Week 1 - Scope: What counts as knowledge? Limits of knowledge.

• Filosofie
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 5

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

       Journal activity week 1:

Choose one everyday activity (e.g. cooking, gaming, sport) you are familiar with. Analyse this activity in three steps:

1. Explain how this activity shows how knowledge is vast, interconnected, collectively constructed and cumulative. 
2. Show how the three kinds of knowledge apply to this activity (personal experience, skill, information & ideas) . 
3. Explain a limitation of knowledge that is involved. 

*K 2.1.0

What activity did you choose?

Welcome to

Theory of Knowledge

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

What will we be doing?

The plan

Week 1: scope	Week 2: perspective	Week 3: methods & tools	Week 4: methods & tools
What counts as knowledge?	How do perspectives shape knowledge?	How do we justify knowledge claims?	How do reasoning and bias affect what we accept as knowledge?

The plan

Unit 1: Unravelling knowledge

What will we be doing?

The plan

Week 1: 

scope

What counts as knowledge?

This week

Monday	Thursday
Different sorts of knowledge	Limits of knowledge

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Essential understandings week 1:

• Recognize an analytical breakdown of knowledge into three major kinds: knowing from direct experience, knowing how (skills) and knowing that... (information and ideas; knowledge claims). 
• Describe ways in which the three kinds of knowledge are interrelated 
• Define the differences between knowledge, beliefs and opinions
• Identify limitations of the scope of knowledge: human biology, technology

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Essential understandings week 1:

• Recognize an analytical breakdown of knowledge into three major kinds: knowing from direct experience, knowing how (skills) and knowing that... (information and ideas; knowledge claims). 
• Describe ways in which the three kinds of knowledge are interrelated 
• Define the differences between knowledge, beliefs and opinions
• Identify limitations of the scope of knowledge: human biology, technology

What will we be doing?

The plan

Quick task 1

Copy the tabel below and give three examples in each column.

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

opinion

belief

knowledge

What will we be doing?

The plan

Quick task

Exchange your table. Would you have placed the examples in the same categories?

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

opinion

belief

knowledge

Quick task 2

What will we be doing?

The plan

Quick task

Take three examples (one in each category) on which we agree. What principles could we use to identify unique characteristics to differentiate one from another? 

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

opinion

belief

knowledge

Quick task 3

What will we be doing?

The plan

opinion, belief, knowledge

A (debatable) suggestion*

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

opinion	belief	knowledge
- matter of taste, - subjective (although sometimes formulated as a general claim), - no necessity to convince others	- claim about the world - objective - supported or challenged by evidence	- claim about the world - objective - supported by evidence - justifiable - true (?)

*Hdr. p41-45

justifiable to distinguish from lucky guessess such as ('at this moment 145987 are eating a cheese sandwich in The Netherlands')

true? some say this is too strict for a criterium. We might never have knowledge > scepticism. You could also say: beliefs that lead to successful agency in the world. 

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Essential understandings week 1:

• Recognize an analytical breakdown of knowledge into three major kinds: knowing from direct experience, knowing how (skills) and knowing that... (information and ideas; knowledge claims). 
• Describe ways in which the three kinds of knowledge are interrelated 
• Define the differences between knowledge, beliefs and opinions
• Identify limitations of the scope of knowledge: human biology, technology

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Essential understandings week 1:

• Recognize an analytical breakdown of knowledge into three major kinds: knowing from direct experience, knowing how (skills) and knowing that... (information and ideas; knowledge claims). 
• Describe ways in which the three kinds of knowledge are interrelated 
• Define the differences between knowledge, beliefs and opinions
• Identify limitations of the scope of knowledge: human biology, technology

What will we be doing?

The plan

Limitations on the scope of knowledge

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

*K 2.1.2

*K 2.1.3

j

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Quick task

limits of knowledge

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Limits of knowledge

• human biology: our senses, inclination to faulty reasoning
• available technology
• personal experience
• social and economic status
• personal background
• place and time
• ethics
• politics
• ....

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Learning experience

Choose one of the limits of knowledge.

Prepare a one-minute presentation of this limit of knowledge. Include:

• An example of a story, headline, video or image related to this limit of knowledge with an explanation
• Explanation if this limit concerns knowledge on a personal level, a societal level or both
• Answer to the question: For which subject in the DP is this limit relevant? How? 

Example

Personal experience limits knowledge of what it is like to be someone else on a personal level and has implications on society because it means racism or other kinds of discrimination are harder to tackle.<div>Limits knowledge in language acquisition, history</div>

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

       Journal activity week 1:

Choose one everyday activity (e.g. cooking, gaming, sport) you are familiar with. Analyse this activity in three steps:

1. Explain how this activity shows how knowledge is vast, interconnected, collectively constructed and cumulative. 
2. Show how the three kinds of knowledge apply to this activity (personal experience, skill, information & ideas) . 
3. Explain a limitation of knowledge that is involved. 
4. Choose one of your DP-subjects and explain how the knowledge in this subject is limited. Discuss at least two limits. 

Before you start

Make a rough draft before you start writing in your journal.

Work neatly

You will need to hand in your journal for assessment.

*K 2.1.2

*K 2.1.3

What will we be doing?

The plan

Unit 1 - Unravelling knowledge

Essential understandings week 1:

• Recognize an analytical breakdown of knowledge into three major kinds: knowing from direct experience, knowing how (skills) and knowing that... (information and ideas; knowledge claims). 
• Describe ways in which the three kinds of knowledge are interrelated 
• Define the differences between knowledge, beliefs and opinions
• Identify limitations of the scope of knowledge: human biology, technology

What will we be doing?

The plan

Week 1: scope	Week 2: perspective	Week 3: methods & tools	Week 4: methods & tools
What counts as knowledge?	How do perspectives shape knowledge?	How do we justify knowledge claims?	How do reasoning and bias affect what we accept as knowledge?

The plan

Unit 1: Unravelling knowledge