Philosophy
Lesson 15: The Environment
Objective: Apply classical and modern philosophical ideas, and our own experiences, to discuss, analyze and understand our thinking.
Lesson 15: The Environment
Activator: Read the handout
Mini Lesson: What's the Big Idea? Environmental Ethics
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Do we have a moral obligation to protect the environment. Why or Why not?
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Lesson 14: Peer Pressure
Activator: Have you ever felt pressure from your friends to do something that you feel is wrong?
Mini Lesson: What's the Big Idea? website and video clips
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Which film clip had the biggest impact on you? Why?
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Lesson 13: Racism Part 2
Objective: Apply classical and modern philosophical ideas, and our own experiences, to discuss, analyze and understand our thinking.
Activator: What do you remember about the classroom experiment in A Class Divided? Why do you think the children participated so completely?
Mini Lesson: Watch A Class Divided Parts 3, 4 and 5
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Where you surprised about what happened with the prison guards?
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Lesson 12: Racism
Objective: Apply classical and modern philosophical ideas, and our own experiences, to discuss, analyze and understand our thinking.
Activator: What was the Civil Rights Movement?
Mini Lesson: Watch A Class Divided Parts 1 and 2
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: How did the teacher make the negative and positive labels she placed on groups of students become self-fulfilling prophecies?
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Lesson 11: Community Confronting Bigotry and Supporting Diversity
Activator: Has there ever been a time when you wished you had spoken up?
Mini Lesson: Watch Not in Our Town (start at 16:23 for 2nd day)
Student Engagement: Discussion
1. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
What do you think this quote by the philosopher Edmund Burke means? How does it relate to what the people in Billings did?
2. Do you think people were scared to put up menorahs in their windows? Why or why not? If they were scared, why did they do it anyway?
3. The sheriff in the film comments that, “These hate groups have learned through experience that if a community doesn’t respond, the community accepts. Silence is acceptance to them.” Does the fact that hate groups see silence as acceptance mean that we are morally obligated to act when acts like the violence in Billings occur? Why or why not?
4. Can one person make a difference? Can you make a difference? How?
5. Are we morally obligated to be engaged in the world? Is it acceptable to take care of ourselves and our families and ignore what goes on outside our immediate communities? Why or why not?
from: http://depts.washington.edu/nwcenter/lessonsplansmoral.html
Wrap-up:
What would you most like to change about the world? This can be about school, your neighborhood or community, the country or the larger world. Students individually write down at least one thing they would like to change.
Later: A Class Divided
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Lesson 10: Causal Certainty
Activator: Why are you here?
Mini Lesson: Is it always easy to tell what causes things to happen? Examples.
Student Engagement: Discuss list of explanations.
Rank the following activities in order of causal certainty. 1 being the highest degree of causal certainty and 6 being the lowest.
science
religion
philosophy
politics
athletics
ordinary life
Wrap-up: Look at the list of the examples on the paper given to you today. Choose one and explain why the cause given is weak.
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Lesson 9: Happiness
Activator: What makes you happy?
Mini Lesson: Read aloud: John Start Mill: Will having fun make you happier than studying?
Student Engagement: Activity and Discussion
Which of these activities will bring you the most happiness? Rank them from 1 to 8.
a. Sitting in a dentist's chair ___
b. Eating your favorite food ___
c. Playing a game ___
d. Reading a book ___
e. Sitting deep in thought with other students ___
f. Having fun with a friend ___
g. Helping a classmate with homework ___
h. Discussing an interesting topic ___
Wrap-up: What is happiness?
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Lesson 8: Distributive Justice
Activator: If Ben and Jerry's was donating ice cream bars to the school, but there was only enough for some kids, how can the ice-cream be distributed fairly? If two flutes of highest quality are to be given away to Birchland Park students, who should get them? What about a trip to spend a week at the White House learning about government? What about gift certificates for groceries at Big Y?
Mini Lesson:
Aristotle lived from 384 BC to 322 BC. A Greek philosopher, he was a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.
Utilitarianism: A philosophy where the good of the many is more important than the good of the few (even if individual rights are being violated.)
Distributive justice: the perceived fairness of how rewards and costs are shared by (distributed across) group members.[1] For example, when workers of the same job are paid different salaries, group members may feel that distributive justice has not occurred.
Moral Desert: what someone morally deserves.
Egalitarianism: A philosophy that believes in equality for all.
Telos: The point, the end, the goal
Teleological reasoning: reasoning from the goal
Watch: the second half of Episode - 9: Justice with Michael Sandel (click on link to the right side of video to play second half.)
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Why does Aristotle believe that the best flutes should go to the the best flute players?
Notes for next year (this video was really verbose - maybe do this lesson but without the video)
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Lesson 7: Affirmative Action
Topic: Justice and Affirmative Action
Activator: What does it mean to play fair?
Mini Lesson: Watch some of Episode - 9: Justice with Michael Sandel
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: What do you think about affirmative action?
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Lesson 6: Responsibility
Activator: What is responsibility?
Mini Lesson: Read the Myth of Sisyphus.
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Big question from Ms. Collins
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Lesson 5: Prejudice
Activator: What is prejudice?
Mini Lesson: Learn about Jean Paul Sarte, and Gloria Anzaldua's philosophy.
Read: Choose
Read: I, Too
Watch I, Too
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: How can you see beyond your current way of looking at the world so that you can understand other lifestyles, cherished traditions, and values?
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Lesson 4: Art
Activator: Give some examples that art can take: drawing, poetry, etc.
Mini Lesson: Take a look at this artwork: compare and contrast them.
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: What do you think is the purpose of art?
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Lesson 3: Beauty
Activator: What is something that you think is beautiful? Describe it.
Mini Lesson: About Beauty...
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Do you think beauty is important? Why or why not?
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Lesson 2: Friendship
Activator: Think of one of your friends. Describe them in five words.
Mini Lesson: Rules for discussion: Be respectful, listen, one person speaks at a time. Introduce the topic: friendship.
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: One sentence from everyone to sum up the class.
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Lesson 1: What is Philosophy?
Activator: How would you define "philosophy"?
Mini Lesson: Introduce rules for discussion. Introduce the topic: "Should you ever tell a lie?"
Student Engagement: Discussion
Wrap-up: Write down one new idea or question from today's discussion.
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