Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

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angrysoba
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Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by angrysoba »

Hello everyone!

I made a terrible mistake recently when I agreed or rather offered to teach a class of very simple philosophy to some non-native students of English. However, having confidently stated that I would give some classes on a) the history of Western philosophy, b) logical fallacies and critical thinking, c) free will, d) consciousness, e) theoretical ethical problems such as the trolley problem, f) practical ethics - vegetarianism, charity, etc... and g) artificial intelligence, I suddenly realized how difficult it would be to come up with materials that lay out the problems in a straightforward way.

Of course, this was stupid of me, and I really, really, really ought to have known better, but would anyone like to throw down a rope ladder into this massive hole I have dug for myself and point me towards any teaching materials I can use.

As an example, I was thinking of teaching a little bit about the question of how we can know anything exists. I thought I might start with questions about what we think we know for certain exists. Maybe students can have a worksheet asking them to place various objects such as my desk, unicorns, the number 2, my best friend, into boxes such as "Exists", "Doesn't exist", "Don't know" and asking how we can be sure about it (hoping to elicit the senses), and then, perhaps bring in Descartes, maybe a scene from the Matrix, some skeptical hypotheses and the simulation argument. I think I will use some video in class, discussion questions and worksheets. Can anyone let me know of any go-to sources I should check out?
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Immanuel Can
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Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by Immanuel Can »

Intro-level survey text...

Stickney, J. (ed.) Philosophy: Thinkers, Theories and Questions. (Whitby: McGraw Hill, 2011). It'll be understandable at the level you need.

Ask, if you want more. But that'll let you scaffold a course such as you describe.
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Arising_uk
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Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by Arising_uk »

Sophies world.

https://www.teachphilosophy101.org/

Google.

How long is the course?

Basically break it down into the standard categories http://www.importanceofphilosophy.com/F ... sMain.html
Impenitent
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Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by Impenitent »

Looking at philosophy - Donald Palmer

good cover of the subject with a comedic edge

highly recommended

-Imp
angrysoba
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Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 1:16 am

Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by angrysoba »

Immanuel Can wrote:Intro-level survey text...

Stickney, J. (ed.) Philosophy: Thinkers, Theories and Questions. (Whitby: McGraw Hill, 2011). It'll be understandable at the level you need.

Ask, if you want more. But that'll let you scaffold a course such as you describe.
Thanks. That looks interesting. I don't suppose you know any way of seeing inside the book do you (aside from buying it, obviously)?
angrysoba
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 1:16 am

Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by angrysoba »

Arising_uk wrote:Sophies world.
Ah! A nice one. I read most of that book about twenty years ago and I should get myself a copy.
Arising_uk wrote:https://www.teachphilosophy101.org/

Google.
That looks excellent. Thanks. I will have a look through the various pages.
Arising_uk wrote:How long is the course?
It is only 8 weeks. 1.5 hour lecture/classes so it is really only getting the feet wet and introducing some discussion.
Arising_uk wrote:Basically break it down into the standard categories http://www.importanceofphilosophy.com/F ... sMain.html
Cheers. I certainly want to start out pointing out the different categories of philosophy. I expect I will skip aesthetics though.

That site has an interesting section on "evil ethics".

I like this one: "Vegetarianism is a hodgepodge of faulty abstractions, irrational conclusions, and lack of logical vigor. It is a mind killer, though. It is so incoherent, any attempt to integrate it can only result in epistemological chaos. It screams that morality is absurd, and that anyone who takes it seriously is a fool." :D
angrysoba
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Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 1:16 am

Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by angrysoba »

Impenitent wrote:Looking at philosophy - Donald Palmer

good cover of the subject with a comedic edge

highly recommended

-Imp
Another very interesting looking book, thanks!
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Immanuel Can
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Re: Teaching materials for a philosophy course (online or textbooks)

Post by Immanuel Can »

angrysoba wrote:Thanks. That looks interesting. I don't suppose you know any way of seeing inside the book do you (aside from buying it, obviously)?
I'll bet if you contacted the publisher and asked for an excerpt or a free preview copy, you'd get one. And they'd send one especially fast if they knew you were considering it for a course associated with a particular educational institution.

Some publishers make you send a text back when you're done looking, if you don't buy it or order a set...but some don't. You can ask. I'll bet they'd rather have you considering them than not, and they'll probably help you out quickly.

So I'd contact their sales department.
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