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415.624.01
Ethical, Legal and Social Implications in Genetics and Genomics Over Time

Location
East Baltimore
Term
4th Term
Department
Health, Behavior and Society
Credit(s)
3
Academic Year
2022 - 2023
Instruction Method
In-person
Class Time(s)
Thursday, 3:30 - 6:20pm
Auditors Allowed
No
Available to Undergraduate
No
Grading Restriction
Letter Grade or Pass/Fail
Course Instructor(s)
Contact Name
Frequency Schedule
Every Other Year
Next Offered
2024 - 2025
Prerequisite

It is recommended, though not required, that students have taken a genetics course.

Description
We have known from the beginning of the Human Genome Project that exploring the genetics of our human community and operationalizing the resulting information in clinical care and beyond would raise significant ethical, legal, and social issues that all of us would have to grapple with. This course will give you the tools to understand a range of these issues, their history, and their future, so that we can all do our part to help maximize the benefits of this science and minimize the risks.
Examines the ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) of human genetics and genomics through the lens of significant and field-defining periods and events in the history of the field. Examines the ELSI raised by those events, and how the events have shaped and defined the current state of the science and emerging scientific, ethical, policy and public health issues.
Learning Objectives
Upon successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
  1. Identify some of the defining moments in the ELSI history of human genetics, and discuss why they are important
  2. Analyze the ethical, legal and social issues at play during these moments in history
  3. Discuss how these defining moments have influenced contemporary and emerging issues in the genetic sciences
Methods of Assessment
This course is evaluated as follows:
  • 40% Presentation(s)
  • 25% Discussion
  • 35% Final Paper