Ethical Aspects of the Profession of Engineer and of Education Towards It

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Abstract
Global problems of development of modern civilization and the perspective of the post-modern future increase the role of ethical factors as regulators of actions in modern technology. This challenges the philosophy of technology from the 1960s, which was connected with the so called ‘normative turn’. The traditional philosophy of technology (e.g. A Gehlen's, O. Spengler's and others) interprets the role of technology differently from modern philosophy of technology. ‘The normative turn’ concentrates mainly on social conditions of technological development with the view that technology is not neutral and technological devices are not ‘innocent’. It is also connected with the new role of responsibility in engineering, namely with a subject, object and instance of responsibility in this area. The new requirements are important for education in engineering. The aim of education is the formation of a technological culture which is connected with the transmission of knowledge and the forming of skills and attitudes. The formation of a technological culture means aspiration to the unity of those three elements. The modern challenges mean the new requirements in these three areas; their unity will be expressed in responsible decisions and actions of engineers. The process of education should give foundations for proper and effective practice of the ethics of engineering.

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