The presentations this past week have been very interesting.
One aspect of the presentations that I have enjoyed and learned a lot from is
the variety of ethical questions that people are exploring through their
research. While many people have presented on similar topics, many of them have
explored different ethical concerns that their topics may raise. I feel that
these differing ethical questions add to the ideas we have developed over the
past semester. It has allowed me to look at many of the topics we have
discussed throughout the semester from varying perspectives, allowing me to
develop a better understanding of these sometimes complex and controversial
situations surrounding adoption. We have talked a lot about looking at both
sides of an adoption issue, whether it is birthmothers and birthfathers, adoptees
and adoptive parents, or the social workers that help with the adoption process
helping us to wrap our head around the ethics of these adoptions situations.
They are all looking at a situation with a unique perspective and insight on
adoption. Looking through all these different lenses on the subject helps those
of us on the outside of adoption understand the whole process better. What
these presentations have confirmed for me about what we have learned this past
semester, is the need for people involved with adoption to go into it with and
open mind. Every adoption situation is different, every family is different,
the challenges that some adoptive families have are not the same as others,
even family structures may vary, but through keeping an open mind about the
process and those who have been a part of it allows us to better understand
each other better as a whole. My take away from the semester is that adoption,
as will most things in life, is much more complicated then it appears to be on
the surface. It has taught me that it order to understand something you really
have to dig into it and try to understand as many aspects of it as possible
before making any sort of judgment about a situation. Knowing as much as you
can about an issue and exploring all sides and consequences is what will allow
for everyone involved in order to get the most out of it. Deciding on an issue
too quickly will not lead to a full understanding.
--Mary S.
