The Understanding of One’s Core Values, Essay Example

Having an awareness of one’s core values is an essential aspect of understanding how humans effectively communicate with their audience. Each person has unique core values that create a personal ethic that, in turn, affects his conduct with others. As a University of Phoenix on-line student, I bring my own core values into the learning environment, and these core values affect my interactions. In the on-line forum setting, I use the lenses of autonomy, rationality, equality, and sensibility in my exchanges with others (“Ethics Lens Inventory Results,” 2012).

Autonomy is an essential value for a university student. A university student must be self-sufficient in regard to his academic work. No parents or outside influences will push the student toward success, so the student must push himself. He must maintain self-determination in order to complete a rigorous course of study. Without determination, the likelihood of failure and discontinuation of an academic program sharply increases.

Logic and rationality are essential values as well. A student must be able to examine ideas with unbiased judgment. One of the hallmarks of a critical thinker is that he can provide rational and logical support for his beliefs. In order to succeed in education, a student must be perceptive and a critical thinker who applies logic to his statements and beliefs.

Additionally, acceptance of equality is a core value for a student. The academic environment combines many people with various life experiences and views in a small space. A student must be able to accommodate other students’ views without prejudice and adapt his thinking based on information from others. The goal is to respect others’ beliefs even if they differ from your own.

Lastly, a college student needs the essential value of sensibility concerning questions of race, ethnicity, gender, and sex. The student must have a basic sense of what is right and wrong. He must also use this knowledge in his dealings with other students. He must be perceptive and mindful of others’ beliefs and feelings to avoid alienating them and hindering the academic pursuit.

References

Ethics Lens Inventory Results. (2012). In EthicsGame.com. Retrieved June 6, 2012, from http://www.ethicsgame.com/Exec/Eli/EthicalLensResults.aspx?R=1