PHIL 1 — A Short Introduction to Philosophy — Spring 2024

Spring 2024 Syllabus and Schedule

Last updated 05/29/2024 — accessed:

Course Canvas site: https://ucsb.instructure.com/courses/18654

Course Description

This course exposes students to a sampling of topics addressed by philosophers, focusing on the arguments used by philosophers to address complex and controversial claims.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, in addition to knowing something about the arguments that have been provided for and against prominent philosophical views, you are expected to be able to apply basic tools of argumentation, argument criticism, and conceptal clarification in your own writing.

Required Materials

The textbook is Learning from Arguments: An Introduction to Philosophy written by UCSB professor Daniel Korman. The book is provided free of charge through Canvas. It can also be downloaded at https://archive/KORLFA.pdf. If you want a hard copy you can buy it for $6.36 at Amazon.

We will not be covering all the chapters in the book, nor will we do them in order. The order of reading is Introduction-1-2-5-3-6-8-9-10. You should also read Appendices 1 and 2 by the end of week 3 of the course.

A note on citing the textbook: Although it is written by Prof. Korman using the first person voice, the arguments presented in the text should not be assumed to reflect his actual views. So, if you cite the textbook you should not say, "According to Korman …" or "Korman says …" or similar. All the arguments in the book are named (e.g. The Body Swap Argument, The Doomed Regardless Argument). According, you should cite these arguments directly, like this "According to the Body Swap Argument (Korman 2022, p.60) …".

Course Format, Assessments, and Attendance

Tue/Thu lectures will highlight aspects of the readings, provide important context, and introduce more ideas about how to respond to the arguments presented in the textbook.

Wed/Thu/Fri discussion sections will elaborate and clarify the main topics and will work on applying the argumentative and analytical tools used in philosophy to develop your own positions on the issues covered in lecture and the book.

Concerning note-taking and studying styles, you are advised to read the following two articles from the cognitive science of learning.

• Mueller & Oppenheimer 2014 The Pen is Mightier than the Keyboard
• Karpicke & Roediger 2006 Test-Enhanced Learning

TLDR: (1) taking notes on a keyboard is less effective than taking notes by hand; (2) practicing recall via repeated testing is more effective than re-reading for long term retention.

Grading Basis

Grades will be based on classroom quizzes administered in lectures and discussion sections via iClicker (10% of grade), an in-person midterm exam on Monday April 30 (20%), a paper due by 8 a.m. Monday May 27midnight on Wednesday May 29 (35%), and an in-person final exam on Monday June 10 12-3 p.m. (35%). There is also an optional paper proposal deadline on Monday May 20 to allow you to receive feedback on the approach you will take. This deadline is optional unless you want to propose a topic that is not among the provided prompts. Prompts will be provided immediately after the midterm exam.

Exact formats of the midterm and final exam will be announced one week before each exam, but you should be prepared to answer multiple choice and short-answer questions about anything in the assigned readings or covered in lectures and sections prior to the exam.

Paper Grading and Late Paper Policy

(updated for revised paper deadline) Late papers will be penalized 5 points after the first 24 hours (i.e. receipt after 8 a.m. Tuesday May 28 the end of the day on Thursday May 30), then one point per additional 24 hour delay. Late papers will not be accepted at all after Friday June 7.

iClicker Setup

Various aspects of class participation will require you to use iClicker on a mobile device. See UCSB's iClicker Cloud for Students guide for instructions on how to set up your device.

• Note that it is your responsibilty to make sure that your device is correctly connected to your Canvas account.
• Participation will not be counted during the first week of lecture. However, there will be an opportunity to try out your iClicker device, to make sure that it is working. After the first two days, it is your responsibility to come every day with a functioning iClicker device (phone, laptop, or remote).
• For those who do not own a portable smart device they can bring to class, the Basic Needs Resources office is able to issue Chromebooks at no cost for enrolled students, issued on a first-come first-serve basis forstudents who meet the eligibility criteria

Schedule of Readings, Topics, and Major Assignments

This reading schedule may be adjusted at any time. You will be alerted to changes via Canvas Announcements.

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