Critical thinking and democracy?

Readers,

Can any of you point me to work linking critical thinking and democracy? I'm particularly interested in work that proposes that education in critical thinking is a particularly apt or essential goal for education in democratic societies. Thanks!

Announcing new Wilson Prize for essay on philosophy teaching

REMINDER: The submission deadline is October 1, 2015.

Teaching Philosophy is pleased to announce a new essay prize, the Arnold Wilson Prize. Details here and below the fold.

Call for abstracts: 'Our Obligations to Adjuncts'

Call for Abstracts: 2016 Pacific APA Session

“Our Obligations to Adjuncts”

Organized by the APA Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy

Deadline: Friday, October 2, 2015

The American Philosophical Association (APA) Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy invites abstracts for its upcoming session, “Our Obligations to Adjuncts,” planned for the 2016 Pacific Division Meeting of the APA on March 30-April 3, 2016, in San Francisco, CA. 

According to the AAUP Research Office, non-tenure-track faculty now comprise more than 70% of the professoriate (http://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/Faculty_Trends_0.pdf). In the humanities, the most recent data from the Delphi Project suggest that 46.2% of all humanists teach part-time, while 22.2% teach full-time, but off the tenure track (http://faqs.thechangingfaculty.org/). We suspect these numbers are on the rise. In this session, we’re calling upon the philosophical community to think about these statistics and the individuals hidden behind them.

The Committee is particularly interested both in presentations from ethicists and social-political philosophers who might use their expertise to think about our obligations to contingent faculty and in presentations from department chairs at institutions with particularly humane adjunct policies. In the spirit of active learning, the Committee asks that presenters not read a paper, but plan a more interactive way to engage their audience of peers.

CFA: Teaching students to read philosophy

Call for Abstracts: Central APA Session

“Teaching Students How to Read Philosophy”

Organized by the APA Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy

Deadline: Monday, September 14, 2015

The American Philosophical Association (APA) Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy invites abstracts for its upcoming session “Teaching Students How to Read Philosophy,” planned for the 2016 Central Division Meeting of the APA, March 2-5, 2016, Chicago, IL. With this session, we are interested in exploring challenges and techniques associated with teaching students how to read philosophy’s dense, antiquated, and/or translated texts. The Committee is particularly interested in fresh approaches to this problem and in pedagogical strategies that instructors have employed successfully in the classroom. In the spirit of active learning, the Committee asks that presenters not read a paper, but plan a more interactive way to engage their audience of peers.

Philosophers' Magazine -- on teaching

The Philosophers' Magazine, a well-known UK publication, will focus its next issue on teaching. Preview below the cut:

AAPT: Workshop on Teaching and Learning in Philosophy

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

The American Association of Philosophy Teachers (AAPT)

“To Improve The Quality Of Instruction In Philosophy At All Levels”

Teaching & Learning in Philosophy: Dallas/Ft.Worth

Location:                     North Texas University, Denton, TX

Date:                           Saturday, September 26, 2015

Time:                           9am – 5pm

Application Deadline: August 15, 2015

Description

Participants will read some of the best literature regarding how learning happens, how to design maximally effective courses, and how to improve classroom practice. The goal is not only to provide tips, although we will provide some. Rather, the seminar is designed to enhance participants’ ability to make effective pedagogical choices. The interactive sessions provide opportunities for participants to reflect with colleagues on how to individualize evidence-based best teaching practices to one’s own idiosyncratic teaching contexts. Participants will learn how to identify and select challenging and transformative learning objectives and how to design and assess sequences of learning activities to make the achievement of those goals highly likely. 

Comments from Past Participants

“The seminar shifted and honed the way I think about and practice teaching in substantial ways”

“Inspiring, fascinating, and incredibly helpful”

“A must for anyone who cares about students”

“An intensive boot-camp for learner-centered education”

“Not at all like the typical (mostly useless) “teaching orientation” that most graduate students get”

APA session: The philosophy major

The APA Committee on Teaching Philosophy is seeking participants for a panel on the philosophy major, to be held at the Eastern Division meeting (January 2016, Washington D.C.). The deadline to volunteer is August 10. More details here.

APA session: Advice for job candidates on the teaching demo

The APA Committee on Teaching Philosophy is seeking participants for a panel (Eastern meeting, January 2016, Washington DC) to advise job candidates on teaching demonstrations. The deadline to volunteer is August 17. More details here.

CFP: Teaching Philosophy, etc., at Indiana Philosophical Association

Call for Papers

Indiana Philosophical Association

Fall Meeting, 13-14 November 2015

Earlham College (Richmond, Indiana)

Keynote Speaker

Walter Brogan

Villanova University

Papers in any area of philosophy are welcome. Submitted papers should be (i) no more than

3000 words, (ii) prepared for anonymous review, and (iii) accompanied by a separate page that

includes title, author information (name, affiliation, and contact information), and an abstract

not exceeding 150 words. Materials should be submitted to Prof. Sam Kahn at

indianacfp@gmail.com. Suggestions for commentators and sessions chairs (including self-nominations) are also welcome.

In an effort to draw more diverse submissions, the IPA will host four Special Sessions. They will

address respectively:

• Teaching Philosophy
• Feminist Philosophies
• Environmental Philosophy
• Ancient Greek Political Philosophy

If you are applying for a special session, please indicate so in your e-mail and on your cover

page.

Graduate Paper Prize

The IPA will present an award to the best paper submitted by a graduate student. The award will be

accompanied by a cash prize of $100. Graduate student papers submitted for the competition should be identified as such on the title sheet.

Deadline for Submissions: 1 September 2015

Deadline for Notifications: 1 October 2015

http://ipa-online.info

Why Study Philosophy?

Here is a likely useful resource for philosophy teachers, to help respond to the question, "Why study philosophy?" 

"Why study philosophy?" "See http://www.WhyStudyPhilosophy.com‪ !"

College Success Books?

Has anyone ever assigned a "college success" or "how to be a successful college student"-type book in any of their classes and has any recommendations on good ones? Many are available and I am wondering there are any that anyone has found to be especially useful in providing guidance for students about how to do better in college. Thanks!

CFP: Children, Food, and Philosophy

CALL FOR PAPERS

The American Philosophical Association Committee for Pre-College Instruction in Philosophy (CPIP) is sponsoring a session on Children, Food, and Philosophy to be held at the APA Eastern Division Meeting January 6-9, 2016 in Washington, D.C. 

The CPIP invites presentation proposals about the intersection between children and food. This may include any of the following topics: ethics and food, food justice from farm to table, food activism, the aesthetics of food, local food, the global food system, or food and health.

Send title of presentation, abstract (500 words), and academic or professional affiliation to:

Dr. Beth Dixon

beth.dixon@plattsburgh.edu 

AND

Dr. Sara Goering

sgoering@uw.edu 

Deadline for submission is May 15th, 2015

Handfield: Reflections on the Flipped Classroom

A guest post from Toby Handfield, Monash University:

There is much buzz around my university at the moment about the promise of the flipped classroom. The idea is that the lecture is not an effective method of delivering content, relative to the alternatives we now have. We can deliver content better via videos, Khan academy style, and we can then use our class time for more interactive work with students. Give them questions, have them complete assignments in class, work with them one on one, or get them into small group discussions. So content delivery becomes homework; homework becomes classwork.

There is currently so much confidence that this is a better way to teach that I have more than once heard administrators speak as though the adoption of a flipped classroom paradigm is evidence, in and of itself, of superior teaching quality. No doubt, that is exaggerated. Any pedagogical approach can be implemented badly.

But scepticism aside, many aspects of the flipped classroom are very appealing. Of course we should be using class time in ways that make the most of interactions between teacher and student, and many of us no doubt are trying to do that already. What began to excite me about flipped learning was when I experienced firsthand how powerful a series of short screencasts can be as a means of teaching content. My first exposure was teaching my daughter some mathematics, using the Khan academy. I could see how empowering it was for her to have a series of short videos that could be paused and reviewed at her own pace. I then taught myself some game theory usingGameTheory101.com, created by a PhD student in international relations. The question then became more pressing: if the sort of material I present in lectures can be presented just as well, or possibly better in this online format, then why not use class-time for more constructive, interactive encounters between students and teacher?

So since then I have been toying with changes that would begin to “flip” my own classroom. I experimented with making a few screencasts last year to accompany my lectures in political philosophy and an interdisciplinary unit, which covered topics such as economic efficiency in the context of climate change.

But as I thought further about this model, I wondered: haven’t many of us already, in effect, flipped our classrooms?

Subscribing to Teaching Philosophy

I've been posting information about the contents of Teaching Philosophy for a while, but you may not know how to subscribe. The basic information is here, but a rundown:

• Members of the American Association of Philosophy Teachers receive online access free with membership.
• Annual print subscriptions are $33, $40 for online, $53 or online and print.
• Institutional subscriptions are (as expected). But I'd encourage your libraries to subscribe so that all of your faculty and students have access.

Seeking How to Teach articles

Teaching Philosophy is continuing its highly successful 'How to Teach' series, articles focusing on how to teach common courses in philosophy curricula. Having published articles in the series on critical thinking, early modern philosophy, comparative philosophy, business ethics, metaphysics, and philosophy of science, the journal would be happy to receive proposals for articles focusing on any of the following courses:

• epistemology
• philosophy of language
• philosophy of religion
• ancient philosophy
• environmental ethics
• political philosophy
• philosophy and/through film
• philosophy of law
• the continental tradition
• feminist philosophy

If you'd like to propose an article, please send me an e-mail at mjcholbi*at*cpp.edu. Thanks!

Latest issue of Teaching Philosophy

The latest issue of Teaching Philosophy is now available:

Sarah Cashmore

Changing Values in Teaching and Learning Philosophy: A Comparison of Historic and Current Educational Approaches

This paper examines the pedagogical values inherent in various traditions of philosophy education, from the ancient Greeks to current practices in Ontario high schools, and asks whether our current educational practices are imparting the philosophical values we wish to bestow upon our learners. I compare the approaches of Socrates, Descartes, and Dewey on the nature of philosophy and the pedagogical frameworks they defend for transmitting the “spirit” of philosophy, and then examine the Ontario curriculum guidelines for the teaching of philosophy. In past philosophical traditions, dynamic growth, free questioning, and social responsibility are considered essential to the practice of philosophy. Certain factors in today’s educational institutions limit students’ abilities to achieve those values, although the appeal to these values is the same. I end with recommendations for amendments to the Ontario curriculum expectations that would help put the philosophical development of the individual student more clearly at the centre of these guidelines.

Christopher Gifford

How to Teach Metaphysics

This paper examines the pedagogical values inherent in various traditions of philosophy education, from the ancient Greeks to current practices in Ontario high schools, and asks whether our current educational practices are imparting the philosophical values we wish to bestow upon our learners. I compare the approaches of Socrates, Descartes, and Dewey on the nature of philosophy and the pedagogical frameworks they defend for transmitting the “spirit” of philosophy, and then examine the Ontario curriculum guidelines for the teaching of philosophy. In past philosophical traditions, dynamic growth, free questioning, and social responsibility are considered essential to the practice of philosophy. Certain factors in today’s educational institutions limit students’ abilities to achieve those values, although the appeal to these values is the same. I end with recommendations for amendments to the Ontario curriculum expectations that would help put the philosophical development of the individual student more clearly at the centre of these guidelines.

Alexandra Bradner

How to Teach Philosophy of Science

Philosophy of science is a challenging course to teach. This paper offers suggestions for early-, middle- and late-career professors who teach philosophy of science at the undergraduate or graduate level. The advantages and disadvantages of four different course designs are discussed, and a list of possible syllabus topics is presented. The paper encourages a thoroughgoing approach to inclusive pedagogy: it recommends that we look for ways to highlight a range of underrepresented voices throughout the semester, instead of tacking on one or two feminist readings at the end of a course. The author reports success with two forms of student assessment, in particular: a peer participation grade and a series of short critical response papers. Also covered are learning goals, textbook selection, and faculty assessment.

What are the learning objectives for the philosophy undergraduate major?

Our administration is asking us (well, telling us) to come up with learning objectives for all our programs (BA, MA, PhD). Thinking about what our learning objectives are -- and should be -- made me curious both what other departments think of as the learning objectives for their majors, and what individual philosophers who think hard about their teaching think of as their objectives.

A couple of observations before you comment.

1. Derek Bok, in his book Our Underachieving Colleges, observes, I think rightly, that in most traditional majors the curriculum is designed -- and a lot of the instruction is conducted -- around the tiny fraction of students who will go to graduate school in that discipline. I think this is right largely because it makes sense of most of the conversations I have had with colleagues in my own and different disciplines over the years, and also of the numerous program reviews I have read in recent years.

2. A different point -- I teach two kinds of class, classes which mainly contain majors, and classes that contain no, or almost no, majors. And most of the latter are not gateway classes -- the students are near graduation, and this will be their only philosophy course. I conduct the latter courses very differently, and have somewhat different learning objectives for the students than for the classes which contain majors (though, in those classes, I do have different goals for different students -- in particular, I often have a number of pre-professional students in those classes, and try as much as I can to differentiate instruction accordingly. My request in this post is for you to tell me what the aims for majors should be.

Why do some students become Philosophy majors? Survey questions sought.

My department is  working on a project for the department to try to get more systematic information about why undergrads become philosophy majors (and why students who might, don't).  As one component of that project, we're planning to conduct two online surveys—one of current philosophy majors and another of students who recently took introductory-level philosophy classes.  Obviously we're particularly interested in why women and members of certain racial minorities become majors at lower rates than men, and members of other racial groups. Thing is --being a philosophy department we are not over-endowed with expertise on how to frame or conduct surveys. We are going to enlist the help of experts but my colleague who is heading up the effort asked my department for initial suggestions of survey questions, and I thought, well, why not crowd-source it? Its entirely possible that other departments have already done this successfully, and it is quite likely that some of our readers will have useful suggestions of questions.  So -- suggest ahead.

CFP: APA Newsletter on Teaching Philosophy

The Fall 2015 issue of the APA Newsletter on Teaching Philosophy will be devoted to the special topic of teaching philosophy in non-traditional settings, and we encourage readers to submit papers on this topic. We are interested in papers on pedagogical information and insights, on the particular intellectual challenges these settings present, and especially, on what you have learned about teaching philosophy, and about philosophy, from your experiences.
The following guidelines for submissions should be followed:

• The deadline is March 2, 2015.
•  Papers should be between 10-24 double spaced pp.
• All papers should be sent to the editors electronically. The author’s name, the title of            the paper, and full mailing address should appear on a separate page. Nothing that          identifies the author or his or her institution should appear within the body or within the    notes of the paper. The title of the paper should appear on the top of the paper itself.
• Authors should adhere to the production guidelines that are available from the APA. For example, in writing your paper to disk, please do not use your word processor’s footnote or endnote function; all notes must be added manually at the end of the paper. This rule is extremely important, for it makes formatting the papers for publication much easier.

Contributions should be sent electronically to guest editor Katheryn Doran, Hamilton College via Carolyn Mascaro (cmascaro@hamilton.edu), with “APA Newsletter on Teaching Philosophy submission” in the subject line. After an initial vetting, those papers that will be considered further will be forwarded to the general editors Tziporah Kasachkoff, The Graduate Center, CUNY (tkasachkoff@yahoo.com), and Eugene Kelly, New York Institute of Technology (ekelly@.nyit.edu), as well as to the other Newsletter reviewers Robert Talisse, Vanderbilt University (robert.talisse@vanderbilt.edu), and Andrew Wengraf (andrew@welch-wengraf.fsnet.uk). The papers will be blind-reviewed at all stages.