Calls for Abstracts

The American Philosophical Association Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy invites abstracts for two sessions to take place at the APA Eastern Division meeting, January 4–7, 2017, in Baltimore, MD.

Teaching Philosophy across the Pre-College/College Boundary

This session, organized with the APA Committee on Pre-College Instruction in Philosophy and the American Association of Philosophy Teachers, will explore the teaching of philosophy across the boundary between pre-college and college classrooms. We invite conversation about pedagogy among philosophers who have some experience teaching philosophy in both of these settings: What practices in the college classroom might transfer well to the K–12 philosophical inquiry classroom? What pedagogical practices specific to philosophy for children might engage college students?

The deadline to submit abstracts for this session is Monday, August 29. More information about the session, including detailed instructions on how to apply, is available on the APA website.

Philosophy under Fire: How to Convey to Stakeholders the Value of Teaching Philosophy

This session, organized with the APA Committee on the Status and Future of the Profession and the American Association of Philosophy Teachers, will approach ways to articulate and convey the value of philosophy teaching to administrators, board members, and government officials. We are looking, in particular, to share the experiences of philosophers who recently have had to fight for the survival of their departments.

The deadline to submit abstracts for this session is Wednesday, August 31. More information about the session, including detailed instructions on how to apply, is available on the APA website.

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

Best wishes,

Alexandra Bradner
Chair, APA Committee on the Teaching of Philosophy

The Character Experiment

During the Spring 2015 semester in my introductory ethics courses, I tried something new that I first heard about through my friend Russell DiSilvestro. I suspect this assignment will sound strange to many philosophy professors. I asked the students to complete a project, “The Character Experiment,” in which they would pick 3 virtues to attempt to cultivate over the course of the semester.

“The purpose of our examination is not to know what virtue is, but to become good, since otherwise our inquiry would be of no benefit to us.”
-Aristotle 

Prior to describing and giving them the assignment, we read Greg Bassham’s “Virtue-Centered Approaches to Education: Prospects and Pitfalls,” Virtues in Action, Michael W. Austin, ed. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013), pp. 11-22. This set the stage and offered a rationale for completing this type of experiment, recognizing some of its potential strengths and weaknesses. We also read James Gould, “Becoming Good: The Role of Spiritual Practice,” Philosophical Practice 1, no. 3 (2005): 135–47, to offer a framework and some practical suggestions. And we discussed the relevance of the experiment to the theories and issues we studied over the course of the semester.

"Teaching Practical and Applied Ethics" Facebook Group

David Killoren has created an engaging Facebook group "Teaching Practical and Applied Ethics" with this description:

This is a group for people who teach applied ethics (including biomedical ethics, business ethics, etc.). Let's share articles and news stories that are relevant to applied ethics, discuss pedagogical problems and their solutions, tell funny stories from the classroom, and so on.

It is a "closed" group, but anyone can ask to be added. (Shared with David's permission!)

Your one-stop Intro to Philosophy shop

Update: This site has been given an attractive redesign and is now edited by Erin Tarver.

Villanova's John Immerwahr, an ISW reader and enthusiast, has alerted me to his attractive new website, Teach Philosophy 101. As its name suggests, Tø101 is an open source collection of materials and resources for teaching to Introduction to Philosophy, with good stuff both for those new to the special challenges of Intro and those looking to refresh or revamp their Intro courses. John's site is nicely organized and he's looking for other links and resources related to teaching Intro. I'd encourage everyone to head over and check it out.

Undergraduate Diversity Institutes in Philosophy

A number of undergraduate diversity institutes in philosophy are now accepting applications for their 2016 sessions. These institutes operate independent of one another, but they share the overarching goal to encourage and support undergraduates from underrepresented groups in philosophy. Each institute normally accepts 10-20 students per year. The following institutes are now accepting applications: Philosophy in an Inclusive Key (PIKSI) – PIKSI-Rock (June 13-22, 2016) and PIKSI-Boston (July 17-23, 2016). Application deadline: March 21, 2016. Rutgers Summer Institute for Diversity in Philosophy – July 10-17, 2016. Application deadline:May 9, 2016. Summer Immersion Program in Philosophy  at Brown University (SIPP@Brown) – July 17-30, 2016. Application deadline: March 15, 2016. UCSD Summer Program for Women in Philosophy – June 20-July 1, 2016. Application deadline:March 1, 2016. UMass Dartmouth Summer Program for Diversity: Logic – May 22-28, 2016. Application deadline:April 18, 2016. Undergraduates and recent graduates from underrepresented groups, including women, African Americans, Chicano/as and Latino/as, Native Americans, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, LGBTs, individuals from  economically disadvantaged communities, and people with disabilities, are urged to apply. We encourage you to spread the word about these and other opportunities  to your undergraduate students, and to consider serving as their sponsor. Faculty sponsors mentor students, helping them to prepare their applications, and, when possible and appropriate, work with the students after the summer institute to help further the gains the students have made. All the best, Amy E. Ferrer Executive Director

Don't Forget to Participate in the APA's Teaching Workshop

Don't forget to participate in the APA's Teaching Workshop over at the APA Blog.

Teaching Questions

The APA's Teaching Committee has been working hard to launch a Teaching Workshop as part of the newly minted APA blog. This initiative is an important way to make sure that supporting pedagogical development remain central to the APA's mission and to the profession. Please consider submitting your questions to us. And if you're interested in contributing answers, please get in touch as well.

PhilTeacherWorkshop (at) gmail.com