PHILOSOPHY - HIGHER LEVEL

PHILOSOPHY - HIGHER LEVEL

Aims:

• Develop an inquiring and intellectually curious way of thinking • Formulate arguments in a sound and purposeful way • Examine critically their own experiences and their ideological and cultural perspectives • Appreciate the diversity of approaches within philosophical thinking • Apply their philosophical knowledge and skills to the world around them.

Course description:

The emphasis of the Diploma Programme philosophy course is on “doing philosophy”, that is, on engaging students in philosophical activity and encouraging them to develop into independent thinkers. Clearly the philosophy course is an opportunity to introduce students to some of the world’s most influential thinkers, hence the inclusion of the study of a philosophical text as one component of the course. However, it is also an opportunity for students to engage in philosophical activity themselves. Each area of the course provides students with an opportunity to explore different philosophical concepts and issues and having a single underlying focus on “doing philosophy” helps to give the course unity and coherence across these different elements. The IB offers a choice of 7 "optional themes". The current course is built around Ethics and Political Philosophy but depending on the interests of the students, other options might be considered.

1. Aesthetics 2. Epistemology 3. Ethics 4. Philosophy and contemporary society 5. Philosophy of religion 6. Philosophy of science 7. Political philosophy

1. Core theme

Being human • Identity • Personhood • Freedom • Mind and body • The self and the other • Human nature

2. Ethics

Normative ethics • Moral principles • Virtue/character-based theories • Deontological versus teleological theories

Meta ethics

• The origins and nature of moral values • Foundations for moral judgments • Ethical language

Applied ethics

Two of the following three areas of applied ethics must be studied • Biomedical ethics • Environmental ethics • Distribution of wealth

3. Political Philosophy

Civil Society, the state and government • Authority, sovereignty, power and corruption • Ideologies of government: liberalism, conservatism, Marxism and socialism • Social-Contract theories of state of nature, civil society and forms of government

Justice:

• Distributive and retributive justice • Social Justice • Interrelationships between justice, freedom and equality

Rights

• Human and non-human rights • Natural rights and legal rights • Rights, duties and responsibilities

4. Prescribed text: select any ONE text from:

Author Title

Simone de Beauvoir The Second Sex, Vol. 1 part 1, Vol. 2 part 1 and Vol. 2 part 4 Rene Descartes Meditations

Martha Nussbaum Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach Peter Singer The Life You Can Save

In addition to the above, Higher Level requires the analysis of an unseen philosophical text, the study of the Political Philosophy.

Requirements:

To study Philosophy at Higher Level, no former experience of the subject is necessary, but students should be interested in the great questions of life and enjoy analyzing ideas and concepts. They should enjoy reading texts and researching essays from a range of different

sources. As the initial experience of philosophy can be testing, students must get pleasure from being intellectually challenged, and they must be motivated, enthusiastic and well organized.

Careers Path:

The study of philosophy is central to the development of a person’s analytical and critical faculties, encouraging them to think independently and helping them to recognize good arguments from poor. It requires a close reading of texts to identify errors in reasoning, bias and false assumptions. It encourages people to argue persuasively and coherently and, as such, is invaluable in any career that requires analytical thought and the ability to communicate clearly and succinctly. Philosophy specialists excel in careers such as law, politics, journalism, research and other related professions. Philosophy – Higher Level

5 TERM OVERVIEW

Core Content: Term 1 - Being human • Personhood, human nature, mind/body problem/freewill and determinism/identity/the self and others • Political philosophy

Term 2

• Ethics

Term 3

• Ethics • Internal assessment

Term 4

• Prescribed text

Term 5

• Prescribed text • Unseen text

Option Topics: Higher Level: Two from following list • Aesthetics; Epistemology; Ethics; Philosophy and contemporary society; Philosophy of religion; Philosophy of science; Political Philosophy

Texts:

Higher Level: One text is studied • The text list ranges from Simone de Beauvoir to Zhuangzi

Internal Assessment:

External Assessment:

20% Internal Assessment:

Students are required to complete a philosophical analysis of a nonphilosophical stimulus. This component is internally assessed by the teacher and externally moderated by the IB at the end of the course. 80% Examination • Paper 1: Core and Options (40%) • Paper 2 on the Texts (20%) • Paper 3 on Unseen text practice (20%)

Comparison between this course and A-Level

The most radical difference is in the emphasis on the student developing a philosophical

approach and a philosophical attitude rather than learning others’ philosophical

ideas. Thus, in the Core and Optional Themes, little credit is given for the simple recall of what philosophers have said concerning a particular problem. Much more credit is given to students who demonstrate an active appreciation of the problems themselves, plus the willingness to engage with them thoughtfully. Studying the Text, on the other hand, allows a student pupil to master the ideas as expressed in the words of the philosopher, and then to engage critically with them.

With regards to assessing equivalence of standards it is hard to honestly make a comparison given the different emphases in A-Level and IB: effectiveness of recall would gain more marks at A-Level and not count for much in IB; effectiveness of independent thought is regarded as more merit worthy in the IB.

Contact for further information:

Mr John Sprague: john.sprague@tts.edu.sg Mr Jack Langley: jack.langley@tts.edu.sg