty members are encouraged to use Google Scholar when in doubt. The above-mentioned violations show that WSIS (2003)’s Declaration of Principles on the “Ethical Dimensions of the Information Society” are not being adhered to. Issues relating to access, intellectual property, security and privacy as captured in Articles 57, 58 and 59 are being violated and the individual’s rights to freedom and justice are curtailed. Furthermore, stemming from the violations, one cannot argue favourably for the extent of IE education in Ghana or support the fact that IE education is having a major impact on students. Thus, the big question that this paper poses is whether the piecemeal treatment ofinformation ethics interspersed in the different courses or programmes is adequate to meet the dilemmas of the ethical use of information.Challenges and opportunities of information ethics education There are challenges to information ethics education internally within the university and externally with regard to the whole nation. Internally, not much thought has been given to the subject of information ethics as an emerging area of study by the library school (Department of Infor- mation Studies e the only institution training information professionals in Ghana) even though the concept originated with library and information science. Thus, no specific module has been devoted to IE. A potential challenge that the Department may experience in introducing this course will be getting more full-time lecturers and also getting approval to run the course from the Academic Board of the University of Ghana. Already, full-time faculty in the Department seems to be overburdened with the different programmes being run. Additionally, new courses to be introduced have to go through a rigorous defense process which could take about two years to materialize. Externally, the absence of policies or laws and the delays in enacting the laws even when they exist also pose challenges to IE violations. For example, the Right to Information Bill, which has been tabled in Parliament since 2005, is yet to receive Presidential assent. Incidentally, many Ghanaians are not even aware that they have a constitutional right to information in the public domain and the right to know where the information can be obtained. Again, though certain laws exist, many citizens are unaware of them and are also unconcerned about the consequences of violating them as the laws are not rigidly enforced. The situation is aggravated by the slow nature of the justice system which does not help to curb the negative practices regarding information misuse. Another challenge has to do with the absence of a coherent national strategy or a National Information Policy (NIP) which would guide the production, organiza- tion, retrieval and communication of information within an organization or the country. Though there are partial IE policies for the sub-sectors in Education, Science and Technology, Public and State Security, General Legal System, Economy and Taxation, the absence of focal points within the different governmental agencies to ensure the coordination of such polices does not help with the inte- gration of all the information services and infrastructure that cut across many frontiers. The General Legal System, for instance, has legal instruments for copyright, deposit laws, and laws on publishing and censorship, but these instruments seem to have marginal impact on an important segment of the educational system, particularly the universities. Furthermore, the absence of a cyber law is seriously impeding the fight against computer and Internet fraud. Culprits who are apprehended eventually walk free as the police are unable to press charges against them. 68 P.S. DadzieOpportunities There are also opportunities internally and externally. For the university, IE education can be introduced as a required course for all freshmen. By this, a general awareness is created at the inception of the students’ career. Lecturers from different faculty can be brought in to teach as is being done with the different modules under the University Required Courses. A completely new course on IE from a global perspective should be drawn and this should be guided by international trends and best practices. Such a course could address a broader variety of topics such as: computer crime, copyright, privacy, software reliability, artificial intelligence, e-governance, e-commerce, etc. (Froehlich, 2004). Additionally, the course could look at ethics and the law including ethical principles, ethical decision-making, ethics codes and codes of conduct, community standards and legal issues. Another opportunity which could be exploited is the introduction of a faculty requirement IE course. This would be far easier to implement as it would be on a smaller scale and would be more focused on a particular discipline. Indeed, the University of Ghana Business School is soon to introduce a faculty requirement under-graduate course on social responsibility and ethics. Additionally, all universities should adopt concrete ways to implement their code of conduct on academic integrity and plagiarism. Adequate sensitization programmes would guide members of the university community (both faculty and students) on the seriousness of plagiarism. For theDepartment of Information Studies, itwouldnot be impossible to commence a stand-alone course in information ethics. Fallis (2007) believes that informationethics shouldbe included as a component of library and information science education and training, as this would enable information professionals to safely and ethically take part in the pro- cessing of information. Introducing this course would be one of the greatest opportunities for the Department to make a greater impact on students by creating awareness of the importance of information ethics in society. This would result in changing theviewsof students on themisuseof information handling in particular. It is also important to note that the students who graduate from the Department as knowledge workers and information professionals play a vital role as participants in the information society, by gathering, pro- cessing, distributing and using information. The Department can adapt IFLA’s guidelines for IE which outlines five key areas. The cultural sensitivities of Gha- naians should be taken into consideration when the key areas are being taught. This invariably supports the call for a dialogue on intercultural ethics (Capurro, 2010). The key areas are (Smith, 2002):  Foundations: History, Philosophy and Public Policy (with suggested trajectories for analysis)  Major Issues: Access, Ownership, Privacy, Security and Community  Professional Issues and Ethics in the Global Context: Preparing for the Future  The Ethical Challenges of the Global Information Infrastructure  The Future of Global Information EthicsFurthermore, professional associations such as the Ghana Library Association and the Ghana Journalist Association can also take opportunity of this emerging area of study and hold seminars and workshops on information ethics. Qualified lecturers can be invited to present papers and also give lectures on IE. Furthermore, government agencies such as the National Council for Civic Education and civil society organizations can create awareness about the ethical use of information through public forums, seminars andworkshops. This is what is needed to create awareness in citizens about the appropriate use of information in society. Conclusion Information ethics education is very important in Ghana. Though information ethics is not taught as a stand-alone course in any university in Ghana, aspects of IE are taught in different courses offered at the tertiary levels. Some important aspects include copyright, referencing, plagia- rism, research ethics, media ethics, information technology ethics as well as business ethics. Unfortunately, these are inadequate to meet the challenges of ethical use of information. Ghanaians continue to misuse information out of igno- rance. They are unaware of the legal implications and at times are unconcerned about the consequences as the laws to protect and safeguard the use of information are not rigidly enforced. 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