Ethics of autopsy
Debate whether autopsies should require family consent, and defend your view with reasoning.
Written CER (3-5 sentences) arguing whether autopsies should require family consent, with a reference to either investigative truth or bodily autonomy in the reasoning.
- 1Do thisDebate whether autopsies should require family consent, and defend your view with reasoning.
- 2Use this resource
- 3Submit thisCER: Written CER (3-5 sentences) arguing whether autopsies should require family consent, with a reference to either investigative truth or bodily autonomy in the reasoning.
- 4Submit it here
- 1CMSD website. Go to clevelandmetroschools.org and click the Clever button.
- 2Clever. Clever opens. Sign in if it asks.
- 3Microsoft (district) login. Use your district Microsoft account (the one for school).
- 4Schoology. Open Schoology, then your class, then Assignments, and find the file named below.
The file to submit is named: Principles of Biomedical Technology (Principles of Biomedical Science) › Unit 1.2 Master the Morgue: Body systems, toxicology evidence, tissue microscopy, gross anatomy, preserved-heart/autopsy alternative. › CEROpen Schoology
Read to prepare for today
Vetted sources picked for today's question. Skim these before you take a position or start the work, so your argument and evidence are grounded.
- CER:
- Claim, Evidence, Reasoning — make a claim, back it with evidence, explain your reasoning.
- SOP:
- Standard Operating Procedure — the exact steps to follow (especially in a lab).
- Tracker:
- Your PLTW progress log where you record completed evidence.
- myPLTW:
- The PLTW course site where you do the online activities — you open it through Schoology.
Minute-by-minute · 80-minute block
💡 Big idea: Autopsy sits at the intersection of individual rights, family grief, and society's need for truth about how people die.
- 0:00Hook: read a brief description of a real autopsy-consent case; brief whole-class reaction
- 0:08Background: who can order an autopsy, and under what circumstances; roles of medical examiner vs. coroner
- 0:18Read the ethics prompt; list one argument for consent requirement and one for mandatory autopsy
- 0:30Small-group debate: pick a side and connect it to investigative truth or bodily autonomy
- 0:52Individual CER writing: position, evidence, reasoning
- 1:10Share two CERs; preview Tuesday tissue-type content and Wednesday lab
- • Today's question has no easy answer and real courts have wrestled with it: after someone dies, who decides what happens to the body?
- • In most states, a medical examiner or coroner can order an autopsy without family consent when the death is sudden, unexplained, or potentially criminal. But many families find this deeply distressing.
- • On the other side: without autopsies, we might never know what actually killed someone. Think about how we learned that asbestos causes cancer, or how early HIV was identified. Autopsies were central.
- • Pick a side today and defend it. Wednesday you will look at the actual tissues under a microscope. Philosophy first, science second.
- 1Read the prompt: Whose body is it after death, and who decides?
- 2List one argument for required consent and one for mandatory autopsy.
- 3Choose a side and connect it to the value of investigative truth.
- 4Argue your claim in your group with one reason and one example.
- 5Post a written CER with your position and supporting evidence.
- • I can articulate competing values around autopsy consent.
- • I can defend a claim with reasoning.
- • A medical examiner can perform a forensic autopsy without family consent when the cause of death is unknown, suspicious, or legally required to be investigated.
- • Autopsies serve public-health purposes beyond individual cases: they detect patterns of disease, workplace hazards, and criminal activity.
- • The ethical tension is between bodily autonomy (which ends at death) and the rights of family, state, and public health.
Your PLTW work today
Unit 1.2 Master the Morgue: Body systems, toxicology evidence, tissue microscopy, gross anatomy, preserved-heart/autopsy alternative. · Ethics of autopsy
Day 1 of this lesson. Open this exact section in myPLTW (reached through Schoology), then do the work below.
Do this: Log in to myPLTW and open Lesson 1.2 Master the Morgue. Read the unit overview before Tuesday's class.
Mark the Lesson 1.2 overview task complete in myPLTW.
You finished the Lesson 1.1 evidence work last week. Today starts Lesson 1.2 Master the Morgue. The overview should be read by the end of today.
myPLTW screenshot showing the Lesson 1.2 Master the Morgue overview task marked complete.
All PLTW activities are completed inside the PLTW course environment — this page only gives direction. Submit producibles on Schoology.
Today's PLTW tracker
Check things off as you work, then submit. This tells Mr. Mendoza how you're doing so he can help the class. It does not replace turning in your producible on Schoology.
Use the code Mr. Mendoza gave you, not your name. Saved on this device.
Unit 1.2 Master the Morgue: Body systems, toxicology evidence, tissue microscopy, gross anatomy, preserved-heart/autopsy alternative. · Ethics of autopsy
Log in to myPLTW and open Lesson 1.2 Master the Morgue. Read the unit overview before Tuesday's class.
You finished the Lesson 1.1 evidence work last week. Today starts Lesson 1.2 Master the Morgue. The overview should be read by the end of today.
This is how Mr. Mendoza sees the class keeping pace with PLTW. Be honest, it only helps if it is accurate.
🎯 Debate whether autopsies should require family consent, and defend your view with reasoning.
- Read the prompt: Whose body is it after death, and who decides?
- List one argument for required consent and one for mandatory autopsy.
- Choose a side and connect it to the value of investigative truth.
- Argue your claim in your group with one reason and one example.
- Post a written CER with your position and supporting evidence.
CER: Written CER (3-5 sentences) arguing whether autopsies should require family consent, with a reference to either investigative truth or bodily autonomy in the reasoning.
Submit on SchoologyUpload by 11:29 PM for full credit.
| Task | Who |
|---|---|
| Read the prompt: Whose body is it after death, and who decides? | _______ |
| List one argument for required consent and one for mandatory autopsy. | _______ |
| Choose a side and connect it to the value of investigative truth. | _______ |
| Argue your claim in your group with one reason and one example. | _______ |
| Post a written CER with your position and supporting evidence. | _______ |
Working solo? Put your own name in "Who" for every row.
- I can articulate competing values around autopsy consent.
- I can defend a claim with reasoning.
Resources & readings
Hand-picked materials for this lesson. Class file items open the document directly; the rest are vetted readings and interactives from other biomedical programs.
Lab & supplies
This unit's vocabulary
Tap the speaker to hear a term. Weekly vocabulary task: add two of these terms to your notebook glossary with a definition and an example in your own words.
WebXam practice
Cumulative WebXam review
A quick mixed-review pulling questions from earlier units plus today, so the WebXam material stays fresh.
Where this leads — careers
What today's skills lead to. These are real health-science careers this course builds toward. Tap one to see, on the US Department of Labor's O*NET site, what the job actually involves, what it pays, and how fast it is growing.
What to do if you were absent
Watch the recorded autopsy-ethics prompt and post a written CER on whether autopsies should require family consent.
John Carroll Philosophy for ChildrenThen submit your CER on Schoology.
Class still runs. Complete the online activity above (it's self-guided). Need the concept taught without a teacher? Use this authoritative explainer:
Khan Academy: human body systems (Health and medicine)- CompleteEvery required part of the artifact is present, nothing left blank.
- AccurateThe science and the data are correct and match the evidence.
- Scientific reasoningYou explain your claim with evidence and reasoning (CER), not just an answer.
- Professional communicationClear, organized, labeled, and written the way a clinician or scientist would.
- SubmittedTurned in the right way (Schoology for routine work) and confirmed.
Drop your Tue, Sep 15, 2026 · Ethics of autopsy here. Use a clear file name (your initials + project). Routine work still goes to Schoology (via the CMSD portal).
Upload a project