Theory of Knowledge

TOK Websites

2011-12-11T19:28:00.000Z

http://www.squidoo.com/theory-of-knowledge-forum

Not only does this site give you a link to an interview with Ray Kurzweil, someone we admire for his innovative thinking about consciousness (see our posts under this tab), but it also engages you in an on-line debate which should help you think about the topic for the May 2012 TOK Essay Question 8. Moreover, some of the books recommended on the subject of the debate look interesting in themselves. Definitely a worth a glance!

TOK Websites

2011-11-25T17:41:00.002Z

There are two sites you should be following avidly (one of them especially if you're based in the UK):

1/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/genre/factual/scienceandnature

This is the Radio 4 Podcast website which has recordings of some of the best archive material on science and nature, as well as philosophy, politics, arts, history, ethics and mathematics. In fact, every AOK relevant to your TOK essay and presentation research. The podcasts last from anything between 15 - 45 minutes. The recent one we followed was a fascinating journey into the history of the brain...

2/ http://fr.twitter.com/#!/TOKtweet

If you've been following the toktutor tweets above, another great tweet to follow is 'TOKtweet' as it gives you up to the minute links to web articles on all aspects of TOK and is authored by no less a figure than the writer Richard Lagemaat. Superb for TOK essay and presentation research.

Examples

2011-11-16T10:54:00.000Z

Natural Sciences and Human Sciences

Following on from the precautionary tale of the last post, here’s another approach to the skeptical tradition of thinking about knowledge claims, especially against those made about paranormal events, aliens, miracles and pseudo-scientific theories:

‘Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence’ (Carl Sagan)

A popularized version of:

‘An extraordinary claim requires extraordinary proof’ (Marcello Truzzi)

These statements originate in:

1/ the thinking of the Scottish Philosopher David Hume: “A wise man, therefore, proportions his belief to the evidence” and

2/ the thinking of the French Mathematician Pierre Laplace: “The weight of evidence for an extraordinary claim must be proportioned to its strangeness.”

See a religious examination of the statement here: http://carm.org/extraordinary-claims-require-extraordinary-evidence

and a medical (not literally, but philosophical!) examination here: http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/extraproof.html

and a skeptic’s examination here: http://skeptico.blogs.com/skeptico/2008/01/extraordinary-c.html

Which one do you find most compelling and why?

Some knowledge issues relating to this approach: How far is the skeptical approach to knowledge a practical one? To what extent does a skeptical approach take us nearer to objective knowledge? In what ways does a skeptical approach help or hinder the search for knowledge? Is skepticism about miracles/aliens (or any other extraordinary claim) justified?

Examples

2011-10-21T21:13:00.000+01:00

Ethics and Human Sciences (Politics)

A Precautionary tale for cautious times

‘...action without evidence is justified...’

Towards the end of the third part (itself subtitled, 'The Shadows in the Cave') of a fascinating documentary entitled, “The Power of Nightmares”, the narrator explains how, in the climate of fear subsequent to the 9/11 episode, politicians have turned to a scientific principle to justify their actions: the precautionary principle.

This principle emerged in the early 1990s out of discussions between scientists on the topic of global warming. These experts argued that in the absence of scientific evidence as to whether the polar icecaps were indeed melting and the earth’s surface heating up, governments should nevertheless gear their policies to preventing or minimising the possible effects of global warming. In short, it was justified to plough money into research into the phenomenon as a precautionary measure and wait for the evidence to emerge at a later date. Fairly unscientific approach, it seems.

Now, it appears that governments have taken this principle out of the scientific realm and into the ethical which begs the question: is it justified to act (eg. Incarcerate people for supposed terrorism or invade Iraq) without having good grounds or evidence to do so?

According to the ‘evidentialist’ view, the answer is a firm NO. First, we need to test any claims which propose how we should or should not act, which usually means that we need evidence in advance of committing the act. So, as far as the invasion of Iraq is concerned, it shouldn’t have gone ahead because there was no prior evidence of the presence of weapons of mass destruction.

However, the evidentialist position is not as solid as it first appears. If our belief in the fact that Iraq is a threat is justified by referring to the belief that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, then presumably the belief that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction must be itself justified by reference to a further belief that Iraq has obtained such weapons. This further belief must itself be justified by reference to another belief in how the weapons were obtained and this chain of reference appears to go on ad infinitum. The only counter to this potential infinite regress is to point to a belief which is somehow self-evident, which is pretty precarious for an evidentialist who holds that all our beliefs must be grounded on observable evidence.

According to the precautionary principle, the answer is a resounding YES. It doesn’t matter that there’s no evidence, we are simply acting to prevent the Iraqis from using any weapons of mass destruction because we distrust them. And if someone asks why we distrust the Iraqis, it is enough to say that this doesn’t matter; we have to set a preventative strategy into action as it’s only a matter of time before they start to take over. The evidence of weapons of mass destruction, we are assured, will arrive in time.

The precautionary principle seems to rest on a version of a theory of knowledge known as ‘reliabilism’ which states roughly: it is justified to believe in a state of affairs P

1/ if P is true

2/ if my belief that P is brought about by a reliable mechanism

A ‘reliable mechanism’ might be many things: my senses, my gut feeling, my instinct.

At this point, I hand you over to the discussion of reliabilism by Stephen Law at his blog ‘But I just know’ who provides a lucid explanation of the use and abuse of this idea.

Whatever you do, take the time to watch the three part documentary as a perspective on the word in which we now live.

Examples

2011-09-18T14:32:00.002+01:00

Human Sciences (Education)

If you haven't already come across this website - truthaboutib.com - it's well worth a visit and could make an excellent topic for a presentation.

In order to get a flavour of the website, you could look either at the 'About Us' page or read this article: 'IB - Improvement or Indoctrination?' (you'll have to scroll down the page to see the article).

The writers take very seriously the context of the economic crisis when presenting their arguments, bringing together evidence to suggest that the IBO's approach to education is flawed. Here are a just a few conclusions the website reaches:

1. The IBO is elitist.
2. The IBO doesn't improve standards in low perfprming schools any more than state schools.
3. By following the prescribed IBO curriculum, schools forego control over what they can and cannot teach.
4. The IBO is part of a movement to indoctrinate the minds of the youth of today to adapt themselves to the coming of the 'new world order' - whether this is a socialist movement or not is up for debate.

This latter conclusion seems far-fetched, but the article references a 29 page IBO document published for an IB Latin America Conference in June 2008 entitled, 'The origins, philosophy an principles of the IB diploma and MYP', which uses the phrase 'new world order' in pronouncing the thinking behind its MYP program.

Fascinating, isn't it, that students of IB around the world could be intellectual guinea pigs at the mercy of a ruling elite wishing to bring about social, economic and political change which, presumably, will favour them.

What questions does this raise? What actions does it promote? What wider implicatons does it raise? Are their any valid counter arguments that support what the IBO is doing in education?

So it seems that we are all becoming Borg drones.

Frightening, isn't it. But just remember, questioning everything often leads you to looking more closely at the things you usually take very much for granted so that you don't becme drones.

Examples

2011-08-10T22:44:00.000+01:00

Human Sciences (Economics & Politics)

Riots in England : A summer sandwich

On this month's holiday TOK-menu, we discovered this delicious combination with which to to feed the brain.

Now, before you bite into it, a few words in advance: chew carefully; don’t swallow all at once; MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND!

This is the top half of the sandwich: click on the picture below and listen to this radio interview with Gerald Celente given on August 3rd 2011 (you’ll need to click the purple icon on the bottom left corner of the web page to hear the audio). Note: this is pre-riot talk.

This is the main filling: now go to any news information website or newspaper or magazine and get the full details the events of the riots in England during the last four nights in all their gory aspects.

This is the sauce: while you’re reading about personal experiences and watching the videos, make sure you take the time to listen carefully to every ‘expert's’ attempt to analyze why the riots occurred.

This is the bottom half of the sandwich: now click onto the picture below and listen to this video of Michael C. Ruppert presented about August 8th 2011 (you won’t be able to avoid the sales pitch towards the end of the video…). Note: this is post-riot talk.

Enjoy your meal.

Examples

2011-03-16T12:31:00.001Z

Human Sciences - Economics, Philosophy, Psychology
It's a question of happiness (Part 1)

Just before Christmas 2010, the new government in the UK were promoting their ideas about how to find a more efficient way of measuring the population's happiness. Here's something that David Cameron said that interested us:

“Wellbeing can’t be measured by money or traded in markets. It’s about the beauty of our surroundings, the quality of our culture and, above all, the strength of our relationships. Improving our society’s sense of wellbeing is, I believe, the central political challenge of our times.”

Oh dear. When a politician starts to ponder philosophically about something, it might be a good idea to take precautions...

Isn’t he really speaking about ‘happiness’? Why then substitute this word with ‘wellbeing’? And why speak of General Well Being (GWB) as a measurable index that defines our quality of life and so turn it into a political concept.

Well, he doesn’t have to. Happiness has always been a political issue, if by ‘politics’ we mean how we organise the relationships between individual people in a group so that the power of each strengthens or enhances the power of the whole.

Where does the idea of wellbeing leave happiness? Is happiness less desirable now that we have a new ‘political challenge of our times’?

We would argue a resolute NO.

We can let the politicans do what they like with their GWB which will have the following positive effects on the idea of happiness:

It takes happiness out of both the market place and the political arena - we don’t have to think of being happy as involving some sort of ‘economic transaction’ that gives us a kind of political status in society.
It maintains the idea that happiness is not a measurable quantity – you might well be able to devise a GWB index, but never a GH index.
It will open a space in which to reclaim the importance of being happy in our emotional lives.

The real question is: how far can Government control happiness, like they intend to do with wellbeing? And indeed, is it desirable for Government to do so?

The worry is that by re-defining the focus, the Government is trying to shape our knowledge and understanding of what it means to be happy according to their terms, which might not always be in our best interests. It can lead to manipulating people’s behaviour, coercing them to behave in line with their interests and why? History tells us that it is usually in order to keep power.

So keep a detached eye on their happiness tampering in the near future...

Events

2011-02-27T13:15:00.001Z

The Big Questions, Sunday 27th February 2011

We appeared on 'The Big Questions' this morning at King Edward VI School, Handworth, Birmingham, which you can catch on the BBC i-player if you click the picture above - it should be available for a week, until the next program.

The three questions debated were:

1. Should Britain be ashamed of its arms trade?

2. Should adoption be colour blind?

3. Have we been here before?

We didn't get asked to contribute this time, but if we had, our statement would have branched all three debates.

First of all, the Hindus believe that reincarntion is the process by which the soul evolves into a higher plane of consciousness to become at one with the divine forces of creation, destruction and preservation. But we cannot do this passively; we have to act. Hence the philosophy of karma or action as manifest most eloquently in the epic poem The Bhagavad Gita which is part of the greater epic the Mahabharata which itself tells the story of the rise and fall of two dynasties which end up in a great war to settle once and for all the fate of humanity.

The Gita articulates the philosophy of action through the story of the warrior Arjuna who turns to face the opposing armies and has a sudden sense of self-doubt because he realises that these armies are full of people he knows: family and friends and colleagues. He turns to Krishna (Arjuna does not know that Krishna is the Lord in human form) and puts down his bow in a state of despondence. "How can I kill these people?" he asks.

Krishna then explains, very poetically, that whatever Arjuna thinks or feels at this time is irrelevant; he has to know that he was put on this earth to act and everyone's actions flow from their particular nature. Arjuna's nature is to be a fighter; the greatest bowman on this earth. Therefore, he must fulfil his nature and do what he does best - he must be the best that he can be in action - whch means to take up his bow and fight.

So here we have the essence of reincarnation:

every living thing has a particular role or action to fulfil on this earth
until this action is fulfilled, we continue to be reborn in different forms so that we can finally fulfil what we were made for

Very compelling argument, isn't it? But it raises those perennial questions: how do you know what you're made for? What is your specific role on this planet?

Well, like every religion, and in the absence of any real physical evidence, the answer is that we have to take our guidance from some higher moral authority who knows what God had in mind for us - either an incarnation of God's words (like the holy scriptures), or of God himelf (like Krishna), or some enlightened human being (a guru or Pope figure, perhaps). Some of you sceptics might not like this very much, but there it is.

Now, returning to the other two debate questions about arms and adoption: clearly Krishna wouldn't have minded the British selling arms to Arjuna, as long as this helped him to fulfil his action. Neither would he mind the colour/gender/race/religion of an adoptive child's parents, as long as they helped the child to fulfil what it was made for on this earth.

Notes on Structure and Layout

2011-01-03T11:29:00.001Z

Using sources in Essays and Presentations

We came across the following passage when re-reading that classic work of investigative journalism, All the President's Men. It struck us that we could all learn lessons from the anecdote, not only about how to use sources in TOK essays (and how not to), but also about the nature of evidence. Read the paragraph and decide what lessons you learn.

Here are two important Knowledge Issues that emerge from the passage: to what extent is common sense important in establishing the truth of knowledge claims or the reliability of evidence? What are the limitations of common sense?

The instructor had assigned the students to read some medieval documents that gave somewhat conflicting accounts of Henry IV’s famous visit to Canossa in 1077 to seek Pope Gregory’s forgiveness. According to all of them, the King had waited barefoot in the snow outside the Vatican for four days. Woodward had pored over the documents, made notes and based his paper on the facts on which most of the accounts agreed. All the witnesses had Henry IV out there in the snow for days with his feet bare. The instructor had failed Woodward['s paper] because he had not used common sense. No human being could stand for days barefoot in the snow and not have his feet froze off, the instructor said. “The divine right of kings did not extend to overturning the laws of nature and common sense.” (p. 221)

in
WOODWARD, B. & BERNSTEIN, C., All the President’s Men, London, Quartet Books, 1974, 349 p.

Examples

2010-12-21T09:13:00.000Z

Ethics and Human Sciences (Politics and Media)

The follwing video outlines the current issue of Wikileaks and throws up so many knowledge issues regarding freedom of speech, information and, perhaps above all, notions of a just war.

As TOK students, it is imperative to engage with these issues and formulate them clearly for yourselves, especially if you decide to use them as part of an essay or as the basis for a presentation.

For example:

to what extent is the relationship between information and knowledge mutually exclusive? In other words, we can base knowledge on information, but can information alone be considered to be knowledge?
how far does the documentary support or subvert the idea that Wikileaks is simply 'manufactured dissent'? The suggestion is that instead of preventing websites like this from publishing top secret material, the authorities are using them to disseminate their own propaganda.
in what ways could the 'war on terrorism' be judged as being a 'war crime' against humanity?

The video provides ample material to think about these questions from a TOK perspective.

Examples

2010-12-18T11:03:00.002Z

History

The Death of democracy

This is a talk given by an American writer, Naomi Woolf author of The End of America: Letters of Warning to a Young Patriot, Chelsea Green Publishing Co, 2009, 192p. It’s interesting for TOK purposes for the way in which it analyses a common myth we have about history: we study history to learn from our mistakes.

Woolf argues that history actually enables those in positions of power (especially budding tyrants) to extract a template for the policies and laws they create to organize their people; a template, moreover, which is designed to reduce the democratic rights of people. She calls it a ‘blueprint’ for the death of democracy. Dramatic language, but she appears to have cause for using such a tone. The message appears to be: we surely do learn from our mistakes, but only to reinforce that other tenet of historical truth – history repeats itself.

Look out for the following phrases and examine how they relate to knowledge and its use and abuse:

‘the blueprint is predictive’

‘it was human nature to abuse power’

‘the fascist shift’

‘tipping points’

‘the patriots' task'

The full talk was given at Kane Hall, University of Washington, Seattle, October 11, 2007, but you can also watch it in small chunks with visual representations of the arguments and examples presented by Wolf:

1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFYZDVUVQ1U

2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY4N_xnvWjw&feature=related

3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCJPSxgi2WA&feature=related

4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV5wmBf4C20&feature=fvw

5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb6jITXmdGE&feature=related

6. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUGyijkYqA8&feature=related

7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5tu_7Dd1a8&feature=related

8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIJgSB_IJmU&feature=BF&list=QL&index=2

Examples

2010-12-08T11:49:00.001Z

Natural and Human Sciences (The problem of consciousness, Part 6)

Here's the original question: is consciousness something irreducibly subjective and private (like the dualists believe) or is it something outward – a physical manifestation of inward states linked to our brain functions and nervous system?

We propose two theories to explain the mystery without (hopefully) explaining it away:

1. Consciousness is an 'emergent property'
2. Consciousness is 'built into' our body functions

Consciousness is an emergent property

This idea runs counter to the scientific/materialist belief that consciousness, and for that matter all biological life, is reducible to its individual physical parts; and it appears to address the ‘explanatory gap’ pointed out by Jackson that science can’t explain everything in terms of physical facts/causes.

The idea of ‘emergence’ is related to the development of the ‘science’ of ‘chaos’ and ‘complexity’ (click on the picture above for further information). These theories depend on a specific understanding of causality that is not based on the traditional reductionist thinking. You do not take apart a complex system such as a rat to see how the different components work in order to cause the rat to function. Instead, you look at the system as a whole. Applied to consciousness, there is a sequence of physical causes to take into account, but these do not follow the 'top-down' series of events whereby conscious behaviour originates from a prior set of physical causes. Rather, we must look in a 'bottom-up' way at consciousness as a whole in order to come to grips with the nature of the mind. This approach allows us to think that we are somehow more than the sum of our parts.

Chaos theory

In its simplest form, chaos theory presents the idea that simple systems or organisms display behaviours which are too complex to analyse in terms of their constituent parts and yet present underlying patterns or rules as part of their complex behaviour. We have to study the interaction between the units to explain their complex behaviour.

For example, take one ant. On its own, it appears to behave randomly. Add another ant and again they seem to behave in a similarly unpredictable fashion. Add a group of ants and things start to happen: they begin to display organised behaviour, working towards the same end for the whole colony. This complex behaviour of ants is an emergent property. One ant on its own is not intelligent; intelligence somehow resides in the collective; it is based on the existence of a set of physical conditions or simple rules (chain of causes and effects?) that makes their communal behaviour possible. The complex behaviour is somehow over and above the physical facts necessary for the ants’ communal behaviour, but wouldn’t exist independent of them.

Complexity theory

Complexity theory, on the other hand, suggests that complex systems and organisms often produce very simple outcomes; outcomes which can be explained in accordance with the capacity for their individual constituent parts for ‘self-organisation’.

For example, consider the millions of people that that make up a nation and interact to create a society. Just by looking at one single person, you couldn’t tell that he would be able to operate with other people in this way to create this nation or this society. Nationhood or society takes on a life and identity of its own by means of the interactions of the individuals who live within the nation. Without the physical fact of individuals’ existing within a nation, there couldn’t be a national identity. We can’t predict what a complex system like a society will evolve into, but this only serves to underline the mystery of life.

Perhaps, consciousness is neither a private realm of subjectivity, nor simply a public expression of internal brain states; it is an emergent property. That is, it needs various physical facts like the features and functions of the brain, the nervous and muscular system and a set of simple rules, but cannot exist independently of them. These individual parts interact, according to the rules and consciousness spontaneously emerges.

There are definite problems with these theories. For example, where do these 'rules' come from? Moreover, what sort of property is an 'emergent' property, if it isn't physical or mental?

Examples

2010-11-24T12:26:00.010Z

Natural and Human Sciences (The problem of consciousness Part 5)

This time last year we started a thread of posts on the idea of consciousness. We got somewhat distracted, but here's a follow up... (see the tab on 'Consciousness' to view the previous posts.)

A deterministic argument against dualism

Scientists refute both forms of dualism by resorting to a deterministic argument to explain behaviours like choosing things.

Choosing anything can be explained by pointing to a chain of physical causes and effects which links the initial decision to a combination of brain activity, the nervous system, muscle movement and the environment. The series of physical causes comprising of these factors, it is argued, explain or determine why I chose to wear a blue shirt this morning instead of a white one.

Scientists would have us believe that if they were supplied in advance with a knowledge of all the laws of nature, as well as all of the physical facts relating to my body and environment just a few moments before I chose my blue shirt, they would, in principle, be able to predict the outcome of my decision. The choice of blue shirt, in other words, was fixed in advance by how things were physically.

What are the implications of this?

1. There is no place for a non-physical fact to play a part in the chain of cause and effect – a mental fact or property couldn’t affect the ways things turned out. I would have always chosen the blue shirt.

2. According to dualists, the mind or consciousness is at least partly non-physical and they are committed to the view that the mind or mental properties can affect the way things turn out in the physical world (they want their cake and they want to eat it).

3. But if the deterministic explanation is right, the dualist would be forced to accept that he could omit the mind altogether from his belief system, since it is irrelevant to what goes on in the body when we choose things.

4. However, he might point to the absurdity of the situation; that of course we couldn’t get rid of the mind or consciousness since it makes us what we are.

5. We would then have to point out to him that, according to the ‘chain of cause and effect’ argument, the mind can only affect the outcome of my physical actions if the mind is itself physical.

6. The dualist is left with two alternatives:

a. Holding on to an inconsistant belief in the duality of the mind.
b. Rejecting dualism altogether.

Science appears to win the argument that the world only consists of physical facts. But some people find it difficult to accept that human consciousness is so easily reducible and that our actions are physically pre-determined.

The Black and White room argument against materialism

In the 1980s, the philosopher, Frank Jackson, devised the following thought experiment in a defence of the dualistic position (click on the picture above.)

Imagine a girl, Mary, is born and raised in a room where she can only experience black and white. The scientists who study her have made sure that she has no other colour experiences. She only ever experiences black, white and shades of grey. Mary begins to study science and eventually becomes a world renowned expert in brain science. She discovers everything that goes on inside the brain of people when they have colour experiences – she learns, for example, all the physical facts possible in the chain of causes and effects that explain what happens when people have the experience of seeing red.

Now one day, one of the scientists who’s been studying her development, brings a red tomato into the room. In spite of everything she knows about the ‘experience of red’, Mary is shocked. She does not know that to experience red feels like this. How could she? She’d never experienced redness before. Evidently, Mary has learned a new fact – the fact that experiencing red feels ‘like this’. She thought she knew all the physical facts pertaining to colour experiences. This fact, she now thinks, can’t be a physical fact. She concludes that the ‘experience of red’ and what this experience ‘feels like’ are two different things. The former may be a physical fact, but the latter is not.

According to Jackson, there are two major implications of this thought experiment:

1. there must be something more than physical facts to explain the existence of consciousness.

2. there exists an ‘explanatory gap’ whereby science falls short: it cannot explain everything in terms of an appeal to physical facts alone.

So we are left with our original distinction: is consciousness something irreducibly subjective and private (like the dualists believe) or is it something outward – a physical manifestation of inward states linked to our brain functions and nervous system?

We appear to be nowhere near a definitive answer as to how this piece of flesh we call a human body comes to be full of thoughts and self-awareness...

Notes on Structure and Layout

2010-11-21T11:47:00.007Z

The ToK Essay: A SEXCI essay – worked example
Imagine that Rose is pondering the 2010 essay title #6:

‘All knowledge claims should be open to rational criticism. On what grounds and to what extent would you agree with this assertion?’

Suppose now that the following line of thought takes place in her mind (think of it as a debate between opposing voices – for ease of understanding, we’ve labeled these voices The Angel, The Daemon and The Other):

The Angel: I agree. If someone claims to know that there’s water on Mars, they better have a good reason to believe this. I read a BBC article which suggests that the scars on the surface are water tracks or valleys which once had flowing water running through them. Reason is a good way of measuring the reliability of knowledge claims. If we didn’t demand reasons for people’s beliefs, all kinds of dangerous beliefs could be passed around.

The Daemon: I disagree. It depends on the kind of knowledge claim, doesn’t it? Take religion, for example. Someone who believes in God may not exactly be able to provide any reasons for his belief that are acceptable to an atheist. It’s a matter of faith. They can point to various things like miracle healings or people’s near-death experiences where a guardian angel appears before them, but they can’t tell the atheist that they have given her any ‘reasons’ to justify their claim. There are some beliefs that cannot be rationally criticized because they have nothing to do with reason.

The Other: Hold your horses, if you have beliefs that are NOT open to rational criticism, then surely you’re holding irrational beliefs and that doesn’t seem right – clearly, it is not inconsistent for me to believe that torture is wrong and yet there are circumstances (reasons) under which it is justified: for example, to gain intelligence that could save many lives. Perhaps the belief in God is like this. You might say that this is ‘dangerous’, but first, I think we have to be clear about what we mean by ‘rational criticism’…

Let’s break down the dialogue into its constituent parts:

S = There is water on Mars

E = Scars on the surface are water tracks

eX = Reason is a good way of measuring the reliability of knowledge claims

C = Belief in God. - Miracle healings or people’s near death experiences. - It’s a matter of faith; some beliefs that cannot be rationally criticized because they have nothing to do with reason.

I = That doesn’t seem right. - if you have beliefs that are NOT open to rational criticism, then surely you’re holding irrational beliefs. - Surely we have to be clear about what we mean by ‘rational criticism’.

There’s no reason why your planning can’t take the form of this to and fro momentum of argumentation, building in any reading material that you've selected and even snippets of conversations that you've had with other students and teachers on the topic.

The internal dialogue might go on as follows:

The Angel: Ah! You mean whether we should follow Plato’s suggestion that knowledge is ‘justified true belief’ – rational criticism means that we must justify our beliefs in the light of reason? If I believe that smoking kills, then first, I must believe this; second, it must be true and third, I need some reasons to explain why I believe this.

The Daemon: Yes, we could do this, but you know the problems that this leads us to. For example, if you justify your belief that smoking kills by explaining that it causes lung cancer, you need to justify your belief in that cause itself by way of another reason and so on ad inifintum.

The Other: Indeed, the old ‘infinite regress problem’. We could dwell forever on possible solutions for this, but why don’t we focus instead on the idea that ‘rational criticism’ means more that we need a method to approach the issue of beliefs: a method which allows us to accept or reject beliefs on the basis of observable evidence.

The Angel (casting a sullen look at her feet): Oh dear! You’re getting much too scientific for my liking.

The Daemon (rubbing his hands together with glee): Now we’re getting somewhere – you’re talking about falsification aren’t you? Well…

Writing like this can be fun, creative and most of all, really opens your mind to alternative arguments.

TOK Websites

2010-11-20T11:37:00.002Z

1. http://mrhoyestokwebsite.com/

This website is based in Patana school, Thailand. Mr. Hoye has constructed a fabulous site whose main interest lies in the suggestions of how to plan your essays and presentations. It also provides thought-provoking articles relating to the differrent aspects of the TOK course which will provide you with ample examples to support your arguments and counter-arguments, as well as a range of useful web links. Above all else, the website is really easy to navigate.

2. http://blogs.triplealearning.com/category/diploma/dp_tok/

Triplealearning is a company that specialises in providing online IB training courses for IB teachers. Once a teacher has been on a course, he can engage in follow-up discussions on the triplealearning blog. They have a blog for every subject on the IB course. The TOK blog is interesting largely for the teaching resources that the teachers share with each other - a vast bank of examples that you could tap into for your essays and presentations!

Notes on Structure and Layout

2010-11-19T21:25:00.004Z

The ToK Essay: Writing with a SEXCI style

Having recently glanced through our copy of The Oxford Union Society Guide to Schools’ Debating,* we came across a section entitled ‘Argumentation (SEXI)’ which explains a ‘technique for thinking about arguments’ – ‘[SEXI] stands for State, EXplain, Illustrate’:

“ ‘State’ means simply to say what your team believes, ‘EXplain’ means providing the logic and reasoning for why that statement is true and ‘Illustrate’ means providing evidence to show that the ‘EXplanation’ is not just theoretical but that there are instances where it is so…”

It occurred to us that a TOK essay might be thought of as presenting an internal debate or dialogue which loosely follows this technique. Now this is nothing new to IB teachers who have taught Philosophy for a number of years. A few years ago, one of the assessment requirements was for students to write a Socratic dialogue on philosophical issue.

Now we’re not suggesting that TOK students write an essay in the form of a Socratic dialogue (although it’s been pointed out to us that there’s nothing in the marking criteria to prevent you from doing this). What we are suggesting is that the Oxford Union’s idea of a debating technique of argumentation might, with one or two adjustments, give you a framework to write the main body of your TOK essays.

Consider this:

S = statement or knowledge claim

E = example or evidence to support the claim

eX = explanation of how the example/evidence is relevant or supports the claim

C = counter-argument (which follows the ‘statement – example – explanation’ procedure above)

I = implication (So what? If we accept all this, what follows? What connections can we make with the other ideas about knowledge? What is the Knowledge Issue?)

The first four parts of the process would make one paragraph of an essay and other paragraphs would utilize the same format with the final point (I) being the opening statement or knowledge claim (S) to start the next paragraph…

It’s the C and the I parts that build in the TOK element to your essay.

A worked example will follow.

*BAILEY, J. & MOLYNEAUX, G., The Oxford Union Society Guide to Schools’ Debating, Oxford Union Society, Oxford, 2005.

Examples

2010-10-02T18:47:00.004+01:00

Human Sciences (Economics)

At the end of last month, stock market experts at StockMarketFunding.com pointed to a potential collapse in the stock market in the middle of October. The date 16th October is mentioned in the following clip:

It's all to do with 'Put Options' and if you can get through this and the rest of the stock market jargon, you'll see that the experts predict a crash in the US stock market that could have serious ramifications all over the world.

Historically, 'Red October' might very well have the same global impact as the fateful 'Black Monday' of 19th October 1987 or the panic of 2008 during 'Black Week' (beginning 6th October) which some argue sparked a global economic crisis, whose fallout we are experiencing at present.

How far does the knowledge of experts created insecurity and fear about the economy? To what extent are their predictions based on reliable evidence? In what ways does their language obfuscate or clarify the reality of the financial situation?

These are all KIs that emerge out of a very real life situation and could be useful to explore as the basis of a TOK presentation. Indeed, if you imagine that the above paragraphs are a set of preparation notes, you'd have a potential script for an introduction to a presentation...

A Polemic on independent thinking

2010-09-27T20:04:00.008+01:00

Following on from the previous post...

Some initial thoughts

While we agree with some of the critic’s insights into students’ use of sources and examples, we still can’t find any coherent reasons as to why teachers should take an ‘aggressive approach’ to steer their students away from using ibtokspot.

Here is, however, the critic’s ‘argument’:

P1: The blog site provides ‘detailed discussion’ of essay titles.
P2: The writer of the blog intends to organise study weekends in order to discuss the 2011 titles ‘in depth.’
Therefore, use of this and other such sites is ‘unacceptable’.

If we put aside the logic (or lack of it) on which this argument is based, the assumption is, of course, that it is not good to ‘collude’ when preparing to do a TOK assessment, especially the essay. At least, not the kind of collusion that happens on ibtokspot.

And what type of collusion is that? Well, presumably the critic believes that the site ‘colludes’ by giving all you TOK students out there answers to the prescribed titles which have the same finality of absolute mathematical certainty as one of those banal examples that keep cropping up in TOK essays: 2 + 2 = 4.

Or does the critic have in mind the type of collusion which implies that students are incapable of thinking for themselves (see point one on ‘Precepts for everyday life’) and making their own judgments about what is right and wrong so they have to go to ‘worrisome’ websites to think for them?

Indeed, it could be the type of collusion that is founded on a belief that teachers themselves are somehow too lazy or incompetent to guide their students in the right direction so that students have to turn elsewhere for solutions – which begs the question of why some schools list ibtokspot as a useful resource...

What is the critic afraid of exactly? Well, we do not know exactly. Although, if we notice the critic’s urgency to police or blacklist the ‘unacceptable’ websites, this would imply that there exists in these sites some sort of insidious criminal intent to undermine the education of our youth; a disease, for which the report will be the ultimate antidote.

It is very clear that the perfidious ibtokspot must be giving the profoundly apathetic student an ‘easy way out’ for his essay preparation; providing some sort of unfair leverage in the market for top grades; presenting an unmerited ‘leg up’, as the English say, to the ‘Can’t be bothered with TOK’ Brigade.

Here, an imaginary dialogue

The critic cries: ‘Let’s make things as difficult as possible for everyone concerned. We do not think that students can think independently, so we must get them to jump through different sized hoops to test them. That’ll teach them nicely.’

Ibtokspot replies (a little understatedly): ‘That’s somewhat patronising don’t you think? Reducing students to the same common denominator (of mediocrity) whereby they need constant molly-coddling, hand-holding and monitoring. Big Brother is watching you!’

The critic adjoins (with a look of admonishment): ‘We don’t mind if our TOK students have help and tuition, but there’s a limit to everything, isn’t there? We can’t have them relying on dodgy websites with questionable authority and badly written articles – my, how un-intellectual and academically shoddy their work will turn out!’

Ibtokspot replies (with forced sympathy which is laced with a hint of irony): ‘Presumably the help and tuition must come solely from within the boundary of a school or some other educational institution which has the best interests of the student at heart; a place which will, moreover, instil in the students the best approach to writing and thinking and do so without clogging their minds with bad practice.’

What do we think?

TWADDLE. RUBBISH. BS.

Now, let us make an observation: the criticism of the website is at best fuzzy and at worst, it’s symptomatic of the kind of narrow-minded and short-sighted, oh yes, and technophobic, hysteria that appears to be plaguing education these days, especially in the UK (refer to the tab labelled ‘Education’) – though it’s by no means exclusive to this island as exemplified by the critic’s report.

Yes, ibtokspot promotes the sceptical approach of questioning everything – even oneself (precept 8) – which implies that everything written on the blog is questionable, so don’t take it as gospel truth (does this really need to be said!)

Yes, ibtokspot is a kind of ‘tutor’ outside of the school environment – in the French sense of the word ‘tuteur’ meaning literally, a stick to support the growth of a sapling (do we really need to go on!)

And yes, ibtokspot stimulates discussion because that is exactly what young people want both in and out of school, especially if no-one else is willing to listen (what else is there to say!)

No, using ibtokspot isn’t cheating, unless of course you lift sentences verbatim from the site and pass them off as your own (say ‘no’ to plagiarism!)

No, the existence of ibtokspot isn’t a threat to the brilliant work of schools and teachers and examiners (bravo!)

And quite categorically no, ibtokspot does not play on, or profit from, the insecurities of students who are struggling with what TOK is all about (even teachers struggle with this!)

To Conclude

Here’s a perfect agricultural analogy: in the field of education, the work of ibtokspot is the manure which helps to fertilise the earth in which the seedling young minds of students grow to think for themselves, be themselves, speak up, feel free to agree and disagree, be honest with themselves and others, be open-minded, avoid being judgemental and to question everything – even their own thinking.

Back to BS again. Just like knowledge, guiding people to think for themselves can either help or hinder us in our day to day relationships with each other and our environment.

But you already knew that didn’t you?

Websites

2010-09-27T19:08:00.002+01:00

ibtokspot.blogspot.com

This is a website that might interest you.

According to one report (click here for a link to a pdf file), ibtokspot is under scrutiny, or at least it should be. The site has been identified as being ‘particularly worrisome’ because...

Well, that’s just it – there appear to be no real reasons to support this claim.

We’ll post something more on this when we’ve had time to ponder. Meanwhile, read the opening 50 or so lines of the report and make up your own minds...

Examples

2010-09-11T19:57:00.018+01:00

Ethics and Human Sciences

We've had a long break from posting over the summer holiday period, but are back with a vengeance with a post on this advert:

Recently aired on British television, this advert encapsulates the common assumptions about male and female relationships in the 21st Century, highlighting the kind of behaviour patterns people commonly display. Put aside the verbal commentary and consider for a moment the visual presentation of the scene:

the girl stays awake after sex worrying about the broken condom while the boy snores contentedly and without a care in the world.

the girl reflects on and worries about the consequences of the situation without the apparent presence of the boy - 'I'm not ready for that one.'

the girl takes responsibility for the consequences of the situation by going to the chemist without having the boy beside her.

even the person who gives a kind and reassuring look from behind the pharmacy counter is a woman - no man in the vicinity.

What does the advert project?

On the one hand, that boys are unconcerned, unthinking, irresponsible and absent when it comes to sexual relations with girls. They do not care as long as they can find sex and for goodness sake don't ask them for committment.

On the other hand, that a girl must be pretty stupid to think that only because she jumps into bed with a boy means that he will love her.

The advert is a great springboard for a potential presentation that explores these assumptions and gets to the reality of the issue.

Nevertheless, thank goodness that somebody somewhere is taking the initiative to make us aware of the possibility of using the day after pill to deal with accidents during sex. So the overall message is: girls and boys wake up! Girls know your bodies the intentions of the boys who you want to be with and boys know your responsibilties to yourself and your girls before and after sex.

TOK Event

2010-04-19T21:08:00.004+01:00

TOK Event! Tok Event! TOK Event!

After the last TOK picnic during Easter weekend, which was washed out owing to the wet English weather, we hope to have another attempt!

Let's hope that the sunshine is out during the next Spring Bank Holiday weekend.

We hope to meet you this time in Birmingham's Victoria Square, just outside the Museum and Art Gallery, next to the statue (pictured above) called 'The River', at 12.00 pm. on Saturday 29th May 2010.

Around the rim of the pool is a quotation from 'Burnt Norton' one of the Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot:

And the pool was filled with water out of sunlight,
And the lotos rose, quietly, quietly,
The surface glittered out of heart of light,
And they were behind us, reflected in the pool.
Then a cloud passed, and the pool was empty.

We'll be sitting by the words 'the lotose rose' - you can just about see the words on the bottom left corner of the picture.

Just a reminder:

Everyone is welcome - please bring a dish of something special to share; bring yourself and anyone else you care about to join in the day's revelry...oh yes, and a little bit of TOK discussion about the things that really matter.

There's no entrance fee and it's a great way of meeting up with people from different backgrounds who have one thing in common - a love for TOK!

Click the picture above to get a link to a map describing how to get there.

As a mark of recognition, either tie a white handkerchief to your rucksack or bag or put a comment on this post to let us know if you're coming, just so that we know who to greet ...

Events

2010-04-18T18:00:00.005+01:00

BBC 1, 'The Big Questions'

We appeared at the last minute on 'The Big Questions' this morning at King Edward VI School, Handworth, Birmingham, which you can catch on the BBC i-player if you click the picture above - it should be available for a week, until the next program.

The three questions debated were:

1. Should mothers get special treatment at work?

2. Does England deserve its own Parliament?

3. Does the law undervalue Christian values?

Our contribution is on the second debate and can be summarised in the following statments (they might seem extremely general, but you don't get much time to express a point of view!)

As far as politics is concerned, we're battling against an extreme scepticism. Our position can be expressed as follows:

It is by no means self-evident that politicians - or Governments - have our best interests at heart (so whether we have an English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish or joint British Parliament is beside the point.)

There is a general tendency in the populace towards unthinking, unquestioning behaviour (people are so brainwashed bythe Media that voting becomes a matter of choosing personalities on superficial grounds much like in well-known reality TV shows.)

Putting these two things together leaves room for a very sceptical conclusion: the people will get the politicians they deserve and thereby the rulers they deserve.

Example: if we look here, here, here and here, we see that since the Labour Party took the reins of Government, they have instituted over 4000 new laws which criminalise certain behaviours.

What does this tell us about ourselves?

Theory of Knowledge

2010-04-02T18:32:00.006+01:00

Knowledge, belief and opinion

On the one hand, people will say everybody is allowed to have opinions on anything they want and all opinions are right or true...for you. You can’t argue with anyone’s opinion can you? What’s the point? Well, perhaps to try to change the opinion? To persuade someone to think like you do? Now there could be various reasons why you’d want to do this.

On the other hand, you can argue about what people know, can’t you? How so? The common denominator is belief – the ideas in our heads that shape our thoughts and feelings about everything and, ultimately, have an impact on our actions. Some of these beliefs are acquired actively by sifting through evidence and by rational decision-making, others might be acquired passively through our parents, our culture or the media and remain with us without having the support of any evidence, though quite why that should be the case is often difficult to comprehend.

The key points to make are:

That unsupported beliefs remain subjectively true and have no value outside an individual’s or group’s perspective or system of beliefs – eg. humans have immortal souls – people might actually agree to believe this, but it still remains in the realm of subjectivity in spite of the consensus (this is why sometimes they appear as absolute truth).
Beliefs substantiated by evidence and acquired through tried and tested means take us into the realm of objectivity – eg. John Smith carried out the burglary on the bank – eye-witnesses might have different perspectives on this, but detectives piece together the evidence and come to an agreement about the event giving rational grounds for doing so. The important thing to remember is that even objective truths can be susceptible to revision and change – we might always find evidence to disprove our beliefs and reject our theories or change our theories and adjust them to describe the facts more accurately. Thus, objective truths are provisional and never 100% certain...

So let’s just list our assumptions:

There’s no ‘absolute truth’ if by this we mean beliefs that are unchanging and ever-present.
There is no ‘absolute truth’ if by this we mean truths that have 100% proof.
Truths are subjective, if they are not supported by factual evidence, even if many people believe in them and agree on the truth.
Truths are objective, if they are supported by factual evidence and rational argument and testing through a process which provides a framework for general agreement.
The kind of evidence we require is not from any authority figure, but through an inter-subjectively testable process.

Theory of Knowledge

2010-03-27T14:22:00.005Z

The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth...

Having read so many TOK essays over the years, one common thread becomes apparent in students’ approaches to the issue of truth: confusion.

The word ‘truth’ often appears as part of a Prescribed Title or is implicit in a discussion of knowledge. Here, we’ll attempt to address the idea of truth and clarify how you could approach it in your TOK Essays and Presentations. The key concept you’ll have to get to grips with in this discussion is ‘evidence’ and how this can be used and abused in knowing truth.

Students tend to distinguish between two kinds of truth:

1. Absolute truth – aka. ‘universal truth’ which is somehow unchanging and always true regardless of what individuals might think or feel about it. An example often given is 2 + 2 = 4. Please avoid this clichéd example in your work; it is much too simplistic and doesn’t help to support an argument proposing the absolute nature of truth. Other examples provided are the so-called ‘truths’ of religion, such as the resurrection of Christ. If you ask a believer how he knows this truth, he might point to the evidence of the Bible. Now there are a few counter-claims you can make. We’ll consider two:

a. How can we trust the words of the Bible since they were written by so many different hands and often seem to contradict each other?

b. What about ‘truths’ believers are supposed to hold as absolute which do not appear in the Bible, such as the Assumption of Mary?

The first counter can be dealt with by arguing that we just have to have faith – that is, the evidence of the Bible is not ‘factual’ evidence that provides rational grounds for the belief, but that we must simply trust in the Word of God which was dictated to the writers of the Bible. The second counter follows a similar move: truths not based on Biblical ‘evidence’ are declared truths by an authority figure whose great wisdom in such matters guarantees or underwrites the nature of the truth and makes it absolute. This actually happened in the case of the Assumption of Mary.

Now these defences of Absolute truth are not entirely satisfying are they? They beg the question of how God actually goes about dictating truths to people? Moreover, why some people and not others? And what exactly goes on during this process of divine inspiration? These are not simply rhetorical questions. Theologians have attempted to answer them in a defence of religious belief, but we won't go into those answers here.

2. Relative truth – aka. ‘personal truth’ which depends on individual perspectives and is based largely on opinion. The usual move students make follows this routine:

a. We are all individual and experience the world in different ways so we only have a personal conception of truth.

b. Our sense of truth is limited by personal bias, our upbringing, our cultural or religious beliefs, our fundamental sexual and gender differences and so on.

c. We can never go beyond this personal sense of truth; it drives everything we think about, perceive, feel and do.

Again, the idea that we can all believe whatever we want to believe because it’s all just a matter of opinion isn’t very satisfactory. How can we possibly counter this relative view of truth? Surely, your opinion about oxtail soup is your truth and my opinion about it is my truth and we should just get on with life. This might work in the case of oxtail soup, but what about more important situations like your opinion about abortion. Now we could counter the relativist position by pointing out that some of the things we believe to be true might, like belief in religious ‘truths’, have no supporting evidence: for example, the belief that a red sky at night means the weather’s going to be nice tomorrow. This isn’t quite a faith position like the religious believer but it could be argued that it’s a superstitious position. We could also point out that there are so many truths that we actually agree upon because they have a rational and evidential basis: for example, it takes roughly 24 hours for the earth to spin on its axis.

Now this kind of factual truth leads onto a discussion of how to think about truth in a TOK context...

TOK Event

2010-03-16T19:45:00.004Z

TOK EVENT! TOK EVENT! TOK EVENT!

You may not know it but this is the one hundredth post of ibtokspot since we started posting in 2008 and to celebrate this century of blogs (and the fact that the Spring is finally making a breakthrough here in the UK), we're organising a grand Easter TOK Picnic.

Everyone is welcome and even though many of you who visit our site are based in the farthest reaches of the planet, I'm sure you'll be at the picnic in spirit!

So please bring a dish of something special to share; bring yourself and anyone else you care about to join in the day's revelry...oh yes, and a little bit of TOK discussion about the things that really matter.

We'll meet up with you in the Bandstand at the Pump Rooom Gardens in Leamington Spa at 12.00pm on Saturday 3rd April 2010.

There's no entrance fee and it's a great way of meeting up with people from different backgrounds who have one thing in common - a love for TOK!

Click the picture above to get a link to a map describing how to get there.

Look forward to seeing you there and please remember to bring something warm and perhaps even an umbrella - we're not going to allow a little bit of rain to stop us from tokking away!

PS. Put a comment on this post to let us know if you're coming, just so that we know who to greet...

Examples

2010-02-27T09:45:00.011Z

Human Sciences and Education (Part 3)

In this trio of articles by Harriet Sergeant, written over a period of about a year, we are presented with some key arguments for why the education system in England is failing our students. It makes grim reading, but enlightens us as to how we can move forward and re-think our educational values:

1. 'Sorry, kids, you’re all going to Smoke-and-Mirrors High' (Timesonline, Feb 8 2009)

2. 'I've seen how our education system betrays children - it's enough to make you weep' (Mailonline, April 22 2009)

3. 'Schools are churning out the unemployable' (Timesonline, Feb 21 2010)

It's really the most recent of these articles that might hit home to you - esecially if you have aspirations of going to University and enhancing your unique qualities and skills for the world out there. Here are some real-life knowledge issues you might like to reflect on:

To what extent does your work ethic make you employable? How efficiently can you think for yourself and work to your own initiative? In what ways can you overcome your limitations as a learner and challenge yourself to excel? What do you value most in your learning experience? To what extent is your education fulfilling? How far should the goal of education be to create happiness?

That the answers to these questions are firmly in the negative, especially amongst young people from poorer backgrounds, is clear to see in the articles above. So why is this happening? What are the arguments to suggest that schools are not fulfilling their special purpose in our society?

There are three key arguments:

1. The 'political correctness' argument

According to this argument, schools must promote the values of liberalism and equality so that 'every child matters', as the Government initaitive would have it. No one child, nor any group of children, is discrimminated against in the delivery of education. A grand objective, but in practise, the urge for such equality means that there is a tendency that learning (and teaching) gravitates towards the lower end of the achievement scale. In short, there is what some people often refer to as a 'dumbing down' of standards; a suspicion and sometimes downright dismissal of anything that appears too academic, intellectual or abstract and 'difficult'. It leads to an attitude whereby students are infantilised and teaching becomes merely a duty of babysitting and patronising youngsters.

2. The 'Government ideology' argument

This is also known as the 'politicisation of education' argument, whereby Governments use their education policies to win votes and thereby stay in power. In fact, it is in their interests to promote actively, and not to interfere with the movement for, political correctness. Why? If standards are reduced, the Government, either existing or waiting in the wings, will be in a better positin to control the minds of the young - in words which a student of ours put it extremely succintly, 'if we're kept stupid, we're more likely to vote for them'. Government ploughs money into education so as to build an edifice that will make them look good. This means, more often than not, that the needs of students become secondary to political point-scoring.

3. The 'target culture' argument

Over the last two decades, we have been steeped in a state of mind that is unquestioning in its belief that the only way to guage success or failure is by measuring performance against targets. It has infiltrated nearly all forms of life from business, to hospitals and now into our schools. The argument goes something like this: we need a method of measuring students' progress, of judging whether a school and its teachers are fulfilling the educational needs of our young students, so that we can build up a series of data that tells us which are the best performing schools and which schools require help to raise standards. Like in business and the health service, it is argued that setting students targets and measuring their (and hence their teachers') performance against these is the best way forward. At present, the measuring scale is something called 'Current Value Added' (careful, it's a 74 page document!), the complexities (and vagaries) of which even the most logical of mathematicians will have troube in decoding. The problems of this approach are nicely traced in Harriet Seargeant's article. What we are interested in is that making targets the singlemost important purpose of a child's education means that teachers often lose sight of what teaching is all about.

What is teaching and learning really all about...?

Examples

2010-02-11T13:34:00.007Z

Human Sciences and Education (Part 2)

'Shut up and put up!' - is this our Brave New World?

Following on from the recent post on educational values, here's an extremely interesting article in the timesonline about about another of our important public domains: health.

It's called, 'Use your initiative? Far too dangerous' and appeared on Thursday 11th February 2010.

The article focuses on the same issue as our post: what happens when Government shapes the values according to which public institutions such as State Education and the NHS should be run?

We argued that the resulting impact is mediocrity in the standards of education; the blind, unswerving adherence to rules and the letter of the law which eschews all creativity and imagination and finally, the promotion into power of people who have no sense of vocation and who simply push through the educational legislation of the Government without questioning what they're doing.

The above article presents a tragic case-study of the consequences when Government values and the target and rule-based systems which are designed to promote them are allowed to function without common sense and some element of questioning and sceptical scrutiny.

It begs a really big question: to what extent should education and health be organised in the same way Government agencies are organised?

And a related big question is this: how far should Government be allowed to dictate the way in which health and education is organised and run?

This is not to advocate the wholesale (or even minimal) privatisation of education and health services. It is to suggest that alleviating these institutions from Government interference might help to promote values that have a less tragic impact on young lives and are longer lasting. But is this a strong enough argument? What further evidence is there that Government-led institutions are really NOT organised with the interests of the public in mind? What significant reasons can we find to argue that these institutions would function better WITHOUT the stamp of Government.

Examples

2010-02-11T09:57:00.003Z

Human Sciences (Economics)

Money as Debt 1

Money as Debt 2

Money as Debt 3

Money as Debt 4

Money as Debt 5

Some time ago, we posted an entry on the nature of money and how money is created. Here’s a follow up entry with some clips from youtube entitled ‘Money as Debt’. The film is extremely illuminating, especially in the context of the present economic crisis, since it explains the practises of the so-called ‘Banksters’ which, it has been alleged, helped to cause the crisis in the first place.

If you can see the connection between the debt problems around the world and the risks which banks take in creating money through the fiat system, perhaps you’ll also see how the working people suffer most when Governments bail out failing banks: it’s public money, our hard-earned tax revenue, that is used to pay off the debt which banks have incurred in the process of creating money.

Think about how this economic state of affairs has an impact on those principles on which we base our dearly loved democracy: liberty and equality.

What do you think is the moral imperative that drives the behaviour of banks, of governments and of the people (us) who allow this situation to continue? Why does education actively promote this practise of money creation and remain silent on its disastrous impact?

Websites

2010-02-01T11:18:00.003Z

http://www.ibtoktutor.com/

If you're approaching your TOK Essay deadline for this year (May 2010), here's a website that might be of help. We'll let it speak for itself:

"Are you struggling with your TOK studies? Just can't make head or tail of what TOK is all about? Worried sick about ever being able to write that essay or stand up in front of the whole group and do a presentation?

We are here to help all you IB students out there with your TOK essays and presentations and other related issues regarding your IB studies.

We don't know of any other help site like this - click 'Our Services' to see the full range of help we offer..."

It's a paysite, so you'll have to be ready to invest in your education. From the look of the sample marking, however, it appears as though the one-to-one on-line essay tuition on offer is excellent value for money. Let us know.

Examples

2010-01-23T20:51:00.024Z

Human Sciences and Education (Part 1)

Is the present secondary state education system letting down our young?

According to this article, 'The Reader Gets Angry', the answer is un unhesitating and unequivocal 'yes'.

Before moving onto the arguments and the objections to them, let's clarify some assumptions. Common sense tells us that education should be free to all and everyone should have equal access to it regardless of race, creed, colour. These oft-repeated principles of equality and freedom are very powerful almost to the point of banality. Now we know, don't we, that nothing is really free - someone, somwhere pays for what others may regard as being free. Based on this idea, let's add to this another assumption: education is a political tool that can be used (or misused) to shape the minds of a generation of youth. It is a tool, moreover, whose power is usually centralised in the hands of the existing Government. This can have its advantages, but it can also be dangerous as the article suggests.

Government shapes its education policy based on certain key values associated with those principles of equality and freedom mentioned earlier. As is often the case with the realm of Ethics, this often leads to a clash of values and raises the question: who decides on which values should determine the delivery of education? Government? So here's another key question which leads to our final assumption: if education is centralised in Government and Government makes policy based on its perception of what is and is not educationally valuable, who actually makes sure that these values get promoted in schools? Answer: Government civil-servants provide the educational framework which embodies its core values and pass it on to the school managers who enforce (if you permit this extremely emotive word) it upon the teachers. And teachers either disagree with this approach to education (which is relatively rare these days) or, as the article suggests, become 'fatalistic'. There are two main consequences: first, the advent of mediocrity in school managers and teachers alike, inherited from the bureaucracy of Government institutions. Second, the students always suffer in the end.

Let's look more closely at the article itself and the comments posted on the website on which the article was originally published, in order to unfold some of the values embedded in our thinking about the purpose of education. What we find are two sets of educational values: those promoted by so-called 'educationalists' (usually Government civil servants or other pawns of Governement agencies) and those that are closest to our own sense of being teachers with a vocation.

The core values of education (according to 'educationalists')

1. Anti-intellectualism : This is what happens when the educational system is structured in the same way as Government organises itself - every aspect of thinking and working is micromanaged until it becomes mechanical, deadened.

inaccessible ('intellectual') literature or even teachers should be avoided in the classroom
language structures not needed in the day to day communication of the work place should not be taught in the classroom
'learning by doing' is the best approach in the classroom and linguistic learning should be sacrificed - the 'manual labour' or 'apprenticeship' approach
instructions play a more important part than explanations
knowledge is irrelevant to teaching
grammar is obsolete and has no place in teaching

2. Inclusion : This is the guise in which the principle of egalitarianism parades itself in education - it means, in short, that everyone has the right to be treated equally, even if (and especially if) this means dragging down educational standards to the lowest common denominator (are we getting close to communism?)

all kinds of difference must be negated in the classroom - it must be an 'inclusive' environment
treat students as infants or invalids and make them rely on teacher like a child relies on a nursemaid or babysitter (effectively, this is what the teaching role becomes - ask anyone who has covered a lesson for an absent teacher)
the pursuit of topicality is paramount - cultural references should be limited to popular and celebrity culture and idolised as such an not questioned in any way
Avoid class discussion or note-taking since it can exclude those who can't or don't want to take part in exchanging ideas and interpretations

3. Classism : This manisfests itself in the divergent expectations we must have of students as inherent in the various 'initiatives' through which teachers are to support them.

avoid expecting too much of students - do not expose them to abstract ideas
illiteracy is something precious that ought to be preserved - it keeps the masses unthinking and unquestioning so they cannot or never want to change things
minimise the ability gap between the highest and lowest achievers (even though this conflicts with the setting of students in some schools)
'gifted and talented' students set them apart from low-achievers who can never raise themselves to this level
students' minds cannot (and therefore should not) be changed
students' backgrounds are their fate and these cannot be overcome

The core values of education (according to the 'vocationalists')

1. Growth : students must be encouraged to be the best that they can be and to create the best possible society in which to grow and adapt.

education ought to expand one’s horizons
students should be introduced consistently to new ideas
study involves internalising knowledge, making a body of knowledge one's own
students must be encouraged to work hard
open-mindedness
students must be shown how to raise themselves to equality not to sink down towards it

2. Creativity : students must be encouraged to experiment, to make mistakes and to fail in the classroom before they go into the world.

words, grammatical structures, are a way of modelling our world - students should be allowed to play with language
students should be trained to think for themselves, to question everything
inspiration through sharing, decent discussion
building a 'community of enquiry' ('Philosophy for Children')

3. Eloquence : students must be given strategies to make a unique mark on the world in a way that is at once expressive, elegant and graceful.

encourage reading for its own sake and the use of dictionaries to empower students to speak and write well
prioritise self-expression as a means of giving students a way of standing up for themselves, sometimes against the world
promote honesty and integrity, care and confidence

There is a world of difference in these two sets of values. In simple terms, the former leads onto the path of misery, for students and teachers alike; the latter leads onto the path of happiness.

Moreover, while the former enables Government to control the minds of the masses; to create a ready-made indolent and bovine workforce and to perpetuate their own power (why else would anyone desire to promote unthinking, unquestioning behaviour in youngsters?), the latter goes some way towards enabling our youth to free themselves from any attempts to possess and pack their minds into little boxes; to navigate the world on their own terms and, above all, to have the strength to be themselves in spite of being judged by everyone around them.

Examples

2010-01-14T21:19:00.007Z

Human Sciences and The Arts

'How you are controlled, Part 1'

We cannot find Part 2 - but it's out there somewhere.

These videos appear to be a perfect illustration of our recent 'TOK Manifesto'. In case you hadn't already figured it out for yourselves, TOK is all about questioning things and exploring ideas that make you question everything.

The clips have been posted on youtube in two parts under the heading 'How you are controlled'. They are a part of of larger film called Phase 3 made by a group of individuals who run a website called http://www.wakeupproject.com/. The group defines its approach as being part of a movement called 'The New World Order' which itself, it is suspected, is driven by a passion for creating conspiracy theories.

But we'll let the videos speak for themselves. If you you want more, then go to the website to see the rest of the film so you can make up your minds...

TOK Websites

2010-01-12T15:22:00.006Z

http://findhorn.blogspot.com/2009/11/responses-010-2010-2011.html

From a brief scan through this blog, it appears that the writer is a former teacher of TOK and as such has prepared some helpful notes as to how to answer the prescribed questions relating to the ToK Prescribed titles of 2011. Unlike us, this website covers each of the ten questions! There are also some hints as to how to write a TOK essay which you might find useful (click here.) Remember, the notes for answering the questions, as well as our own helps, are only one possible suggestion and should only be used as a springboard to your own thoughts and arguments.

New Year's Resolutions

2010-01-01T19:39:00.011Z

It's about time, isn't it, that we came up with some resolutions about what we're trying to do with this blog and these could, couldn't they, become a kind of mission statement or manifesto of our main values in education.

So here we go - this is what we hope we have achieved for you so far and hope to achieve for you in the year(s) to come:

1. Think for yourself and not the thoughts pre-programmed into you by others - whoever they may be.

2. Be yourself and not someone formatted into those little boxes that people like to put you into - whatever they may be.

3. Speak up about the things that matter to you, but do so eloquently, confidently and courteously - however that may be.

4. Feel free to agree and disagree with others' viewpoints, but do so in the spirit of decent discussion (see point 3).

5. Be honest - first of all to yourself - to others about what's on your mind - there's nothing to be afraid of.

6. Be open-minded - put aside your bises, prejudices and preconceptions so that so can engage with others on an equal and creative basis.

7. Avoid being constantly judgmental - it takes so much energy and only projects bad energy, so save it for more creative and constructive projects.

8. Question everything - so that you never take for granted what anybody says or does - everyone has a hidden agenda.

You'll start to see these listed at the head of the blog home page from now on - lest we forget!

ToK Essays 2010

2009-12-16T15:38:00.002Z

We would like to send a message of thanks and our personal best wishes to all the Year 13s who are about to finish their essays over the next weeks. You have grown in mind and heart and we sincerely hope that all the experiences you've had in TOK over the last 18 months have helped to shape you into independent thinkers who are confident to speak your mind about the things that matter most to you. Having seen and assessed your recent presentations, we have great confidence in all of you - you are not the same people as the ones who started the course. And even if you do not see the transformations in yourselves, rest assured that we see them and that they are good.

Please take the time to read the following message:

1. Final deadline for TOK Essay: Monday 8th February 2010 at 12 p.m.

2. Come to the IB Office Rm 210 to hand in the essay

3. Please note that the essays and presentation scores are being posted away immediately after 12 p.m. so any latecomers will FAIL

4. Print off the formal essay cover sheet (from the website) and complete it in BLACK INK

5. Also bring your completed official TOK Presentation paperwork, also completed in BLACK INK

6. After Christmas there will be essay consultation sessions on Fridays P1 and Tuesdays P9 in the Lecture theatre - please do NOT come empty handed. A plan of ideas or a self-reflection sheet will suffice - we will not read through or discuss completed essays. Please look out for the booking form on the noticeboard and pencil yourself in - no more than SIX students per session.

Good luck to you all and have a splendid holiday!

Examples

2009-12-15T19:30:00.014Z

Human Sciences (Psychology), The Arts and Ethics

As the festive season fast approaches, you'll no doubt be aware that some major national and global issues either are or have taken place to distract us from the general mayhem of Christmas consumerism and potential gluttony in every form imaginable (not the least in eating!). For instance, the climate change talks in Copenhagen (still taking place) and the final of X factor UK(already done).

In the context of recent posts on 'peak oil', consider the following statistics and make up your own minds:

1. Approximately 19.1 million people in the UK watched the final of X factor on TV on Sunday 13th December (see Marketing Week, December 2009) - that is 31 % of the estimated population of the UK (approx 61.4 million, Guardian, August 2009).

2. Approximately, 15, 000 participants (from a 192 nations) and onlookers are estimated to be involved in the Copehagen UN talks on climate change between 7th and 18th December (this is not counting the estimated 6, 500 police officers drafted in to supervise the event, or the anticipated 350 potential troublemakers for whom the Danes have set up steel cages, or the potential 1000 protestors who could be processed over a period of 24 hours in a former Carlsberg beer depot) (see New York Times, December 2009) - that is 0.02% of the estimated population of the UK.

What are the objections to this jusxtaposition of statistics?

X factor has nothing to do with politics - we're making a false comparison
The representatives at the UN conference are doing a job for which we elected them - to represent us, so we don't actually have to be there in person
We can enjoy our free time how we please - it's a free country

But think about this: who is taking what seriously? And whom should one take seriously? We should say: HUMANKIND, BLOODY WAKE UP!

Think about the whole issue of voting folks. According to last years figures, 16, 469, 064 votes were placed throughout the entire Series 5 of X-Factor. We haven't had the full figures for this year, although we know that the winner received 63% of the total votes cast on the night.

Now consider that in the last general election in 2005, 27, 110, 727 votes were cast (44% of the population). The winning Labour party received 35% of these votes.

Where are people when the voting really matters? Does voting matter at all? Perhaps we're all much too spoilt and self-satisfied to be bothered...

Imagine if the millions watching X-Factor last Sunday night had gathered instead in pockets at the Town Halls of the major towns and cities in the country, in honour of the UN climate change talks; imagine the impact that might have had...

Or perhaps these are just the vain fantasies of idealists - perhaps we should be grateful that the plebiscite didn't turn out in their droves in case they had to be taken in and locked up in 'bird cages' similar to those constructed for the protestors in Copenhagen!

Or perhaps we should use the same argument for X-Factor as people use to shut up extremist parties like the BNP: just giving it the time of day is to acknowledge its importance, so don't do it.

Oh dear. But don't you see that at some point we just have to give these things the time of day; we just have to think about them and then decide what to do.

Examples

2009-12-15T19:18:00.004Z

Human Sciences (Economics), Natural Sciences, Ethics and History

Watch the following videos to sum up our excursion into the territory of 'peak oil' and the new world beyond. Richard Heinberg speaks extremely eloquently about the issue from a historical and economic perspective which has tremendous ethical consequences.

There are SIX clips in total, entitled "Richard Heinberg's 'Peak Everything' ", but we have given you the first and the last clip - fill in the gaps yourselves through the 'youtube' reference.

Finally, here's a reference to a website listing a range of towns and cities that are taking the message of 'peak oil' seriously and attempting to do something to prepare themselves for the aftermath in a post-industrial, post-oil era:

http://www.transitiontowns.org/

You might be surprised to see that most of the 255 listed towns and cities are in the UK.

Examples

2009-12-13T08:38:00.007Z

Human Sciences, Natural Sciences and Ethics

Compare the previous interview with Michael Ruppert with the later interview above, then move on the the advice he gives about 'disengagement':

Towards a Method of Disengagement

What we should do to get out of the trap of an infinite growth-based econonmy is based on two assumptions, which are actually the key OBJECTIVES of any disengaging strategy:

We need to be able to make decisions about our lives on rapidly changing, fluid circumstances - we must be flexible enough financially, socially and psychologically to adapt to extreme conditions
There will be little or no help forthcoming from governments whose contingency plans are all geared towards preserving the infrastructure rather than caring for people, so do not rely on assistance from this source
There could be a nuclear solution to 'peak oil', but this could lead to further political and economic conflict with the added threat of global armageddon

So here's a rudimentary map or plan of action to help us to 'disengage':

1. Get out of debt

2. 'Balance sheet' : make an account of income and expenditure so as to know where to cut back on spending

3. 'Rainy day account': save a little every week and let it earn interest in a savings account or in a place where it's making something

4. Stay away from all forms of credit as much as possibe (even student loans!), but if you have to get credit, stick to short term, very low (fixed, not adjustable) interest rates

5. Stay away from investing in the stock market

6. 'Investment': Buy gold (and silver) - a tangible asset kept in a safety deposit box or a safe at home

7. 'The home': Do not buy a property, rent one

8. 'Sustaniablity': Find a small plot of land and prepare it for growing your own food - be self-sufficient

9. Insulate your home carefully to safeguard against rise of heating costs

10. 'Network': keep alive the social connections that you trust implicitly - consider re-locating to form a local group or community of friends and family who will take care of each other

11. 'Siege mentality': Avoid hoarding stuff in preparation for any further econimic meltdown, but certainly act prudently enough to safeguard yourself from immediate disruptions

12. If you are fully debt-free, be cautious about how you 'spend' your credit to prepare for short term disruptions (see point 4)

13. 'Liquidity': try to have as much 'cash-in-hand' as possible or something that is quickly transferable into cash (see points 3 & 6)

14. 'Currency': be prepared to use 'regional currencies', instead of the national currency, for exchanging goods and services actively build a local currency for trading things

15. 'Banking': use a small, local bank that re-invests locally instead of a national High St bank whose shares trade in the stock market and whose first responsibility is to their shareholders rather than you - stay clear of credit card accounts from these big banks

16. 'Spending': spend your hard-earned money on local produce and stay clear of the High St supermarkets

17. 'Ownership': create neighbourhood stock corporations - people have joint shares in the stock of the community as a means of determining the value of the stock and their standard of living

18. 'Personal growth': don't waste your energy on converting people who are closed to change - find people who think like you do and work with them to adjust yourself

19. 'Wake up call': educate the young to THINK about the issues of the post-oil era so that they can help themselves and make a good life

20. 'Media': think for yourself and critically assess everthing that you are confronted with through the TV, newspapers, Government initiatives, technological gadgetry...

Remember: this is NOT an exhaustive list. What else could you do?

Examples

2009-12-13T06:36:00.011Z

Human Sciences (Economics), Natural Sciences and Ethics

Let's resume the discussion about 'peak oil' from the perspective of what to do when we run out of oil. The questions we'll be exploring here are these:

If you accept that oil energy is running out fast, then how do you adjust to the new reality?
How do you cope with the immediate chaos of not being able to rely on gas and electricity supplies and to live in a world that reverts into a state of pre-industrial order?
How do you deal with Governments and financiers that not only led us with open eyes into economic, political and military mayhem, but will not be there for us to help when we enter into the post-oil era?
And finally, to what extent do you want to continue to absorb yourselves in reality TV when the real world is on the edge of a crisis that could see the end of human society as we know it?

These questions are not put to you lightly. And it's crucial that at some point soon, you face up to them and answer them honestly.

Here are three clips of an interview with Michael Ruppert who neatly resumes our global oil depletion predicament:

The Global Economic Paradigm

Ruppert argues that we are hooked into a certain (debilitating) way of thinking about how money works in the economy and must tear ourselves away from it (listen closely to his theory about money). The features of this paradigm are as follows:

1. Fractional reserve banking (banks lend money to us based on its reserve requirement)

2. Compound interest (charged on mortgages, credit cards, student loans, car loans)

3. Debt-based growth (which works on the assumption of infinite growth)

Ruppert describes this economic paradigm as a 'trap' from which it is extremely difficult to extricate ourselves. So he proposes what he calls his strategy of 'disengagement', a list of things-to-do to prepare ourselves for the post-oil era.

You'll notice that he ends the interview on a really tragic note (however much he hides it in his flippant tone): 'We're all screwed; but not everyone has to go down...'

Examples

2009-12-12T18:43:00.009Z

Human Sciences (Politics & Economics), Natural Sciences and Ethics

Here are some websites devoted to the study of, and discussion about, 'peak oil'. We've tried to balance the sources, but you should look at the evidence yourself and reflect on it to make a decision about the efficacy of the theory. This is by no means an exhaustive list.

1. http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/

Dear Reader,
Civilization as we know it is coming to an end soon. This is not the wacky proclamation of a doomsday cult, apocalypse bible prophecy sect, or conspiracy theory society. Rather, it is the scientific conclusion of the best paid, most widely-respected geologists, physicists, bankers, and investors in the world. These are rational, professional, conservative individuals who are absolutely terrified by a phenomenon known as global "Peak Oil."

2. http://peakoil.com/

PO.com is a privately funded website, and has no affiliation with any group, business or other interest group. Publishing at this domain has two primary benefits:

1. The preferred Domain Name for what we feel will become the most important debate of humanity.
2. Building on online community to enrich this debate.

The supporting staff are 100% volunteers from around the globe, and receive no compensation of any kind.

Our agenda is as simple as our slogan: "Exploring the Issue of Hydrocarbon Depletion"

3. http://www.theoildrum.com/

The Oil Drum's mission is to facilitate civil, evidence-based discussions about energy and its impact on our future.

We near the point where new oil production cannot keep up with increased energy demand and the depletion of older oil fields, resulting in a decline of total world oil production. Because we are increasingly dependent upon petroleum, declining production has the potential to disrupt our lives through much higher prices and fuel shortages. The extent of the impact of this supply shortfall will depend on its timing, the magnitude of production decline rates, the feasibility of petroleum alternatives, and our ability to curtail energy consumption...

4. http://www.peakoil.net/

ASPO is a network of scientists and others, having an interest in determining the date and impact of the peak and decline of the world's production of oil and gas, due to resource constraints.

Let's put it this way: the issue of 'peak oil' is arguably as important as is the problem of 'global warming' and must be given as much attention, if not more. Just as there are people who believe that the evidence produced to justify global warming is weak (see the Guardian, November 2005), so there are people who think that peak oil theorists are also wasting their time gathering so-called evidence to support their ideas.

Then there are those who think that time (and life) is too short to worry about those in denial about peak oil; that it is time to educate the people who accept that there is a pending collapse and are ready to face it and that it is best to embrace those who are petrified about the future and find themselves rooted to the spot in their fear.

Examples

2009-12-12T16:56:00.007Z

Human Sciences (Politics & Economics), Natural Sciences and Mathematics

Continuing with our apocalyptic theme of the last few posts, we come back to the ideas of Michael Ruppert who refers us to the concept of 'Peak oil': the notion that the planet is fast running out of oil and that when the moment comes, the already crisis-ridden economies of the West are going to collapse and revert back to how things were about a hundred and fifty years ago.

This is an extremely bleak view of the future, pessimistic you might argue, but it is something that is hardly mentioned in the general news of the day so that you could be forgiven for not thinking about it. On the one hand, there is a suggestion, which we have pointed to, that we have been deliberately distracted from the peak oil issue in case it might jolt us into fervent action. On the other hand, this is exactly what we must do and Michael Ruppert neatly points us in the direction of those actions.

Before looking at the implications of 'peak oil', consider what it actually means. You can read articles in the Guardian (2005), the Independent (2007) and the New Scientist (2009) to familiarise yourself with the ongoing debate over the last few years, but the roots of the idea go back to the 1950s with the studies of the geologist, M. King Hubbert - look at the site devoted to Hubbert's ideas.

Peak Oil Theory

Here are the key points of the theory:

Premise 1: Oil is a finite resource.

Premise 2: Once the oil resource reaches its maximum production point (its 'peak' level'), it can never increase.

Conclusion: Therefore, production declines until there is nothing left of oil.

There are various speculations as to when this peak level is going to be reached. Different oil producing countries may reach it at different times. For example, the US, Hubbert argued reached peak production in 1970, whereas Britain's North Sea oil production reached it in 1999. When considering average world production, the speculative range is that peak production could be reached anywhere between 2003-2030 (see Guardian).

Now of course, Premise 2 may be disproved if more oil fields are discovered. We might then find that the 'peak' level could be post-poned to a point way beyond 2030. But the key phrase is 'post-poned': if you accept that oil is a finite resource, this means it will necessarily run out at some point - oil is not a renewable energy source.

And when you consider that everything in this modern twenty-first century is predicated on oil energy, then the implications are vast. The Industrial Revolution grew on the back of oil production, even the technological revolution of the last twenty years was fuelled by it (every microchip manufactured requires oil energy in its production and the internet requires energy to power it). Some argue that it's not just computers and mobile phones that are at stake, but the whole social and economic structure of the Western world.

Let's make one thing clear: the peak oil theory is not presented to scare people. Whether you accept that it accurately describes what is going on in the world is a matter of considering carefully the evidence placed before you.

TOK Websites

2009-12-08T08:20:00.003Z

http://www.youngfreethought.com/

This isn't a website devoted to TOK issues, but we thought that you'd be interested in reading the articles presented on the blog, as well as contributing your own thoughts to it. The site promotes itself in these terms:

"Young Freethought is an independent blog, open for anyone, but with the aim of providing young people with a way of getting out their ideas regarding issues such as rationalism, atheism, science and philosophy."

Now at first glance, you might be forgiven for thinking that the contributions are fervently anti-religious. Not necessarily.

Or at least, it's up to the contributors to balance the arguments...

Examples

2009-12-04T17:36:00.009Z

The Arts (Literature) and Human Sciences (Economics)

In the light of what we've been discussing in recent posts - the idea that we are being nurtured to become consumers (food) and distracted from what's really going on in the world by technological gadgetry (games) - consider this little gem from Roald Dahl: 'The Pig'.

In England once there lived a big
And wonderfully clever pig.
To everybody it was plain
That Piggy had a massive brain.
He worked out sums inside his head,
There was no book he hadn't read.
He knew what made an airplane fly,
He knew how engines worked and why.
He knew all this, but in the end
One question drove him round the bend:
He simply couldn't puzzle out
What LIFE was really all about.
What was the reason for his birth?
Why was he placed upon this earth?
His giant brain went round and round.
Alas, no answer could be found.
Till suddenly one wondrous night.
All in a flash he saw the light.
He jumped up like a ballet dancer
And yelled, "By gum, I've got the answer!"

"They want my bacon slice by slice"
To sell at a tremendous price!"
They want my tender juicy chops
"To put in all the butcher's shops!
"They want my pork to make a roast
"And that's the part'll cost the most!
"They want my sausages in strings!
"They even want my chitterlings!
"The butcher's shop! The carving knife!
"That is the reason for my life!"
Such thoughts as these are not designed
To give a pig great piece of mind.

Next morning, in comes Farmer Bland,
A pail of pigswill in his hand,
And piggy with a mighty roar,
Bashes the farmer to the floor…
Now comes the rather grizzly bit
So let's not make to much of it,
Except that you must understand
That Piggy did eat Farmer Bland,
He ate him up from head to toe,
Chewing the pieces nice and slow.
It took an hour to reach the feet,
Because there was so much to eat,
And when he finished, Pig, of course,
Felt absolutely no remorse.
Slowly he scratched his brainy head
And with a little smile he said,
"I had a fairly powerful hunch
"That he might have me for his lunch.
"And so, because I feared the worst,
"I thought I'd better eat him first."

Apart from being so much fun, what can we learn from this piece of writing?

Unlike some of us, Pig wakes up to what is happening to him. And how? Well, it's really a tough thing to do, but it seems that he asked the right questions and thought deeply about the answers with that big brain of his. This is extremely hard to do when one is bombarded from all directions by distractions and compelled to consume. And why are we so bombarded and compelled? Presumably to avoid a scenario whereby we do exactly what Pig does: rise up against his conditions and the people that create them. So 'bravo' Pig for his epiphany!

Now, Pig's actions might appear to be somewhat extreme, but wouldn't you act in the same 'grizzly' way if you discovered the truth about what was happening to you? Wouldn't you want to think for yourself against everything else in the world and to resist being turned into (at the risk of mixing the animal metaphor) a sheep?

Examples

2009-11-30T11:08:00.005Z

Human Sciences (Psychology) and Natural Sciences (Technology)

Think about all the technology that predominates over us in our lives: from our ever-fancy digital watches and mobile phones, to the highly complex home cinema systems and virtual reality video games. A new gaming culture has arisen in the wake of the technological revolution of the last ten to fifteen years.

We know from the last two posts that some people are still suspicious about how technology can be used to manipulate us into conformity and apathy. We know also that those who are producing this technology are highly creative and inventive people. So what is it about the technology that is so compelling? Consider the following thoughts:

1. Technology has always made life easier for us by saving our energy and effort.

2. Technology saves time so as to allow us more (we hate the phrase, but here it is) 'quality time' with the people and things we care for for.

3. Technology helps us to go beyond the limitations of human perception and reason - without building the right kind of ships, we couldn't have discovered the rest of the world.

4. Technology provides us with much of the information we require to base some fundamental decisions in our lives.

There are of course many downsides to each of these points - for example, the fact that we rely on machine technology to cook the pre-processed and pre-packaged food that is readily available in shops, might not only make us lazy in the kitchen, but also be harmful to our bodies and the environment.

But here's another question that we sometimes overlook: how does the technology make its way to the general public?

It sounds like a strange question to ask, especially because we take for granted everything out there in the market place, but do you really think that technological knowledge is harnessed for the benefit of you and us? That there's somone somewhere who is thinking philanthropically about helping us?

Let's be a little sceptical about this and say 'No!'.

Here's an idea that you can verify for yourselves: nearly all the technology available on the high street is funded, researched into and developed by the Government for their own purposes (which are not always the same reasons as those we voted them in for), usually to enhance the defence capacity of the nation. The technology is then re-packaged and re-distributed in small doses in the public field, trickled out in palatable forms to keep us happy.

Here are some examples:

1. Lycra: it started off as a material developed in the making of space suits, now it's used for tights and underwear.

2. Theme parks: these began life as testing grounds for military and space training: what could humans endure in extreme situations?

3. Video games: again, these were created for simulation purposes to help refine the reaction skills of soldiers and astronauts.

Nothing suspicious in this, you might think. However, if you relate this back to the economic crisis and the political decisions that are made in high places, you can begin to visualise a scenario:

Technology is big business and it's in the interest of governments to keep a control over it so as to ensure the business comes to them and to ensure they keep power.
Technology is a usful tool for controlling a population (their minds and their behaviour) - just look at CCTV, the proliferation of speed cameras and GPS systems, as well as the desire of governments to enforce an ID card system.
You are always under threat of having your identity stolen from credit or debit card fraudsters

In short, our lives are no longer private and in extreme cases, not our own anymore. So next time when you sneeze in the street, just beware because Big Brother is watching you!

Examples

2009-11-29T11:57:00.009Z

History and The Arts

Following on from the last post and what Gerald Celente said in his interview about the so-called 'revolution' that is coming and will transform not only the United States, but also the world economy, consider this statement:

"Revolutions don't happen from the people that are going to be watching American Idol or waste their time away playing video games and their minds lost in celebrity culture, in pop culture..."

That's you and I he's talking about, folks! Are you going to take it lying down?

Either he's just another old man who's tired of life and especially young people, or he's expressing a sound truth. But what evidence does he have to suggest that the general public who are fed on a diet of reality TV and fast food, fast money and fast fame (and so many other fast things!), have become apathetic, self-satisfied, spoilt and, the shame of it, especially for those of you passionate about TOK, unthinking, unquestioning wretches?

Before you answer that, have another look at Max Keizer and his analysis of something that you all might be fascinated by at this time: 'Twilight' (you only have to watch the first 2 minutes to get the idea):

Keizer argues that "The Establishment - and that is the Hollywood-Washington-Wall Street Axis of Evil - is trying to train this next generation to be Goldman-Sachs Bankers and J P Morgan Derivative Traders. How better to do that than to introduce them to the wonderful world of vampires and zombies..."

Like begets like, it seems, in the political and economic rat-race of the world and the social impact of this is to perpetuate the values of greed, exploitation, get-rich-quick and don't care over whom you trample in the process.

Is this your future inheritance? The world into which you are heading after your studies? Perhaps our question should be: how far do you want to go into that world with closed eyes and an unthinking mind?

We'll leave you with a historical thought over which to ponder: it was the Roman Emperor Nero (who had as many flaws as the power-hungry people who allowed the present world crisis to take root), who said that the best thing for the general public, so as not to upset them into revolution against the Holy Roman Empire, was to ensure at all times that they had two things: food and games...

Examples

2009-11-23T10:51:00.006Z

Human Sciences (Politics/Economics) and Ethics

Question: How does an event become attached to a conspiracy theory?

Answer: When people try too hard to look for answers that aren't there...

Consider the causes and effects of the so-called 'Global economic crisis' in the context of the following clips by economic specialists based in the U.S.A.

Ask yourself if they are simply doom and gloom merchants and political revolutionaries intent on slandering the powers that be, or genuine critics of the Capitalist system and objective analysts with the intention of promoting positive change.

Here's Max Keizer (first shown on video.google.fr 03/09/09): "The banking system is terminally ill..."

Here's Gerald Celente (first embedded on geraldcelentechannel.blogspot on 14/09/09): "It's not a recovery; it's a cover up...There is no recovery..."

And here's Max Faber (first youtube on 22/09/09): "The hour of truth will come one day...But the next crisis will bring down the entire Capitalistic system." (Part 2 of this interview can be found on youtube.)

You'll hear many more profound statements on these clips than the quotations listed above, some of which may appear fairly libellous!

But these people appear to know what they're talking about. So to what extent are they looking for answers that aren't really there? How far are they creating a conspiracy about the financial crisis when a simple economic explanation will do?

What do you think?

Examples

2009-11-19T10:52:00.005Z

Human Sciences (Economics/Politics) and Ethics

We know from past experience that many of you like to do your TOK presentations on conspiriacy theories. But ask yourself this:

Question: When is a conspiracy not a conspiracy?

Answer: When the motive for an action is out in the open.

When things are kept secret and close to the chest of only a few people, we commonly assume that something devious is happening behind the scenes. Think of all the usual conspiracy theories.

When the politicians who are in power and who lead governments justify the use fiction and deceit to keep order and peace and safety in the world, are they not also simply working to hold onto their power?

So how can we know that this is what they are really doing? That the interests of the general public is NOT at the heart of their motives, but only their own personal interests? We know either because they're doing it openly or because someone digs into their affairs and exposes them (cf. the recent expenses scandal in British politics).

Now look at this clip and decide for yourself if the actions that brought about the war in Afghanistan could be regarded as being part of a conspiracy theory. In other words, are the motives for fighting there hidden or open? And does it make any difference?

The clip lasts for just under 15 minutes, so be patient and try to follow the argument and to think about the TOK aspects of the talk...

Michael Ruppert analyses the present geopolitical crisis

[ Source: http://www.jovanovic.com/blog.htm - November, 2009 ]

The TOK Essay

2009-11-16T18:18:00.007Z

The Year 13s will be starting to turn their attention to their final essay drafts while the Year 12s will be attempting their first essay.

For the Year 13s, we would say:

Use all your experience of preparing your Presentations in approaching your final drafts

Use the same structure for the essay as you did for the presentation

Choose your essay title/question and PLAN the essay from scratch WITHOUT looking at the original one you did

Then WRITE the essay without looking at the original one

Finally, compare the new essay with the original and take from this only the best elements

You might be surprised at what you produce.

For the Year 12s, we would say:

Don't worry - this essay is like nothing you've ever done before

Use the advice on the blog and the website to help you

It's not so much the content that you're marked on as the quality of your mind and how you apply it in exploring the implications of the question

Just go for it!

For both Years, here's a sheet that you can use to focus your mind on the writing process: TOK Essay Self-Evaluation Sheet.

If you want a consultation on the Essay, make sure you follow the advice on this sheet and bring a PLAN of your ideas. Do not come to us EMPTY-HANDED!

Life, the Universe and Everything

2009-11-11T16:46:00.003Z

Here are some of the TOK-related statements from Andy Fletcher's seminar that you should ponder carefully over a period of time:

Reason: "Our assumptions drive our conclusions."

If this is true, then what consequences does it have for our knowledge? What sort of assumptions are we talking about? Are thee assumptions different within each subject area? To what extent is all our knowledge 'stained' by our assumptions? How so we filter out these assumtions?

Perception: "The universe is not as it appears to be."

You saw that the Einsteinian Universe breaks down everything that the traditional Newtonian view of the Universe had presented. If the Universe began as a singularity AND if a singularity remains in a state of quantum uncertainty until an observation is made, then what collapsed the uncertainty to bring the Universe into being? An observation...

Language: " 'Good' science does not set out to give 'proof'; it works in the realm of 'evidence'. "

This is not just a matter of playing word games. The idea is that even the so-called watertight truths of Mathematics can never give us an absolute truth about the way the world works. The equations of Quantum Theory, for example, explain how the world works but not in a way that we can fully understand. We live in a relativistic universe in which there are no absolute truths or certainties; the truths od science are probabilistic and depend on their veracity on the evidence that scientists provide for their hypotheses.

Emotion: "This is the single-most incredible intellectual experience you are likely to have in your lives."

After participating in the seminar, you may have asked yourselves 'what was all that about?' or 'what was the point of all that?'. This is not an unusual response. In our experience, the last six generations of TOK students have felt exactly the same way. However, we always tell them to think of the seminar as an experience - allow the ideas to wash over you like sea-waves; absorb the complexities of the language like the heat of the sun when sunbathing. Give the ideas a chance and they will grow inside you like flower seeds; feed them with your curiosity and nurture them with your attention. At some point, you may wish to harvest the ideas for your writing or presentations or even a future career!

So what are we left with? A rational belief that the the Laws of Nature govern our experience of the existing Universe combined with the irrational beliefs that it was somehow predisposed to exist for us (Anthropic Priciple) and came to be through some kind of strange observation...

Life, the Universe and Everything

2009-10-28T17:17:00.007Z

'Investigating God and the new physics'

In just about a week's time (Tuesday 3rd & Wednesday 4th November), Andy Fletcher will be here to conduct his seminar with the above title (see his website on the link to the bottom left). He'll be addressing the perennial question: how far is the belief in God rendered irrational and obsolete by Science? In other words, are Science and Religion worlds apart?

To prepare yourselves for the seminar, you might like to read up on the following ideas:

1. Infinity

2. Mechanism

3. Determinsim

4. Reductionism

Andy Fletcher will be taking you on an intellectual journey you'll never forget. You might not grasp the ideas at first, but the understanding will grow in time. Be prepared to travel the path of the great scientists of the last century and a half and to understand Relativity Theory, Quantum Theory, Chaos Theory and Complexity Theory and judge for yourself if Science has made God disappear...

Knowledge Issues - Examples

2009-10-23T11:36:00.005+01:00

KIs in a TOK Presentation

Following on from the last post, here’s a worked example using the framework for KIs in preparation for a TOK Presentation:

Real Life Example: 'Which kids join gangs? A genetic explanation.'

Problem: This article is about scientific explanations of human behaviour/nature and nurture.

Knowledge Problem (Facts): What is the truth about children’s behaviour in their peer groups? This question uses one of the 5Ws.

Knowledge Issue (Closed question in context): “Is the survey data very reliable?” This question is ‘in context’ in that it is focused on the details of the article and requires a ‘yes/no’ answer.

Knowledge Issue (Open question in context): I’d like to transform the previous question in this way: “In what ways can the statistics about children’s behaviour be verified?” This question induces further discussion and also asks you to research beyond the article itself while remaining rooted in the details of the article.

Knowledge Issue (Generalised Open Question): "To what extent are the explanations of science liable to bias?" " How certain are scientific explanations of human behaviour?" These are now fully fledged ‘strong’ KIs ready to be explored in the Presentation.

KIs in a TOK Essay

Here’s a worked example using the framework for KIs in preparation for a TOK Essay:

Essay question: “Can a machine know?” (Question 9 from the Prescribed Essay list 2006-7) (You might like to look at the Blog entries on Consciousness at the same time.)

Problem: This question is about whether machines with Artificial Intelligence have consciousness or minds.

Knowledge Problem (Facts): Which WoKs does a machine use to acquire knowledge? A 5Ws-type question.

Knowledge Issue (Closed question in context): “Do machines only know what they are programmed to know?” This question is ‘in context’ in that it is focused on the details of the question and requires a ‘yes/no’ answer.

Knowledge Issue (Open question in context): I’d like to transform the previous question in this way: “How can we know (ie. verify) that machines actually know something?” This question induces further discussion and also asks you to research beyond the question itself while remaining rooted in the details of the question.

Knowledge Issue (Generalised Open Question): "How far is it true to say that machines and humans know in the same way?" "To what extent is knowledge or knowing limited to organic life forms?" These are now fully fledged ‘strong’ Kis ready to be explored in the Essay.

Further ideas about Knowledge Issues

2009-10-23T11:05:00.004+01:00

Here’s a general framework to help you create KIs for your essays and presentations. Some of you might jump steps and start with Step 6, others might need to go through each step at a time. The most important thing is to try to work things out for yourself, but then to collaborate if you find creating KIs tough-going. Usually a combination of the framework and collaboration should yield a pretty strong result.

NOTE: Make sure you don’t use the SAME KIs in your work as your collaborators use in theirs!

1. Stimulus material/Essay question: Define the exact nature of the material or question.

2. Central argument or problem: State the essence of the material or question in the form of one simple statement (This is about...).

3. Knowledge Problem (Facts): Raise one question that focuses on the details of the material or question (Who? What? Where? When? Why?).

4. Knowledge Issue (Closed question in context): Now transform that question into a more closed (one that requires a yes/no response) question about the article or question itself.

5. Knowledge Issue (Open question in context): Next transform the closed question into a more open question (How far...? To what extent...? In what way...?) which inspires further debate about the article or question.

6. Knowledge Issue (Generalised Open Question): Finally, transform the previous question into a more wide-ranging open question that draws attention to the ‘bigger picture’ about knowledge in the world and how it is acquired and used; this question need not be focused on your material or essay question at all but goes beyond it in some way.

TIP: you may use any of the KIs you create in Steps 4-6 in your essays and presentations, though you will tend to get more credit for those created in Step 6 if they are effectively expressed and generate balanced arguments when you explore them in the main body of your work.

Watch this space for some worked examples...

Examples

2009-10-12T11:13:00.009+01:00

Natural Sciences and Human Sciences (The problem of consciousness, Part 4)

Click on this movie to see the first episode of Dr. Susan Greenfield's BBC 1 documentary Brain Story - 'All in the mind'.

At this point in our discussion, we enter into an enquiry that philosophers label the 'mind-body problem' which is linked to the problem of identity. It's worthwhile investigating into the various theories, if only to yield some insights into the mystery of consciousness.

The materialist theory of consciousness

Greenfield argues that 'you are your brain'. Your inner world of consciousness is a matter of electrical activity inside your brain. So for example, when you saw that red apple you had for lunch, certain physical causes and effects created the experience of redness in your consciousness: first, light was reflected off the apple into your eye. Here the light was focused onto your retina to create an image. Next, the photo-sensitive cells on your retina triggered electrical pulses which moved down the nerve pathways that connect your eye to your brain. Then the electrical pulses caused something to happen in your brain to give you the visual experience of seeing a red apple. Your mind, or mental perception of the world, is just what goes on physically in your brain. In short, you are the sum of the different parts of your brain: the cells that cause different electrical impulses depending on ther function; the nerves that transport those impulses from your sense receptors to your brain; the neurons that fire when you those electrical impulses reach the brain and so on.

The dualist theories of consciousness

There are two versions of this theory:

Substance dualism

Rene Descartes (1596- 1650) argued that 'you are your mind'. He devised the theory that the mind and body are separate entities and capable of existing independently of eachother. In short, Descartes believed that when something happens in the brain, something else had to happen - your brain caused something to happen in your mind. The brain and mind may interact, but they aren't identical. How does Descartes argue his case? He gives us the classic sceptical method of doubt:

P1: My body (or anything made of physical matter) is something the existence of which can be doubted.

P2: I am not something the existing of which I can doubt (since some doubting is actually going on...)

Conclusion: Therefore, I am not my body.

I am, Descartes concludes further, a thinking substance made entirely of mind.

Property dualism

Property dualists differentiate between physical and mental properties, rather than substances. Yes, human behaviour can be explained by certain brain states, but there is something else, over and above the physical, that characteries our conscious, mental experience of the world: these are explained in terms of mental states or properties. Unlike materialists, property dualists would argue that our minds are not reducible to the sum of the parts of the brain; we are somehow more than the some of our parts. We'll have a look at the arguments that represent this view later.

But for now, now, we are left with three alternative views of consciousness:

1. The hard scientific view that consciousness is reducible to the individual workings of the brain.

2. Descartes’s view, which very few people would be willing to defend these days, that consciousness is an immaterial substance that interacts with our physical body.

3. The very unscientific view that there exist these non-physical, so-called ‘mental properties’ which make up what we call 'consciousness'.

Examples

2009-10-11T14:33:00.015+01:00

Natural Sciences and Human Sciences (The problem of consciousness, Part 3)

So what have we established so far?

1. Consiousness (the action of my mind) is redicible to the physical facts of what happens in my body and brain when I express my inner experiences. This is, presumably, what Kurzweil would refer to as 'sentience'.

2. Consiousness is purely subjective and it is in principle impossible to reduce my conscious experiences, the facts of my mental actions, to mere physical facts: there must be something more than just the physcial facts to explain this strange inner life that only I can experience.

Position 1 is termed the 'materialist' perspective and is usually held by scientists. They explain that just as two properties that at first seem distinct are in fact identical (eg. water and H2O), mental states and brain states are in fact identical. Don't be fooled by advertisements for pain killers which tell you that the drug, once taken, homes in directly to the part of your body that is throbbing (usually indicated by a fancy visual of a red spotlight on the affected area). The pain is actually a certain brain state and the drug's work really takes place there.

Position 2 is termed the 'dualist' position and is usually held by people with a leaning towards a religious or supernatural explanaton for the origins of consciousness. 'Substance dualists' argue that the mind and body are two disctinct substances and can exist independently of eachother but can interact with eachother. Property dualists argue that there is only phyiscal stuff in the universe, but this stuff has two distinct properties, mental and physical properties. Our mental properties are extra properties and exist in addition to our physical properties.

Before we look at the arguments and counter-arguments presented by believers in each position, consider the following variations on an intelligence test for machines.

The Turing Test

In the 1950s, Alan Turing devised an intelligence test to establish whether a machine is displaying any conscious mental activity. There are different versions of the test, but here's a summary: there are three participants, A, B and C. B & C are in separate compartments and A is the interrogator looking into both. A communicates with B & C by means of a telegraph apparatus. It is up to A to pose questions to B & C in an attempt to find out who is the human and who is machine. It's up to B & C to convince A that each of them is indeed human. According to the terms of the test, if A cannot tell the difference between B & C more than 50% of the time, then the machine is said to be intelligent. As yet, we haven't been able to create a machine or computer that has passed the Turing test. Why? Largely because, as Kurweil might suggest, our computers have not mastered emotion...yet!

The Chinese Room

In 1980, John Searle presented a thought-experiment to prove that machines or computers don't have minds or conscious mental states, they simply imitate intelligent behaviour or understanding. In short, computers, however complex their computational outcomes, are simply fulfilling a program that we have created for them. Here's how the experiment works. Imagine that a person who has no knowledge of Chinese is locked in a room in which there are a set of cards with strange symbols on them. These symbols are in fact Chinese characters, but to this person they are meaningless squiggles. Suppose now that he is given other cards with similar symbols on them plus instructions (in his own language) about how to shuffle the symbols and hand them back in response. The first set of cards were a story in Chinese and the second set were questions posed to him in Chinese about that story. The instructions for the symbol shuffling are his 'program', so to speak, to respond correctly in Chinese to these questions. The people posing the questions outside the room are Chinese. When the answers come back from the person in the locked room, they might be fooled into thinking that he understands Chinese and is capable of following the story. But clearly he doesn't understand a word of Chinese. He's simply shuffling symbols according to his instructions. Searle's point is twofold: first, that computers, however complex, work in exactly the same way - they mechanically shuffle symbols according their program without understanding any of the symbols and their meaning. They merely provide a simulation of understanding. Second, the main reason for this is because they're made of the wrong stuff - they are not biological, organic beings that have evolved naturally.

Examples

2009-10-09T09:56:00.017+01:00

Natural Sciences, Human Sciences and the Arts (The problem of consciousness, Part 2)

Literary writers have been fascinated about the consciousness conundrum, most dramatically Mary Shelley in her Gothic novel, Frankenstein. Haing been impressed by the work of the 18th Century Italian physicist Luigi Galvani in the fiel of electricity, she constructed that well-known parable of man playing God and giving life to a inanimate piece of matter comprising the body parts of different dead humans sewn together. Dr. Frankenstein harnessed the raw power of electricity in lightning and channelled it into the lifless flesh of his Creation. And the rest is fictional history.

But this isn't how it happened with us, is it? It's going to be extremely hard to specify a date when our ancestors first became conscious. And perhaps it's going to be harder still to explain how this happened, unless we're drawn to the God hypothesis. But what if we aren't so drawn? What sort of hypthothesis are we left with.

Clarifying our concepts

Let's begin with some definitions. In the debate, 'Will machines become conscious?', Kurzweil defines 'consciousness' in two ways:

1. 'Apparent consciousness': "We can define apparent consciousness, which is an entity that appears to be conscious—and I believe, in fact, you have to be apparently conscious to pass the Turing test, which means you really need a command of human emotion. Because if you're just very good at doing mathematical theorems and making stock market investments and so on, you're not going to pass the Turing test...Mastering human emotion and human language is really key to the Turing test, which has held up as our exemplary assessment of whether or not a non-biological intelligence has achieved human levels of intelligence.

And that will require a machine to master human emotion...That's the most intelligent thing we do. Being funny, expressing a loving sentiment—these are very complex behaviors..." and reflect our "emotional intelligence".

CONSCIOUSNESS IS THE OUTWARD, PHYSICAL MANIFESTATION OF INTERNAL STATES - IT CAN BE EXPLAINED IN TERMS OF ALL THE PHYSICAL FACTS WE CAN COLLECT ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH OUR BODIES AND IN OUR BRAIN WHEN WE EXPERIENCE THINGS.

2. 'Subjectivity': "Consciousness is a synonym for subjectivity and really having subjective experience, not just an entity that appears to have subjective experience...There's no consciousness detector we can imagine creating, that you'd slide an entity in—green light goes on, OK, this one's conscious, no, this one's not conscious..."

CONSCIOUSNESS IS SOMETHING INTERNAL AND PRIVATE AND INACCESSIBLE - IT IS SOMETHING MORE THAN THE PHYSICAL FACTS RELATING TO BRAIN STATES AND THE ACTIONS OF YOUR BODY.

What implications does this distinction have to our understanding of the human mind as opposed to the mind of a machine?

Examples

2009-10-08T11:13:00.011+01:00

Natural Sciences and Human Sciences (The problem of consciousnes, Part 1)

You've just got to read this!

In a recent Guardian article, Ray Kurzweil, a technology guru, made certain predictions about mankind based on the evidence of the technological revolution in the field of computers and Articial Intelligence in recent years. The Guardian reports:

"that by 2029 computers will be able to pass the Turing test - that is, pass themselves off as human in conversation...By 2035 the human brain and computers will begin to merge - literally. Those nanobots will be used to vastly extend the reach of human intelligence. They will allow us to control all our senses by computer and enter a full virtual reality in which we could become other people."

'Nanobots' are tiny robotic micro-processors. Kurzweil describes them as "blood-cell sized devices" that can be injected into our bloodstream. The initial effect would be to help our bodies repair dead or dying cells and, ultimately, to keep us healthier and living longer.

What we're interested in, however, is the idea that in 20 years time, we won't be able, if Kurzweil is right, to distinguish between computers (or machines) and humans. Nanobot machines will be able to enhance our thinking powers from the inside, so to speak, just like a pacemaker enhances the work of a defective heart. Nanobots are more than replacement internal prosthetics like a heart valve or a metal pin to strengthen a hip joint; they are enhancements that become a part of us and make us somehow more than human. The full implications of nanobot technology are, however, vastly more interesting and perhaps even unimaginable.

Kurzweil suggests, in another debate entitled, 'Will machines become conscious?', that machines, computers, will display CONSCIOUSNESS; they will become self-aware.

How on earth does that happen?

By extension, we may well ask: how on earth did this piece of flesh that is a human being ever become conscious?

Much of what follows is discussed very vividly and with great lucidity in Stephen Law's book, The Philosophy Gym. Please check it out.

BBC : 'The Big Questions'

2009-09-25T14:06:00.004+01:00

The TOK Team is returning to the BBC show once again this Sunday 27th September 2009 at 10.00am. The motions that will be debated are:

1. Have we lost faith in the police?
2. Do we have a duty to care for our elderly parents?
3. Are religious relics a con?

As you know, we have fairly strong opinions on a range of topics although the ones above don't seem to be too controversial. A summary of our responses to the above can be found below:

1. Yes.
2. Yes.
3. Yes.

Watch the program to see the range of arguments and counter-arguments that are on offer.

More on Knowledge Issues

2009-09-19T15:52:00.003+01:00

The IBO have finally published a leaflet on this elusive but extremely important concept that provides the foundations to any TOK presentation and essay. Here's the link to the document on the IBTOKSPOT website: Knowledge Understanding Issues.

Remember: KIs are usually formulated as questions. You will gain higher marks if you're capable of formulating specific and focused OPEN questions using the TOK terminology presented to you at the start of your studies. This means:

1/ Steer clear of using verbs at the start of your questions: 'Can...?', 'Do/Does...?', 'Have/Has...?', 'Will...?'. These sentence starters will lead you to create CLOSED questions which have either a yes or no answer.

2/ Use instead the words 'How...?', 'Why...?', 'What...?', 'Where...?', 'When...?' at the start of your question. Alternatively, use the phrases 'How far...?', 'In what way....?', 'To what extent...?' to begin your question. In this way, you can create questions that will push you to explore your topic more widely and deman more rigorous arguments and counter-arguments.

Here's a key paragraph from the IBO document that you should study well since it gives you some key trigger vocubulary to set you on your way to formulating challenging and relevant KIs:

"Knowledge issues that are most likely to support high levels of achievement are:

• open-ended questions that admit more than one possible answer
• explicitly about knowledge in itself and not subject-specific claims
• couched in terms of TOK vocabulary and concepts: the areas of knowledge, the ways ofknowing and the concepts in the linking questions—belief, certainty, culture, evidence,experience, explanation, interpretation, intuition, justification, truth, values
• precise in terms of the relationships between these concepts."

('Understanding Knowledge Issues, IBO, 2009)

Click onto the Knowledge Issues tab on the left to look at other clarifying articles on the subject.

Websites

2009-08-27T08:25:00.004+01:00

Open University and BBC

Here's a splendid website devoted to topics relevant to TOK presented by the BBC in association with the Open University. Especially impressive are the pages devoted to Mathematics: More or Less. This title actually refers to a radio programme aired on BBC Radio 4 which you can also download from the BBC's i-player. Navigate through the menu bar on the left to access various articles on mathematical subjects.

On the Home page of the site (or on the 'Learning' tab at the top of each page), you'll be able to look at the OU's 'Browse' menu which is categorised in a way which looks very similar to the AOKs in TOK. Here are some direct links:

Arts

Natural Sciences

History

Ethics

Human Sciences (incl. Emotion)

Language

The articles on these pages will help you to develop and vary your use of key EXAMPLES in your essays and presentations and to ensure that you don't repeat clichés...

Examples

2009-08-23T09:30:00.008+01:00

Natural Sciences and Human Sciences

If you've been following the World Athletics Championships in Berlin, you'll be familiar with the controversy regarding the South African Women's 800 metres champion, Caster Semenya. There are allegations from her fellow athletes and others that the eighteen year old sportswoman is a man.

Here's an aptly entitled (and extremely interesting) blog article that discusses the subject: 'Man or Woman? The Importance of Knowing'. Compare this with a Guardian article on the aftermath of Semenya's Berlin victory.

The International Association of Athletes Federation (IAAF) suggests a possible solution to the problem: Semenya must undergo 'gender verification tests' to establish her true gender status. What do you think these tests involve? Apparently the tests take a week to complete and involve a group of scientific specialists. They may reveal that Semenya has both male and female genitalia which is not an uncommon state of affairs.

Both of the above-mentioned articles point to cases which suggest that these issues are not new. Reflect on the tragic case of David Reimer (article 1) and on the very different case of a female tennis player (article 2) and consider if we have learned to see through the media hype surrounding these cases and to deal with them sensitively.

The issue not only raises questions regarding what it is to be human, but also about the nature of human sexuality. How do we define 'masculinity' and 'femininity'? How do these differ from or relate to our understanding of what it is to be a 'man' or 'woman'? And do these definitions change with the advance of scientific knowledge about the human body? On a more psychological level, we must question the motives of human beings in their social interactions: how far are these motives driven by fear, jealousy and greed? How far is it true to say that those accusing Semenya of cheating are motivated by a 'racist agenda'?

Examples

2009-08-21T07:46:00.006+01:00

History, Natural Sciences and Human Sciences (Paranormal Phenomena)

Is the truth out there?

Last October, the Government's MoD released its own 'X'Files' on UFO sightings in the UK since the late seventies. One refers to a case in 1980 which is being dubbed as Britain's 'Roswell' in Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk (click the above image). Another batch of files released this month has renewed interest in the UFOs and the central questions that are related to this phenomenon such as, are we alone in the universe? Is there a conspiracy relating to the use of alien technology? Are world governments covering up the fact that aliens have visited, or are indeed already inhabiting, the earth?

Read this article in the Guardian and have a look at the National Archives and MoD website for further information, especially if you decide to base a presentation around this topic or write about it in your essays.

You will need to consider the common assumptions that people make about UFOs and the assumptions we make about those who claim to have seen them. Consider the definitions and concepts used to discuss the subject: what do we mean by using the word 'UFO'? Consider then the problem of perception and common sense: can we relly believe all that we see? Consider also the various arguments and counter-arguments relating to the phenomenon: the physical evidence relating to the existence of aliens compared to the psychological evidence which suggests that humans are strongly affected by the power of suggestion.

While you delve into your researches, you might like to consider these question too:

1. What is the difference between 'good' and 'bad' science?

2. To what extent is the paranormal experience of seeing a UFO comparable to the mystical experience of seeing God?

ToK Websites

2009-08-11T20:45:00.005+01:00

Prince Alfred College - TOK Presentation Guide

For those of you working hard on your TOK Presentations (and those of you planning to begin your hard work!), here's a guide we found courtesy of Mr. R. Bruford, Dean of Studies at Prince Alfred College, Australia.

It will be useful for a numnber of reasons, but the two most important ones are as follows:

1. The guide gives you a number of possible topics to work on if you are still unsure about which subject to explore (pp. 4-5.)

2. The guide neatly clarifies the meaning of that important concept, KNOWLEDGE ISSUES, which should form the foundation of your presentation and essay (pp. 8-10.)

Keep working away and we look forward to seeing the fruits of your valiant labours in September...

TOK Websites

2009-07-25T09:17:00.002+01:00

Steedman's TOK Site: Hyannis, MA, U.S.A.

This is really two-websites-in-one and is a blog-based TOK site created by the IB Co-ordinator of a school in the U.S.A.

Site 1: http://steedmantok.blogspot.com/

The focus is on the Ways of Knowing and some information on the TOK presentation (also has some CAS/Extended Essay material). The site is full of useful questions and related articles on the individual WOKs to help you further your research and understanding of these concepts.

Site 2: http://steedmantok2.blogspot.com/

The focus here is on the Areas of Knowledge and the TOK Assessments and again presents links to many articles on individual AOKs.

Use both sites when researching and planning your essays and presentations as well as simply to bolster your understanding of what TOK is all about - thinking for yourself!

Examples

2009-07-21T10:01:00.010+01:00

The Arts

Here's a response (albeit unwittingly) to the previous entry about Stephen Law's question: 'So What have you learned from literature?'

Remember, we adapted the question to cover all forms of fiction: T.V. drama, film, theatre, dance, music and so on.

While preparing for his formal GCSE assessment, one of our students gave the following speech which is unrelated to the discussion about The Arts. The stimulus for the presentation was simply the title, 'My Inspiration'. This is the transcript of his speech as kindly forwarded by the student.

Click onto the picture to view the scene he showed before you read his speech.

"The Pursuit of Happyness"

"For some of you who haven't watched that film, it's called the Pursuit of Happyness and that was the ending scene. It's a true story that follows a man called Chris Gardner, who is not doing so well for himself. His wife leaves him and he is left looking after his 5 year old son and trying to make a living off a failing business. He is invited into an internship at a stockbroker, but it has no salary so he is left doing that, his normal job and taking care of his son. he becomes the lowest of the low and has to sleep in a subway tunnel one night, but as you saw he is offered the job and his situation turns around.

I came across this film when I was reading through the sun on holiday. I read the description and thought to myself, 'I'll have to go and watch that.' I didn't. It was only when I went to spend all my Christmas money with my dad that I saw it in HMV and picked it up. I took it home and watched it that night, and the story caught me in the first ten minutes. I watched it again the next day and it caught me even more. The way a man could turn around his situation like he did was outstanding.

Well what have I learnt? It's only a film, what can it tell us? It tells us that when a situation becomes as worse as it can possibly be, we can always turn it around. It tells us that if we keep our family and loved ones close, that we can always pull through. It tells us that any individual can make a difference in the world. And it does it all in just under 2 hours. So when the teachers say that staring at a screen does nothing for you, they're wrong and in a big way.

How can this help you? Watch it and find out. Remember that it was a true story, this man actually exists. He did get evicted out of his apartment and a motel and he did sleep in a subway toilet for a night. But he got a job with a stockbroker firm, founded his own firm and then went on to sell it to become a multi-millionaire. If you ever think your problems are piling up and you don't know what to do. just watch this film. Get some inspiration.

I wouldn't actually call this an inspiration; I would call it a reminder. It reminds me that however down I may feel; however hard a situation may become, with the help and support of the people you love, your family and friends, you can always overcome any obstacle put in front of you, just like Chris Gardner did. And if that isn't a form of inspiration, I don't know what is."

So, is our student simply a young, naive innocent who doesn't get that he's being manipulated into believing in that strange phenomenon, 'The great American Dream'? Is life really reducible to the simple formula: Hope + Hard Work = Fame, Fortune and Glory?

Or are our student's comments, when stripped of his rhetorical flair for speechmaking, a sincere statement of the lessons of life he has learned after watching the movie?

Examples

2009-07-17T12:03:00.003+01:00

Ethics and Education

This is an excellent topic to reflect on: should everyone who comes into contact with children as part of their work have a Criminal Records check?

The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) require such people to have a check on whether they've had any past convictions, especially related to any bad behaviour against children. It is called 'The Vetting and Barring Scheme' and has been set up in the aftermath of the 2002 Soham murders committed by former school caretaker Ian Huntley and its main aim is to filter out potential child abusers from the workplace. This October, all of the 11.3 million people across the education, care and health industries who work with children must register – for a £64 fee – on a national database, if they haven't already done so...

However, some very famous authors, like Philip Pullmann and Quentin Blake, who very often make visits to schools to inspire children to read and write, are outraged that they should have to do this.

Scan through the Guardian article about Pullman's response (he's definitely against) and compare it to the article about the new children's laureate Anthony Browne's thoughts (who's very much for).

Here's another article by the BBC covering the same issue.

What do you think?

Examples

2009-07-10T11:44:00.007+01:00

Human Sciences and The Arts

Another splendid blog-entry from Stephen Law's site which asks: What have you learned from literature?

A superb question to explore. Law questions the nature of the 'truth' in literature, both fiction or non-fiction. What, if anything, does a novel or biography tell us about human nature or the human condition? At best, literature obfuscates reality, creating an illusion that life is like a story-line with a neat beginning, middle and end. At worst, literature is another medium for clever writers to spin lies, deceit or propaganda and promote dangerous beliefs. In short, the psychological 'insight' into life, the universe and everything that literature promotes is a myth...

In defence of literature, we might counter by arguing that literature should be read simply for entertainment and not to discover some essential truths about human behaviour. We read, because it's a fun way to pass the time or because it helps us to escape from the dreariness of our day to day life or because it's just another thing to do when we're bored. Well alright then, let's not get carried away by the idea that literature is trying to tell us some hidden truths about life.

However, might we not ask the same question about other forms of entertainment media, such as T.V. dramas or soaps, films, theatre plays and music? Do these not purport to give us an insight into ourselves and our world too? We wonder what an episode of 'Coronation Street' tells us about the human condition!

You might argue that you only watch these to switch off from the world - you know, it's fun to watch an episode of 'Big Brother' while you're eating your take-away Chinese. In that case, think about these questions:

why do we choose the entertainment we do in the first place? Why are we attracted to particular types of entertainment like 'Big Brother', murder mystery books or horror films? And what does fiction, whichever form it appears in, actually do for us?

Any suggestions...?

TOK Websites

2009-07-07T12:18:00.004+01:00

http://knowledgetheory.blogspot.com/

This is an excellent site for articles on different Areas of Knowledge and would make a great resource for essay preparation and also to generate a topic for your presentations. We're not sure whether the website has been updated since June 2008. If not, then be advised to scan the various pages and make the most of the material before the website is taken off the internet.

Some examples of the articles collated on the site are are as follows:

'Science Cannot Provide all the Answers'

'Scientology on Trial'

'Do all languages have a common ancestor?'

'How does homeopathy work?'

Go and have a look and use the resources efficiently, making sure that you get the full bibliographic information so that you can reference it appropriately.

Examples

2009-07-06T12:31:00.014+01:00

The Arts

Following on from the previous 'Arts' entry, look at this example of how one art form interweaves with another. In 2001, the American artist Mark W. McGinnis read Tagore's Gitanjali and was inspired to create a painting for each of the verses in the book. You can view a selection of paintings on McGinnis's website (click the painting above) and can also read what he has to say about his experience of discovering Tagore's poetry here:

McGinnis gives an insight into the nature of art in the statement that Tagore's poems "deeply and beautifully describe the human search for the eternal."

So we have two important criteria for what art strives to do (good art, that is), at least for this modern artist: represent 'beauty' and the 'search for the eternal'. I expect many of McGinnis's contemporaries would scoff at this old-fashioned return to traditional values. What do you think?

McGinnis goes on to explain what he intended to achieve with his paintings: "The paintings are not meant to be illustrations of the verses, but images inspired by the poetry and my understanding of the creative mind behind them."

So, McGinnis isn't trying to re-present the poems into another form; he isn't attempting to copy somehow the beauty of the poems into his paintings or to illustrate the hidden essence of the poems' eternal qualities. He is transforming the original poetry into something entirely new; the meaning of each poem takes on a different, yet related, existence in the art work; each painting expresses creatively the artist's experience of another creative mind at work. The creative process involves a kind of metamorphosis of the world through art.

Are we to take the artist's intentions into account when we judge the quality of his paintings? What does McGinnis's statement tell us about the artistic process or craft? What does a work of art gain or lose by being transformed into another form?

Another day to remember - July 6th 2009

2009-07-06T10:12:00.005+01:00

Results day!

Congratulations to our leaving Year 13 students whose IB results have just been released.

From a group of 68 students who completed their TOK assessments, we achieved an A-C pass rate of 93% - unprecedented in the history of our school and beating the previous record of 92% in 2007. Here are the grade breakdowns:

Grade A: 6 students
Grade B: 18 students
Grade C: 39 students
Grade D: 5 students
Grade E: 0 students

Well done to you all and every best wish for the future. We hope that the rest of your individual results are equally impressive and gain you access into the University of your choice.

TOK Team.

Examples

2009-07-05T06:40:00.014+01:00

The Arts

Read this poem by a Nobel Prize winning poet, Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941). It comes from a collection of poems entitled Gitanjali or 'Song Offerings'. The translation from the original Bengali is by the author himself . Click onto the image above to access an on-line version of the full text of the book, which has an interesting Introduction by the famous Irish poet, W. B. Yeats, who writes about the poems as follows: "A whole people, a whole civilization, immeasurably strange to us, seems to have been taken up into this imagination; and yet we are not moved because of its strangeness, but because we have met our own image, as though we had ... heard, perhaps for the first time in literature, our voice as in a dream."

'Mind Without Fear'

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action -
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

What does the poem tell us about our day to day lives?

We use the metaphor 'the grass is greener on the other side' when we are dissatisfied with ourselves and our situations. On the surface, this poem seems to be reinforcing this idea - we should aim ourselves to a 'country' or place away from the 'narrow domestic walls' and 'dreary desert sand of habit' to a place 'Where the mind is led forward...Into that heaven of freedom.'

Read more closely and you will see, however, that you don't have to go far to reach the 'other side' - the poet is not advocating a mass exodus to a more exotic land of instant sunshine and happiness!

Rather, the poet is suggesting that we cultivate a particular attitude to life. This attitude is marked by a sense of fearlessness and dignified ease in which you can hold your head 'high'; it is signalled by an integrity in our language whereby we say what we mean with words rooted in 'truth'; it is underlined by mental discipline, that 'clear stream of reason' and a refinement of that self-awareness through which we 'awake' to ourselves and what we are worth.

The poem neatly encapsulates what our TOK studies are aiming for: to instil in ourselves a desire to think and speak for ourselves; to stand firm in what we believe; above all, to respect ourselves and to see what we are capable of.

Do you recognise the TOK vocabulary?

Which knowledge issues emerge from the poem?

Examples

2009-07-04T08:55:00.020+01:00

History

When you're asked to reflect on the nature of history or to draw examples from historical sources to support your arguments, you tend very quickly to point to the Second World War and the atrocities committed by those infamous dictators of the time, especially that very familiar one, Adolf Hitler.

Now, the Germans have pushed themselves through over sixty years of guilt for their recent past, quite rightly many may argue, and only recently has their most important news journal, Der Spiegel, stopped printing articles on the consequences of the last World War. In order to enhance your essays and presentations, however, try to think of other relevant examples to support your historical arguments or counter-arguments.

Take for example, the massacre at the Golden Temple, Amritsar in 1919, where British troops fired on the thousands of people who had gathered to commemorate the start of the Sikh New Year. The scene was filmed dramatically in Sir Richard Attenborough's film Gandhi:

Watching this clip makes you rethink your whole understanding of what terrorism means and the atrocities that are carried out in the struggle to assert so-called 'democracy' upon citizens.

This is not to minimise the impact of the Second World War, but to make ourselves more keenly aware of what is happening (and has happened) under our very noses. So make the most of your freedom and research into this area for yourselves.

Think about what the Russians did to the Afghanistanis; what the North Americans did to the indigenous Indian tribes and what the Australians did to the Aborigines...

Examples

2009-06-29T14:03:00.006+01:00

Mathematics

Perhaps the most difficult subject on the course. Everyone tries to avoid it and everyone finds it almost impossible to do at IB level. What a difficult job for the Maths teacher (almost as tough as being a TOK teacher!).

There are two things you can do to enthuse yourself about the Mathematics element of TOK and the IB course:

1. Visit the Lancaster School TOK Blog where you can find some very useful examples of how Mathematical problems can be a fascinating area to explore.

2. Click onto the following links to view a series of BBC4 programmes about Mathematics. Read the summary of the programme to the left of the display screen before you watch. This will give you a clear idea of the content of the show. Here's the corresponding website if your mind is suddenly fired by the programmes, as it should be...http://www.open2.net/storyofmaths/

The Story of Maths Part 1

The Story of Maths Part 2

The Story of Maths Part 3

The Story of Maths Part 4

Enjoy the shows!

Examples

2009-06-28T11:25:00.007+01:00

Human Sciences - Education

Dear Student,

Is the present system of secondary education letting you down?

According to this article in the Mail-Online, the answer is a categorical 'YES'.

In what way exactly?

The central argument of the article is that the imposition of business 'performance management' criteria in schools is undermining our children's education. This raises three important issues:

First, that the government is attempting to legislate for the education of children by pushing through a system for measuring student learning that is fundamentally flawed because it distracts everyone from the essential goals of education. These goals are, as the writer neatly articulates, to enable students 'to take responsibility for themselves, treat others with respect and care for the environment...[to] promote justice and respect...[and to] foster intellectual virtues, encouraging children to be open to evidence, argument and criticism.'

Second, that this fallible system is being driven through by mediocre school managers, often incompetent teachers themselves, on sheep-like teachers without being questioned. These teachers are in turn creating sheep-like students - a little bit like European Union regulations about fruit and veg that have to be a certain size before they can be sold in a shop. Remember, there are stories about apples that have to be passed through a template with a specific sized hole cut into it before they are acceptable for sale! Do you believe that education should make you jump through hoops and over obstacles like performing monkeys at a circus?

And thirdly, that the language which is used to get students to talk about their learning is brainwashing them into becoming commodities for the market place - they stop questioning the process at the very heart of their mental and physical development. This commercialisation of education is an insidious process because it addresses students not as human beings, but as abstract objects which enter into the system with a particular level and leave it with another level and a 'value added' score that measures progress or regress.

The Nuffield Review, a research-based group in Oxford, states that in many schools in the UK which are driven by the target setting culture, and the corresponding linguistic jargon that goes with it, 'the consumer or client' has replaced 'the learner'. The impact of this on our education system has so reduced confidence, the article claims, that '45 [UK Universities] are setting their own admissions tests to help them distinguish between the most able candidates' as an alternative to accepting 'A' Level and IB grades at face value.

So next time you go to a 'Target Review' meeting, you might like to reflect on this execrable state of affairs more seriously...

We propose two principles that an educationalist might like to ponder before he attempts to overhaul the education system. Both knowledge claims, we think, are based on sound empirical evidence and would lead to the creation of the best possible human beings and the best possible society - feel free to add to the list:

1. If a teacher can connect with a student on different levels, then there is no need to legislate for learning: the student will do anything to learn by himself for himself and not just for his parents or to get a Diploma or for the prospect of being merely a commodity in the job market.

2. If a teacher is happy and fulfilled in his job, then the students will be correspondingly happy and fulfilled in their learning - target setting and measuring 'value added' scores and testing makes neither feel happy or fulfilled.

So lots of COURAGE to all of you students out there - be awake to your work and get on with it quietly, efficiently and creatively.

Yours caringly,

Manish Popat and Carmen Szabries.

Examples

2009-06-28T09:44:00.007+01:00

Ethics and Human Sciences (World Politics)

In a recent visit to an St. Clare's International College, students took part in a conference entitled 'Human Rights and Human Wrongs.' The specific focus of the conference was on the political turmoil involving the Palestinian and Israeli conflict over national boundaries. Students were asked to reflect on the 'UN Declaration of Human Rights' and to question the efficacy of applying its principles in the resolution of the conflict - a good idea for a TOK presentation.

The central argument was that the notion of 'rights' is like fashion - it changes and evolves according to the existing zeitgeist or climate of ideas that pervades the political arena of the time. During one era, we are more concerned with group rights (eg. early 20th Century Women's Movement), whereas during another era, we're more interested in individual rights (eg. the so-called 'sexual revolution' in the 1960s).

Various knowledge issues were raised concerning the meaning of the document and you can explore some of these in your own presentations:

1. To what extent does the UN document cater for individual rights?

2. How far does the UN document uphold the rights of particular groups?

3. In what way does the UN document lay down proscriptive or prohibitive rights?

4. Under which circumstances does the UN document put forward prescriptive or regulatory rights?

Check through the UN document to find articles that pertain to these rights and see if you can discover real life examples that either fulfil the articles or are in direct contravention of them.

Some further questions you might reflect on:

Is there such a thing as 'Universal Rights'?
If you were producing a Bill of Rights, what would be in your top 10?
Should rights be enforced at an international level? If so, how?
What happens when ethical principles become a matter of obligation?

Here are also some topics that students had to research and for which they had to prepare a short case study in advance of the conference. They would make ideal TOK presentations:

Sweat (not the sugary things we like to eat!) shops
Child labour
Torture
Detention without trial
The arms trade
Drug production and trafficking
Sex trafficking
Pollution
Blood diamonds
Child soldiers
Global poverty
Corruption at the highest level in government and other public institutions
Freedom of the press
Women's rights
Genital mutilation of females
Child trafficking
Identity cards
Racism/sexism/ageism
Homophobia

Whatever topic you choose, aim to get a GLOBAL perspective on it; that is, find an example from another part of the world that relates to your topic.

Examples

2009-06-17T12:15:00.007+01:00

Ethics - The right to free speech #5

Let's round off this whole discussion with an anecdote - one which sums up for us the moral of our quest to understand Ethics.

We've been showing our students (some of whom are as young as eleven) the debates from 'The Big Questions' show from Sunday 14th June on the BBC i-player.

When we asked if they realised why we were doing this, after the usual accusations of being a show off (never!), they came up with answers we could only hope for: one student said 'to show us what's going on in the world outside our school'; another said, 'if you don't listen to someone for a long time, then they bottle things up and eventually start to hit out' and another student said 'you wanted to show us that we should stand up for what we believe.' Profound statements from ones so young.

We thought we could go home having done a suitable job that day, but then another Year 7 student, who never usually speaks and remains invisible, stayed behind and started telling us a story about herself.

She had been minding her own business walking to a lesson when an older person (she thought it was a teacher, but couldn't be sure) pushed into her and then screamed: 'Out of the way - can't you watch where you're going!' Our little mouse was so shocked by the incident that when she went home, she started to write a letter of complaint. When her mother found her writing it, she told her daughter to 'drop the subject', firstly, because this wasn't the first time she'd written such a letter and secondly, because she was afraid her daughter might get a bad reputation. Well, the quiet mouse said that she had dropped the subject, but now, although the event had happened some time ago, she would definitely go back to writing the letter!

So, our contribution in the show has empowered at least one little mouse in the country and who knows, she may even go on to enrich the lives of other people...

Since then, a few students have come up to discuss the show and now understand more about the need for decent discussion.

We can round off by saying that the study of Ethics can and should be a way of strengthening our sense of right and wrong; it can and should empower us to be true to ourselves and to stand firm in favour of what is right, even if this sometimes involves giving an ear and listening to some outrageous and often cruel human beings. Knowing ourselves better and having a strong sense of where our beliefs come from can only help us to withstand the extreme beliefs of others and their need to impose aggressive and violent ideas on the world. And this in turn can only help to sharpen our own minds and give us a better chance of decency and peace in how we communicate and live with each other.

Examples

2009-06-16T20:45:00.016+01:00

Ethics - The right to free speech #4

What are the main criticisms of our defence of free speech for the BNP?

1. The persecution complex criticism

According to this view (which was expressed by one of the panellists on the show quite early on, as well as the show's presenter in response to our statement), by giving the BNP or any extremist group a platform to speak allows them to present themselves as being given unfair and resentful treatment and thus claim not only extra kudos for their policies, but also the sympathy vote from the electorate.

To counter this: doesn't this criticism assume that the vast majority of the voting masses are complete imbeciles? That they cannot distinguish between a good policy that benefits human beings from a racist policy that incites violence and hatred? The majority of people, it would appear, have the presence of mind to think for themselves and not be influenced by the BNP's policies. Of course, it is worrying that some apparently intelligent people appear to be proclaiming and supporting extreme views, but these views can only be discredited if we allow them to be expressed openly and democratically.

2. The 'what if?' criticism

According to this criticism, it is worrying that nearly a million people voted for the BNP. If we allow this trend to continue, some argue, and history has shown this, what if a mass wave of opinion swings in favour of the BNP's policies? Won't they soon start to gain seats in Parliament?

There are two possible counters to this: first, aren't we getting close to a slippery slope fallacy here - you know, 'give them an inch, they'll take a mile' ? A million people amongst a population of over 60 million isn't much. And second, as some students have neatly pointed out, there's a vast difference between the proportional representation system of democratic election in which someone like Hitler can gain representation in Government and our own system of party political election. This system is not only founded on the principle that the voting masses make informed decisions, but also safeguards against extremist individuals and parties getting elected into power.

Nevertheless, the 'what if?' scenario never really goes away. Perhaps because it plays on our emotions too strongly in the light of historical events...

3. The 'earning of rights' criticism

According to this argument, no extreme political party should be given a platform, if their policies infringe basic human rights. Before they can even come into the democratic process, they must prove that they've earned the right. And if this proof is lacking, they should be banned from that process.

To counter this: here's a real chicken and egg scenario! Surely, we can only judge the nature of the BNP's policies if and when we allow them a platform to air their beliefs. We have to know what their policies are and we have to give them a platform to justify those policies before we judge what to do with those policies and their party.

4. The political naivety criticism

This criticism neatly arrives from the last counter: to think that democracy works in this way is at best idealistic and at worst naive. To give extremists a platform to voice their beliefs in the first place is to acknowledge that they are important and this is a wrong-headed approach.

Counter: Perhaps this just underlines the frailty of the democratic process. Yes, we're never going to lose the 'what if?' feeling and we cannot always account for the unpredictable and often crazy behaviour of human beings, but we have to trust that the process will work for the betterment of humankind. Do we all have that trust in democracy? What evidence exists to support that trust?

5. The appeasement criticism

According to this criticism, we are adopting a policy of appeasement to deal with extremists. Standing back passively while they incite racial hatred and violence is abhorrent and, as history has shown, leads to further devastating conflict. The best policy is to be active and assert oneself on the propitiators of racist and exclusionist beliefs and stamp them out before they can gain support.

There are various counters to this: constantly undermining the personalities of the BNP and their similarities to Nazis implies two things: first, are we not in danger of engaging in the ad hominem fallacy? You can't prove that someone's knowledge claim is false by attacking the personality of the one who makes the claim. And second, in attacking the BNP we are creating a diversion away from looking at some of the worst actions of other politicians both from the past and right here today. For example, our readiness to focus on the BNP's Nazi affiliations makes it easy to forget the atrocities the British have committed in the name of Empire. Can you think of modern day equivalents of such actions? The Falklands War comes to mind...

6. The extension of rights criticism

If you give the right to free speech to the BNP, you have to extend free speech to all extremists of all factions.

Correct. The qualifying adjective 'universal' in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights implies this from the very beginning; it is a first principle, so to speak. We don't have to like it and it might be extremely hard to accept it, but it is a first step to the decent discussion every moral problem requires for there to be a peaceful solution.

7. The self-excluded criticism

What about those nations that haven't signed up to the UN document? Surely they've excluded themselves from any sort of process of ethical dialogue.

To counter: perhaps more of an effort should be made to bring them to an understanding of the need to sign up.

8. The false distinction criticism

Your whole position is based on the false distinction between 'morals' and 'ethics'. You cannot be morally against the BNP and at the same time allow them the right to be heard.

In counter to this: please come up with a better, more rational, distinction...

Examples

2009-06-15T13:29:00.017+01:00

Ethics - The right to free speech #3

So why did we defend the BNP's right to be heard? Consider the difference between morals and ethics.

Morals

Morals are the ideas that you value in life like 'honesty', 'truth' and 'freedom'. Your moral sense is something rooted in your emotional life: the way in which you are brought up, the cultural and religious influences throughout your life which shape how you think and feel about things. Your moral sensitivity depends on the richness of your emotional lives, not only your capacity to acknowledge and express your feelings, but also to understand the feelings of others; in short, your capacity for sympathy and empathy.

Your morals are deeply affected by proximity - the distance and nearness of your relationships - and this defines your sense of moral limits: you're more likely to involve yourselves in someone's problems if you're close to them, whereas you may step back when confronted by a stranger's problems. The classic moral dilemma is: what would you do if you saw person X being attacked in the street? Consider the similarities and differences of your answer when you replace 'person X' by a) your best friend and b) Anonymous Stranger.

With all this in mind, your morals drive you to an emotive response to moral problems. You express your personal, subjective, often biased, opinions which are usually shaped by your parents' views and those emerging from your particular cultural background. So when I said the words 'asylum seekers' in a class today, there were howls from students and someone cried out: 'My mum said that they take all the good jobs so there's nothing left for us - I think they should all be made to give them up...' Much too often, your moral sense reflects passively received beliefs; ideas that you have not thought through and regurgitate with a good layer of emotion but without much effort.

Having said this, the emotions attached to your moral sense have an important role to play - another TOK Team teacher has called it 'the residual survival value' of emotion - remember? Emotion allows us to by-pass the reasoning stage in the decision-making process in critical moments. When a hungry lion appears in front of you, you don't have time to stop and think and reason: should I really climb up the tree or should I wait to see if I look tasty? We just scarper up that trunk and get safe. Emotion often involves the element of self-preservation and this also shapes our moral limits, so in a moral situation, like what to do about asylum seekers, our need to protect ourselves (our livelihoods) takes over and drives us to push asylum seekers out. Compare: when the referee makes an offside decision against your team, you scream a number of choice expletives at him in anger, because the decision could cost your team a win and losing is as bad as dying a death: this emotive barracking of the ref represents your way both of defending your team's very existence and of delivering your moral judgment.

So - morals = personal = emotive = subjective opinion.

Ethics

Ethics are a code of principles created to guide us how to behave in the right way, such as the UN Declaration of Human Rights, the Olympic Code of Ethics and the World Anti-Doping Code. These days, it seems that every field of work has its own related ethical code of practice. These codes are usually embodied in a framework agreed upon by human beings in a moment of - it is hoped - lucid, rational detachment. There is no emotion involved, but emotion might have driven these people to the discussion table so as to work out what really matters when it comes to social behaviour. The question that is at the heart of this process of debate and discussion is: can we all agree what counts as an ethical principle that everyone could refer to in situations of moral crisis? Of course, the criteria required to decide what makes a good ethical principle is fraught with difficulty in itself and many great minds have faltered over the problem.

We may end up disagreeing frantically about the nature of Human Rights, for example, and whether those who abuse human rights should have access to them in the first place. Here's a classic argument:

P1: The BNP do not allow ethnic minorities to join their party.

P2: (Usually the hidden premise) Democracy entails that all people of eligible age and status can belong to a political party of their own choice.

Conclusion 1: Therefore, the BNP are not truly democratic.

Conclusion 2: Therefore, the BNP have no right to be heard.

We can change P1 with various other propositions and reach the same two conclusions - some might argue, however, that we need to look more closely at P2 and perhaps re-define our definition and vision of democracy.

But who decides which people are to have rights and which are to be denied them? Surely there are certain inalienable rights to which we all have access irrespective of what we think, believe and do or do we need to earn the right to human rights? Lots of unanswered questions (like many of your TOK essays!)

The point is this: ethics are objective, the result of intense rational thought and discussion. They are an external reference point for us to turn to when we find ourselves in moral difficulties. This doesn't mean that any code of ethics is fixed and absolute. NO - we can be wrong and may need to re-discuss and re-think our ethical principles and make future amendments. Our ethics evolve as our minds and experiences develop.

A code of ethics may not always help, but it may reassure us, give us a direction, guide us to make an informed decision without being sheep-like and repeating the beliefs of others. Ethical integrity is your capacity to speak for yourself and to voice your beliefs, however awkward and controversial they may be, even if you are the only person in the world proclaiming those beliefs. Remember: ethical integrity is also based on your ability to inform your moral sense with rational thought and discussion and to put those beliefs up to be challenged and tested.

Ethical risk works both ways: you take the risk to voice your beliefs and others take the risk to hear you, but you both work with the mutual goal of subjecting those beliefs to rational scrutiny.

You might argue, however, historically speaking, too many people took the risk to hear Mussolini and look what happened. One counter to this is: many more people stood by and watched without speaking up against him...

So: ethics = impersonal = rational = objective.

Moral and ethical perspectives

Now it's the easiest thing in the world to take the moral high ground on an issue: we are quick to judge and often pre-judge situations and people without really looking more closely at them. Why? Perhaps because we get a real sense of superiority and power. We feel like we are in control of our lives and thoughts and feelings and can extend this control over others (usually more vulnerable people). However, emotion works like that; it's very capricious, but then that's what makes us human.

In order for them to work, ethical dicsussions must take place on a level ground: no-one is trying to be better than someone else or to assert his beliefs and claims as being superior. Each party brings his views equally to be subject to rigorous rational scrutiny. Knowledge claims, however absurd or reprehensible, are tested against rationally determined principles and then accepted or rejected accordingly. This process can be intensely serious and frightening; it can be playful and light-hearted or even ironic; it can make for great entertainment. The process involves, ultimately, a common need for decent discussion and a will to resolve moral dilemmas.

Let's ask the question again: why did we defend the BNP's right to be heard.

Answer: there is no contradiction in feeling morally outraged at the BNP's politics and wanting them removed from the face of this earth and at the same time in knowing that they have as true a claim to free speech as anyone else living on this planet.

We are, perhaps, expressing the paradox of democracy without giving in completely to moral relativism.

You can work out yourselves the costs and benefits of our perspective as well as other perspectives, but remember, democracy is frail and vulnerable and not without fundamental flaws...

Examples

2009-06-15T10:41:00.005+01:00

Ethics - The right to free speech #2

You would not have seen on live T.V. the almost reproachful look of the presenter as our contribution was made - or was this just our perception?

Nevertheless, the real point of interest lies in what happened after the show: your brown-skinned defender of free speech (yes, even on behalf of the BNP) was approached by three independent people and thanked for his contribution.

First, the Reverend West came to say a few words of thanks (spiced with some choice platitudes by John Stuart Mill on the importance of freedom) while the presenter of the show passed by and smiled sardonically. The Reverend duly blessed him and proffered a salutary handshake as we departed with a few words. The hand was shaken - as equally, we should add, as the hand of the poet, Benjamin Zephaniah, some minutes later. Both handshakes would have made great photographic moments - a symbol of the different colours and races and beliefs that make our world (or are we being too naive?)

Second, the specialist invited to represent the Monarchist view, Dr. Barry Twig, acknowledged that our contribution embodied the fairness that we sometimes forget is at the very heart of our political system.

And lastly, and for us, most importantly, since herein lies the lesson for us all, one of the producers of the show was grateful for the contribution and kindly apologised for its being dismissed. The reason given was that common sense does not always make good TV, certainly when 'you are the one moral voice in the audience'.

So here we are again, in life and in our studies, back to the distinction between 'morals' and 'ethics'. She should have qualified us as voicing the 'one ethical voice'.

It may appear over fussy to insist on the distinction, but your essay and presentation grades might depend on it - and you may begin to see how the distinction could be crucial in helping to clarify the direction of any ethical discussion, in your work or in life...

Examples

2009-06-14T21:35:00.010+01:00

Ethics - The right to free speech #1

The TOK Team's recent participation in the BBC 1 program, 'The Big Questions' yielded some interesting lessons on ethics - both on and off the television screen! You can watch the debate on the BBC i-player (it lasts for a week or so) and judge for yourself - our contribution is (if you want to skip the main debate) for a mere 56 seconds starting at 23 mins and 45 secs:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00l7vc6/The_Big_Questions_Series_2_Episode_21/

Of the three main debates, the first is of main interest to us here: 'Does the British National Party (BNP) have the right to be heard?'

A recently elected MEP for the BNP, Andrew Brons and his colleague, Reverend Robert West, came to defend their right to freedom of expression and had to put up with numerous attacks on their party line and their personalities (and why not? many of you will be asking). And as you'll no doubt observe, one of the TOK Team (who happens to be brown-skinned, at least when he last checked) had the nerve to agree with the Reverend and bring the discussion back from the emotive digressions of the panellists and audience to the Big Question at hand. Of course, the manner in which he told off the presenter, Nicky Campbell, and the audience for 'picking on' the poor Reverend and his colleague will not have passed you by - he's the same, is he not, with students who are not fully awake during TOK classes? Consistency is of the essence, we might reflect!

Just to focus you on the issue: if democracy is important to us, then at least two things follow in the context of the BNP's claim to the right of freedom of speech.

1. The election of the two MEPs from the BNP reflect the beliefs of a great number of people (check the statistics), however unpalatable and racist these might be; their election surely proves that the democratic process is working well - so let's celebrate that process. If we don't, then we have to admit that the process is somehow flawed and this would imply the need for a radical overhaul, which might not be a bad thing anyway.

2. Of course the BNP should have the right to freedom of speech, how absurd not to give them the right, if this means that their beliefs and policies and behaviour are kept in the open for scrutiny. To stifle their voice and to deny them the right to free speech would only force their ideas underground and we know from bitter experience what secrecy and deceit in politics can lead to.

Once the BNP's right to free speech is acknowledged, then we can begin to unpick their policies and see the flaws and absurdities in their arguments and beliefs by means of rational discourse instead of emotional outbursts, even though these emotions have their place - but if we pre-judge the BNP's beliefs, as the Anti Fascist League have done (they refused to attend the BBC show on the grounds that they would not 'share a platform with racists' - were they right?), then aren't we in danger of being exclusionist - the very thing of which people are accusing the BNP?

While discussing this in a Year 7 class, an eleven year old student of mine said (she had to say it three times, because some of her classmates weren't listening!!), 'If you don't allow people to speak, they just bottle things up and then it builds and builds until there's an explosion.' Almost prophetic words on the global political situation.

Returning to the issue: by pre-judging the BNP, there can never be discussion, and without discussion, surely their can never be peace. Just look at how things were in Northern Ireland and are now in the Middle East.

So: can we be morally outraged at the BNP's approach to politics and yet simultaneously grant them the right to freely express their beliefs? Is this a rational position to take?

We'd like to suggest, yes...

A week to remember!

2009-06-14T21:12:00.009+01:00

A memorable week for TOK students and the TOK Team alike came to a joyful end this morning with our second appearance of the year (third in all) on BBC 1's live television program, 'The Big Questions'. A heartfelt thank you to all the students who participated both in the BBC show and the visit to St. Clare's International School on Wednesday 10th June:

Charlotte Clare, Charlotte Philpotts, Jessica Parmar, Anna-Maria Constantinou, Fedia Chiha, Joshua Lee, Shayley Mann, Aisha Rehman, Emma Brown, Amelia Sutherland and Ben Baker.

All the students were great ambassadors for the subject and showed great motivation and determination throughout the week!

Keep in touch with some of the lessons we learned from the two events in future entries...

Here we all are bathing in the glory of our grand efforts:

Above: St. Clare's visit - Below: BBC 1's 'The Big Questions'

Examples

2009-05-27T18:01:00.008+01:00

The Arts and Language

Here's an anecdote from the Nineteenth Century in France involving the lexicographer Emile Littré who created the Dictionnaire de la langue française which became so well-used it subsequently took his name, 'Le Littré'. The story is a fine example of how you should use words precisely and think about what they mean and is one which Professors of linguistics are delighted to recount to first year Undergraduates in France.

So here's the story: Littré spent much of his working life either studying words or having a good time with women, in spite of the fact that he was married. One day, when his wife told him that she was off shopping to prepare for the evening repast, our lexicographer thought that it was going to be a lucky day: he could spend the morning entertaining the maid, while the afternoon could be taken up with study and writing.

So the well-intentioned Mrs. Littré leaves for the market, while Monsieur grapples with the servant in the conjugal bed. Half way down the road, Madame suddenly realises that she has left her purse at home. You can see where this is going...When Madame returns to the apartment and finds her husband in flagrante in the arms of the serving girl, she exclaims: 'Monsieur Littré! I am surprised at your shameful behaviour.'

The indiscreet connoisseur of words replies with cool professionalism: 'No Madame. It is we who are surprised; you, on the other hand, are astonished!'

The French word for 'surprised' not only looks the same as the English word, 'surprise', but means very much the same thing. The word derives from the old French 'surprendre' which itself is related to the Latin 'superprehendre' meaning 'seize', giving the overall sense of 'being taken or seized by the unexpected'.

The French word for 'astonished', 'étonné' derives from the old French 'estoner' which in turn came from the Latin word 'extonare' which means 'struck by thunder'.

So as you see, the inimitable Professor of Linguistics might have been extremely fussy about his distinctions, but he certainly knew how to express the fine line between emotions.

So what's the point?

1. CHECK the meaningof the words you use - especially if you're not sure.

2. CHECK the meaning of the words you think you know very well - you might be surprised!

Notes on Structure and Layout: Footnotes

2009-05-27T16:59:00.003+01:00

We know that we have already placed a link to the TOK website on this topic, but it does no harm to repeat ourselves, especially as you are embarking on your Extended Essays. Writing footnotes is a minefield of punctuation and phrasing and can be extremely difficult to grapple with.

Spend some time thinking about WHY we use footnotes and HOW we can make the footnotes in our essay an efficient and integral part of writing.

REMEMBER: clear footnotes reflect the clarity of your mind and are also a preventative to plagiarism.

The first impressions you make in your essays are always the most important - an examiner worth his salt will always check first the quality of your footnotes and Bibliography (along with the introduction and conclusion) and will be able to tell the quality of the work at hand.

Go to: http://ibtokspot.googlepages.com/Footnotes.pdf

Bibliography

2009-05-21T10:49:00.006+01:00

Students are still making major errors in presenting their bibliography. You MUST separate a 'Bibliography' from 'Websites' - use separate headings. There are two resources you can use to help you with the formal layout of your references courtesy of Mme. Szabries:

1) IBTOKSPOT : Bibliography

2) International Standard for Bibliographic Entries : ISO 690

You are losing up to 6 or 7 marks, because you don't cite your sources clearly - so get used to using the above resources.

See also Resource 1 for how to use FOOTNOTES to reference quotations and factual material that you use directly in your essay.

Notes on Structure and Layout: The Bibliography

2009-05-21T08:17:00.006+01:00

To those of you in Year 13 who are finalising a TOK essay or those of you in Year 12 who are embarking on your third and final essay, here are some formalities that you MUST follow:

1. Read and appropriately reference at least TWO books/articles (from journals/specialist magazines or newspapers) written in hard print!

2. Create a list of references at the end of the essay (on a separate sheet) citing all the sources you have consulted in the preparation for writing your essay. Cite the books/articles in a section entitled 'Bibliography' and the websites under in a section labelled 'Websites'.

3. The basic formula for referencing is as follows - courtesy of Mme. Szabries who was actually at the conference at the Sorbonne, Paris when the standard conventions for bibliographic referencing were reviewed and then reformulated in a book by M. le Professeur Yves Chevrel: L'Etudiant chercheur en littérature! Please remember to use the correct punctuation!:

Books

AUTHOR'S SURNAME [in capitals], Author's first name or initials, Title of book [in italics], Place of publication, Publisher, Series or Collection [if known], Date of publication of edition [original date in brackets, if relevant], last numbered page [i.e. 347 p.] [End with a full stop.]

Articles

AUTHOR'S SURNAME [in capitals], Author's first name or initials, "Title of article" [in double inverted commas - not italics!], in [in italics], Journal/Magazine/Newspaper Title [in italics], Volume, Number, Place of publication, Publisher's name, Date of publication, first and last numbered pages [i.e. pp. 43-56.] [End with a full stop.]

Websites

AUTHOR'S SURNAME [if relevant], Author's first name or initials [if relevant], "Title of article" [in double inverted commas], Website Page Name [in italics - e.g. if it's an on-line journal/magazine/newspaper], Website address [compulsory], (Date page was accessed - Month, year - in round brackets). [End with a full stop.]

For a more visual expression of these formalities (and concrete examples), Mme. Szabries has put together a document on the TOK website: follow the 'TOK Essay' link in the 'Table of Contents' or click this link:

http://ibtokspot.googlepages.com/Bibliography.pdf

Oh yes! Remember that the lists in the Bibliography and Websites sections must be in CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER according to the AUTHOR'S SURNAME.

Examples

2009-05-20T13:06:00.007+01:00

History/Human Sciences

It is now just over 40 years ago that Enoch Powell gave his infamous 'rivers of blood' speech in which he made certain knowledge claims about what would happen if the Conservative government did not tightened up U.K.'s immigration policy . One such claim was a projected figure for the number of Commonwealth immigrants that would be living in the UK in the year 2000: "...it must be in the region of 5-7 million." The census figures for 2001 show the figure to be 4 and a half million. Coincidence? Rationally justified? Brilliant guesswork?

In his new book, Reflections on the Revolution in Europe (the link gives a review in the Guardian), the writer Chris Caldwell reflects on the nature of immigration in Europe over the last century. We heard a BBC Radio Five Live interview with Caldwell, in which he claims to have evidence to support the idea that when two cultures come together, like the western European and Islamic, the one that has no strict principles or set moral rules which all its citizens follow (the Western culture) usually changes in the face of the culture that sets a code of behaviour for all its people. In short, the argument seems to be that the European cultures have been too insecure in their moral, political and social values and this has made the assimilation of immigrants increasingly difficult over the years.

Is this change necessarily a bad thing? Should we actively encourage the change? How do we overcome our cultural insecurities? What is the status of 'Britishness'? Is their a coherent and stable entity that can be called the 'British national identity' or European identity?

Notes on Structure and Layout: Style

2009-05-15T21:00:00.009+01:00

Scanning through some of the articles on Stephen Law's website (a grand forum for discussion and argument), we came across a review Mr. Law wrote on a book by a popular philosopher, Alain de Botton: The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work. Law ends by comparing the writing of de Botton and another writer, Peter Singer, in an attempt to explain what he is looking for in a truly engaging philosophical book. His criteria seem to us to sum up what we are looking for in a truly engaging (and ultimately high achieving) TOK essay or presentation. Here we list the criteria, but go and read the review for yourselves - click here:

1. "Read the book, and then ask yourself: what is the central argument of this book? What are its conclusions?"

2. "Above all ask yourself: what has been clearly and unambiguously stated here with which someone might conceivably disagree?"

3. "Singer too writes beautifully, but his is the style of someone who doesn’t want his style noticed. It’s deliberately transparent: you look right through it, at first noticing just the ideas, only later registering the beautifully precise and clear way they have been articulated (Dawkins too has this gift)."

4. "...Singer also dares to express [sic] a controversial point of view."

5. "Read Singer and you have little choice but to engage your brain. He pokes you in the ribs with his arguments, challenging you to find the flaws. We know exactly what he thinks and exactly why he thinks it. He stings like a Socratic gad-fly – pricking our consciences, making us feel uncomfortable."

Of course, it takes many years of practise and conscientious study to acquire all these characteristics of style. You can, nevertheless, start your apprenticeship right here with your TOK work!

Examples

2009-05-12T13:17:00.001+01:00

Ethics

Just a week ago, the government published the UK's 'least wanted' list which includes names of people who have been barred from these shores. How do we know who to ban? The criteria for deciding appear to be whether these people promote 'hatred', 'extremism', 'violence' and 'serious criminal activity'. According to an article published on the BBC website, since 2005, the government has had the legal right to ban anyone who they believe will propound their negativity in the UK.

What do you think? Where do we stop? Should we ban asylum seekers? What should we do with our own citizens who perpetrate their negative beliefs? Ship them off somewhere like our ancestors did? Perhaps they should regularly publish a list of MPs expense accounts...

The point is: to what extent is the assertion of the so-called 'right to know' simply an expression of paranoia? How far is it really an attempt to unveil corruption and evil at the root of people's beliefs and actions? Shouldn't we all be entitled to a private life?

Examples

2009-05-08T09:33:00.003+01:00

Mathematics

We reproduce an article from Scientific American (February 19, 2009), courtesy of Andy Fletcher (remember his seminar on Life, the Universe and Everything?). The article explores the relationship between Mathematics and knowledge through time focussing especially on the idea of the limits of knowledge for the mere mortals of the human race...

'Within Any Possible Universe, No Intellect Can Ever Know it All'

A mathematical theory places limits on how much a physical entity can know about the past, present or future

By Graham P. Collins

Deep in the deluge of knowledge that poured forth from science in the 20th century were found ironclad limits on what we can know. Werner Heisenberg discovered that improved precision regarding, say, an object’s position inevitably degraded the level of certainty of its momentum. Kurt Gödel showed that within any formal mathematical system advanced enough to be useful, it is impossible to use the system to prove every true statement that it contains. And Alan Turing demonstrated that one cannot, in general, determine if a computer algorithm is going to halt.
David H. Wolpert, a physics-trained computer scientist at the NASA Ames Research Center, has chimed in with his version of a knowledge limit. Because of it, he concludes, the universe lies beyond the grasp of any intellect, no matter how powerful, that could exist within the universe. Specifically, during the past two years, he has been refining a proof that no matter what laws of physics govern a universe, there are inevitably facts about the universe that its inhabitants cannot learn by experiment or predict with a computation. Philippe M. Binder, a physicist at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, suggests that the theory implies researchers seeking unified laws cannot hope for anything better than a “theory of almost everything.”

Wolpert’s work is an effort to create a formal rigorous description of processes such as measuring a quantity, observing a phenomenon, predicting a system’s future state or remembering past information—a description that is general enough to be independent of the laws of physics. He observes that all those processes share a common basic structure: something must be configured (whether it be an experimental apparatus or a computer to run a simulation); a question about the universe must be specified; and an answer (right or wrong) must be supplied. He models that general structure by defining a class of mathematical entities that he calls inference devices.

The inference devices act on a set of possible universes. For instance, our universe, meaning the entire world line of our universe over all time and space, could be a member of the set of all possible such universes permitted by the same rules that govern ours. Nothing needs to be specified about those rules in Wolpert’s analysis. All that matters is that the various possible inference devices supply answers to questions in each universe. In a universe similar to ours, an inference device may involve a set of digital scales that you will stand on at noon tomorrow and the question relate to your mass at that time. People may also be inference devices or parts of one.

Wolpert proves that in any such system of universes, quantities exist that cannot be ascertained by any inference device inside the system. Thus, the “demon” hypothesized by Pierre-Simon Laplace in the early 1800s (give the demon the exact positions and velocities of every particle in the universe, and it will compute the future state of the universe) is stymied if the demon must be a part of the universe.

Researchers have proved results about the incomputability of specific physical systems before. Wolpert points out that his result is far more general, in that it makes virtually no assumptions about the laws of physics and it requires no limits on the computational power of the inference device other than it must exist within the universe in question. In addition, the result applies not only to predictions of a physical system’s future state but also to observations of a present state and examining a record of a past state.

The theorem’s proof, similar to the results of Gödel’s incompleteness theorem and Turing’s halting problem, relies on a variant of the liar’s paradox—ask Laplace’s demon to predict the following yes/no fact about the future state of the universe: “Will the universe not be one in which your answer to this question is yes?” For the demon, seeking a true yes/no answer is like trying to determine the truth of “This statement is false.” Knowing the exact current state of the entire universe, knowing all the laws governing the universe and having unlimited computing power is no help to the demon in saying truthfully what its answer will be.
In a sense, however, the existence of such a paradox is not exactly earth-shattering. As Scott Aaronson, a computer scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, puts it: “That your predictions about the universe are fundamentally constrained by you yourself being part of the universe you’re predicting, always seemed pretty obvious to me—and I doubt Laplace himself would say otherwise if we could ask him.” Aaronson does allow, though, that it is “often a useful exercise to spell out all the assumptions behind an idea, recast everything in formal notation and think through the implications in detail,” as Wolpert has done. After all, the devil, or demon, is in the details.

Editor's Note: This story was originally printed with the title "Impossible Inferences"

Examples

2009-05-08T09:00:00.004+01:00

Natural Sciences and God

Look at this programme summary of a radio documentary entitled, 'God on the Brain'. It explores the relatively new field of 'neurotheology': a study of the hypothesis that we are programmed to believe in God and that the condition known as temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) could unlock the evidence to prove the truth of an individual's claims to know that God exists. If you check the 'Questions and answers' link, you'll also get a bibliography (useful aren't they!) and other web links to follow up your researches. You should especially look at the 2003 BBC Reith Lectures entitled 'The Emerging Mind' by Vilayanur S. Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition at the University of California (San Diego).

TOK Websites

2009-05-05T09:21:00.003+01:00

Lancaster School Theory of Knowledge

Lancaster School is in Mexico and has produced an excellent ToK Blog site which is recommended owing to its generous presentation of real life examples relating to the various elements of the course. When you start to write your essay or to prepare your presentation, you should consult this site to find a springboard for your ideas and to orientate your thinking. There are also ideas about how to write an essay and other key information on passing the IB course. Enjoy!

TOK Websites

2009-03-08T09:53:00.004Z

ThoK

This is a TOK related website produced by the original British IB school (which our own Principal attended!): United World College, Atlantic College in Cardiff. It's a well presented site focussing largely on the skills you require to produce an effective TOK essay and presentation. Experienced teachers of TOK outline for you how to prepare for each of your assessments. There is no content about the course. There are, however, useful links to other websites of interest. We have already put a link to the website on our ibtok page relating to the TOK essay.

TOK Websites

2009-03-07T16:38:00.006Z

TOKTalk.net

We've noticed that some of you have already started to use this website as part of your essay preparation. The site has been constructed by a teacher of TOK, Oliver Kim, who is based in Austria and who has tried to appeal to students through the use of podcast technology. The website is designed to cover all aspects of the TOK course, including how to prepare your essays and presentations, and the material Kim uses to discuss the range of topics is very good. There are numerous articles (largely on science and some of the WOKs) with specific examples and exploration questions at the end. Many of the tips he gives for essay writing and presentation work can already be found on this blog and the ibtokspot website. If you use this site for information and content, please do not simply cut and paste material! And make sure you add it to your reference list at the end of your essay.

More on Knowledge Issues

2008-12-16T10:43:00.009Z

Having scanned through some discussions by TOK teachers throughout the world (they have a discussion forum too!), here are some more thoughts about knowledge issues and what they are:

1. A KI attempts to establish the status of knowledge claims. In other words, it distinguishes between real knowledge, so to speak, and pseudo-knowledge: claims that pretend to be knowledge. For example, consider the claim 'I know that souls exist after they die'. What helps us to establish this as true knowledge? What hinders us? Is this knowledge a powerful tool for the advancement of humanity? Or is it simply a bogus claim to exploit people into joining a religious cult? How do we know the difference? Answer: identify the KIs implicit in the claim...

2. A KI is something that identifies not only the 'weaknesses' of knowledge, but also its 'strengths'. After all, knowledge can be a powerful tool in life and wielded for good or evil.

3. The phrasing of a KI (usually in the form of a question) should allow you to explore differing views on the answer. Your essay or presentation should actively engage with these differing views (the arguments and counter-arguments).

The use of examples

2008-12-11T13:04:00.006Z

We're in the middle of marking the first set of Yr12 essays and noticing various issues relating to EXAMPLES.

Many students are struggling to find RELEVANT examples.
Many of you are repeating the same clichéd examples.

So we have decided it's time to do something about it. At the risk of being dictatorial, but in the service of INDEPENDENT THOUGHT, we are banning the use of the following examples in presentations and essays and for BOTH Yr 12s and Yr13s:

flat earth theory (please think of a modern relation!)
Adolf Hitler's extermination of the Jews (so much regurgitation of spoon-fed nonsense here, it's beginning to get brain-numbing)

Now, if you can write about these things INTELLIGENTLY and with INSIGHT and present a clearly researched and verified ARGUMENT or COUNTER-ARGUMENT, then please go ahead and use them as examples. But do NOT be mindless about it.

Watch this space for an addition to the list of banned examples...

Notes on Structure and Layout

2008-12-09T16:27:00.009Z

The use of examples in Essays and Presentations

A student recently complained about the problem of using examples in the TOK essay: 'Do I make up my own examples or do I use TOK examples?'

I pictured him working out what a 'TOK' example was and screwing up his face in despair!

The simple answer to his question is: there is no such thing as a 'TOK' example. The distinction he made is a false one.

The best examples come from your personal experience of learning on the IB course or from things that you've read or researched. Often, good examples can originate from surveying current affairs: what's going in the world right now.

ANY examples you can think of, whether they are situations you've personally experienced or whether they are events happening in the world or recorded in books, count as relevant examples, but only if you can identify a KNOWLEDGE ISSUE within them. This, if anything, is what makes them 'TOK' examples.

What are the knowledge issues involved here?

Example 1:
"The present global financial crisis is cause by the credit crunch."

Example 2:
"The political unrest in Bombay make it unfeasible for the English cricket team to complete their test matches in India."

Example 3:
"Obama's Presidential reign will revolutionise the moral status of the U.S.A."

Example 4:
"Quantum theory suggests that there must have been an 'observer' at the point at which the universe began."

When you've identified the KIs embedded in these examples, try to explore both sides of the argument.

Knowledge Issues Re-visited

2008-12-04T17:41:00.009Z

Roger's recent session on 'knowledge issues' elucidated some important ideas.

Firstly, anything that you claim to know about yourself, about others or about the world involves a knowledge issue: the KI is somehow embedded in your knowledge.

You may be conscious or unconscious of this KI, but it's there. Your job as a TOK student is to expose the KIs in your knowledge, tease them out, so to speak, and express them, usually in the form of questions.

How do you do this? You have to question your knowledge:

where does your knowledge come from? (sources, methods of verification)
how is your knowledge acquired? (perception, reason, emotion, language)
what are the potential problems with this knowledge? (bias, common sense, stereotyping)

TOK is about identifying KIs in everything we know by questioning everything we know...

Both in an essay and a presentation you should clearly state your KIs in the INTRODUCTION.

Notes on Structure and Layout

2008-12-01T19:33:00.011Z

The TOK Presentation: How to present an introduction

The timing of the introduction is the key: if you're presenting individually (10 mins overall time), the intro should be about 45 seconds; if presenting in a pair (2o mins overall time), it should be about 90 seconds.

Let's suppose that you feel strongly about the topic of 'Spiritual Healing' and choose this for your TOK presentation.

Remember: even though you're not compelled to present using a slide show, you must aim to follow these FOUR steps that immediately address the marking criteria:

Step 1: present the real life example or situation (RLE) that got you thinking about the topic of your choice.

For example:
this could be a reading from the bible about Jesus' miracles or a video clip about more recent miracle events or even a song/hymn lyric that inspired you to reflect on your topic.

Note: this shouldn't last more than 15-30 seconds and should simply give a flavour of your starting point.

Step 2: present in bullet points, the common assumptions people make relating to your chosen topic - that is, reveal the beliefs people hold without question or what people usually take for granted.

For example:

Believers in miracle healings often assume that a higher power exists that carries out these miracles.

Divine intervention into human or natural events is the best explanation for, or 'cause' of these healings.

Step 3: State in bullet points the main knowledge issues your presentation will explore.

For example:

Is spiritual healing good evidence for the existence of a higher, divine power?
How far can the belief in a spiritual healing force be justified?
What is left for us when medical knowledge cannot help to make us better?
To what extent is it justified to resort to supernatural explanations when we reach the limits of medical knowledge?

Keep to a maximum of FOUR KIs: two main ones and two secondary.

Step 4: State the main approaches or perspectives that you will take to explore the knowledge issues.

For example:

History
Natural Sciences
Psychology

Note: these should be related to the AoKs and you should have a minimum of 3 (if presenting individually) and a maximum of 5 (if presenting in a pair).

You'll notice that there's not much difference between WRITING an introduction to your essay and PRESENTING an introduction: the structure is essentially the same. In the essay you write in FULL SENTENCES; in the presentation you can use coherent BULLET POINTS.

Notes on Structure and Layout

2008-11-28T12:16:00.011Z

The TOK Essay: How to construct the main body of your essay

Each paragraph will focus on ONE of the approaches/perspectives that you specified in your introduction.

So let's take the question: "For some people science is the supreme form of all knowledge. Is this view reasonable or does it involve a misunderstanding of science or of knowledge?"

Each paragraph should reflect the following thought-process:

Step 1: offer an argument that explores one or more of your KIs and give an example to support the argument.

For example:
"Scientific knowledge is derived from the use of a specific, rigorous method that involves inductive logic. For example, if I observe that water always boils at 100"C when I am cooking, I assume that this will always be the case (induction)."

Step 2: suggest a counter-argument or problem that sees the situation from another perspective. Again, provide an example to support your counter-argument.

For example:
"However, if I were to boil water in Denver, Colorado, a location 1.6 km above sea level, I would discover that the water now boils at 94°C, as the pressure on the liquid is reduced. As we can see, the inductive component of the scientific method can sometimes lead to an incorrect hypothesis."

Step 3: put forward a possible solution to the problem raised by the counter-argument.

For example:
"...even if a scientific theory has been rigorously tested one million times there is always the possibility that an exception will be found, and hence the theory falsified. Karl Popper acknowledged this problem and suggested that a hypothetical deductive method should be used, whereby false hypotheses are discarded through trials and disproof."

Step 4: try to evaluate the argument and counter-argument - that is, decide which point of view is it reasonable to believe.

For example:
"This means we cannot prove a theory is correct; we can only prove that a hypothesis is false. Thus we can never know that a scientific theory is 'true'."

Keep following this process throughout each paragraph you write, tailoring your arguments and counter-arguments to the approaches or perspectives you have chosen.

Notes on Structure and Layout

2008-11-25T20:29:00.009Z

The TOK Essay: How to write an introduction

Suppose you're writing an essay on this question:
"For some people science is the supreme form of all knowledge. Is this view reasonable or does it involve a misunderstanding of science or of knowledge?"

Your introduction should be brief and precise and attempt to 'unpack' the essence of the question. It should comprise FOUR key sentences:

Sentence 1: Give a real life example (RLE) that relates immediately to the main essay Q or title.

For example:
"I have seen numerous television advertisements in which the makers claim that their product is 'scientifically proven' to perform its function better than other leading brands."

You could be more precise and give the actual advert (or put this in a footnote).

Sentence 2: Express the common assumptions or presuppositions implicit or embedded in the example.

For example:
"Their assumption is that the majority of people will believe their claim to be true because it is supported by scientific evidence."

Sentence 3: State the knowledge issues (KIs) that are embedded in the RLE and related to the Q - these will be in the form of key questions that you will explore in the main essay.

For example:
"This raises several important questions concerning knowledge and science: do we know that science does indeed lead to knowledge that is true? Does believing the makers' claim involve a misunderstanding of the knowledge science is capable of providing?"

Sentence 4. State the approaches or perspectives which you will use to explore the KIs.

For example:
"This essay will consider the Natural as opposed to Social Sciences."

You can choose 3-5 different approaches depending on the word count you have left.

Keep an eye open for more 'Notes' - they'll help you to organise your essay in stages...

Knowledge Issues

2008-11-25T19:01:00.008Z

The essence of the problem

So the Year 12s are just coming up to the deadline for their first essay, while the Year 13s are thinking about finalising ONE of their three previous essays. All of you have, however, one thing in common: you're struggling to come to terms with 'knowledge issues' (KIs).

KIs are the essence of a TOK essay or presentation - without them, your work might end up as a very nice history or science essay, or remain simply a very informative psychology or arts presentation.

So what is a KI?

Andrew calls them 'issues of knowledge' (IoKs) and very kindly suggests that IoKs (or KIs - same thing!) are 'things that help -- or hinder -- your ability to get Knowledge'. We would like to add that KIs are things that also help or hinder your ability to USE knowledge. Furthermore, KIs are things that help or hinder your ability to establish the TRUTH of your knowledge claims.

In other words, the four ways of knowing (WoKs) are relevant when thinking about getting knowledge. For example PERCEPTION can help to acquire scientific data to support a hypothesis about the natural world, but it can also hinder our ability to get this data since our senses can be deceived, or our observations can be flawed.

Then again, the six areas of knowledge (AoKs) are relevant when thinking about using knowledge. For example, the ARTS can help us to express fundamental truths about human experience, but can also hinder our understanding of them since each artistic genre is arguably subjective in nature - so whose truth are we to believe, the poet's version of the truth or the musician's?

Finally, the idea of looking at methods of establishing the truth of our knowledge claims is also important. For example, if you believe that our assumptions about the world drive our conclusions, then we have to confront the problem of BIAS.

How do you actually construct a KI?

They are usually constructed in the form of QUESTIONS that you explore in an essay or presentation. The type of question depends very much on the nature of the original essay question or the topic of your presentation. The easiest way to formulate a KI is to use the sentence stem: 'How do we know...?' or 'How does knowledge of...?'.

More complex KIs can be composed by building the following vocabulary into your questions (use a thesaurus to vary your word use):

KIs relating to how we ACQUIRE knowledge (WoKs):
'perception'/'perceive'/'sense'/'sensation'; 'reason'/'rational'/irrational'/'logic'; 'emotion'/'feeling' (or any specific emotion by name); 'language'/'communication'/'sign'/'meaning'...

KIs relating to how we USE knowledge (AoKs):
'natural sciences' (or any of these by name - use the noun or adjective form); 'human sciences' (as with the natural sciences); 'history'/'historical'/'primary/secondary
sources'; 'mathematics'/'mathematical'/'statistical'; 'ethics'/'ethical'/'should'; 'arts' (or any of the genres by name)...

KIs relating to how we establish the TRUTH of our knowledge claims:
'bias' (personal or cultural); 'stereotype'; 'prove'/'proof'/'disprove'; 'argument'/'counter argument'; 'evidence'; 'reliable'/'reliability'; 'limitations'/'problems'; 'subjective'/'objective'; 'verification'/'falsification'; 'certainty'/'doubt'; 'belief'; 'assumption'/'presupposition'; 'common-sense'...

Please note: the above lists are not exhaustive!

Examples of KIs

Look at the ToK essay question breakdowns on the TOK blog and go to the TOK website (link is on the left) to find the powerpoint slideshow entitled 'What is a knowledge issue?' (you should find it via the 'TOK Presentation' link in the main 'Table of Contents').

ToK Website

2008-07-04T10:54:00.004+01:00

We're very happy to announce a new ToK website!

Remember the birthdate: Friday July 4th 2008

At present, you'll only be able to access the essay and presentation pages since the other pages are still under construction. But the site should get you thinking about things nicely...

http://ibtokspot.googlepages.com