Developing an Ethical Mindset: The Ethics Grand Jury Mock Trial for Graduate Students

Counselor Educators providing instruction to counselors-in-training need to have a variety of activities and assignments to support the development of an ethical mindset. Because counselors face ethical dilemmas regularly, it is important that graduate programs provide a strong foundation for new counselors to identify ethical issues and take appropriate action. There are no uniform or standard approaches for teaching counseling graduate students how and when to apply ethical codes and related principles, however, they are expected to be competent in the subject matter upon graduation. This article outlines a method for increasing participation in ethics courses and enhancing sensitivity to ethical issues through the grand jury mock trial classroom activity. To encourage classroom implementation, step-by-step instructions are provided.