ToKing about Knowledge--An Introduction
It's easy to see the world as concrete and absolute. Those in authority, whether politicians, teachers or parents, often present it that way. You have learned information that, at first glance, seems rather straightforward, like the area of a square is b x h and that there are seven continents. You need to know this basic information to do well on exams and function well in the world. But even as you were learning that information, you may have had questions that began to tug at the edges of what appeared simple and begin to recognize that most things are more complex than they first appear.
Now that your thinking is a bit more sophisticated and you have a foundation of knowledge, you have a space to ask those questions (Can two dimensional figures exist? If we measure the area of a square on paper, should we also account for texture variations in the paper? How is a continent determined? Is it up for discussion, like Pluto? Who decided that Australia is a continent but not Iceland?) ToK opens the door to questions that provide alternative viewpoints and attempts to determine the strengths and weaknesses for various forms of knowledge and ways of coming to knowledge.
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"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." --Confucius
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As we begin to explore these questions, there are two different premises that we will begin with:
First, there is knowledge that can be known; evaluating to what extent we can know it is the dilemma.
Second, moral and ethical relativity is not a viable option.
First, there is knowledge that can be known; evaluating to what extent we can know it is the dilemma.
Second, moral and ethical relativity is not a viable option.
For the first premise, consider the story of the blind men first meeting an elephant. One man grasps the tail and exclaims, "An elephant is like a piece of rope!" Another discovers the trunk and says that the elephant it like a snake. The third holds a leg and pronounces that the elephant is like a tree. All three were correct...and incorrect. While each was in many respects erroneous, they all acknowledged that there was indeed an elephant to be discovered and that it could to some degree be known. ToK contains the same premise. We explore various fields of study to determine what truths they offer and how they can help us understand the "elephant" and also what their weaknesses may be toward that exploration.
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For the second premise, relativism is often confused with tolerance. While at a certain level tolerance toward others means respecting and allowing their perspectives, there is a limit. For example, in this class you probably believe that if you understand the concepts well and demonstrate your knowledge in an insightful manner that you will receive a good score. However, would you accept my decision if I, as the instructor, feel that your score is based upon a purely subjective combination of your eye color, type of clothing and the physical weight of the assignments? From a purely relativistic perspective, you would have to admit that this form of assessment is acceptable. If you suggest to me that my grading system is wrong, then you would be denying that all systems have equal merit, thereby undermining the idea of relativism. The underlying belief system for the desire to be relativistic is peace and tolerance, which are honorable pursuits. Seeking to understand alternative perspectives to determine the beliefs and causes of others' actions shows wisdom and maturity. There are times, however, when a perspective is wrong and its fallacies need to be confronted. The challenge remains in understanding what requires further study and tolerance and what requires a decision and action.
The Big Picture
ToK asks two central questions: "How do you know?" and "How do you know that you know?" We will be exploring both these categories through specific, real-life situations that will, hopefully, challenge you to see the situations from a variety of perspectives, as well as explore the implications of various perspectives. Evidence of your knowledge of the course must be present in both your paper and your presentation. Expand Your Knowledge
For additional information and diverse examples, here are some links to free courses from top universities. Check out the following sites: EDX Coursera Carnegie Mellon Open Learning Initiative |
The Assessments
There are two IB Assessments for the course: the essay and the presentation. The presentation (1/3 of the ToK score) is an in-class presentation that evaluates the knowledge issue associated with a real-life contemporary event. Both these assessments require you to think critically and consider different perspectives, using the skills and resources developed over the two year course. The essay (2/3 of the ToK score) is a response to one of the prompts IB releases in October before the May exams. It is a 1200-1600 word essay that carefully evaluates the prompt and demonstrates your understanding of a ToK thought process. The overall ToK score is combined with the EE score to establish the bonus points for the IB Diploma. See the chart below for the matrix. |