This module aims to support students in developing their skills to critically evaluate arguments and find, articulate, and present, in collaboration with others, original and viable solutions to challenging intellectual problems.

(LO1) Students will develop their problem-solving skills in relation to selected philosophical challenges.

(LO2) Students will be able to research problems, propose solutions and identify rigorous and convincing arguments in support of these.

(LO3) Students will develop skills in working collaboratively to present team responses to philosophical problems, articulating and defining their positions.

(LO4) Students will be able, working independently, to apply their skills to a specified philosophical problem and argue for a solution in writing.

(S1) Students will enhance their ability to exercise skills of creative and critical thinking in proposing solutions to philosophical problems

(S2) Students will develop their problem-solving and analytical skills.

(S3) Students will develop their ability to work effectively in teams to produce, defend and present solutions to philosophical problems

(S4) Students will develop confidence in considering and responding to previously unfamiliar challenges.

(S5) Students will enhance their oral and written communications skills and develop skills in explaining complex material in a precise manner.

(S6) Students will develop the ability to engage in research, both independently and collaboratively.

(S7) Students will develop their ability to sift through information, assessing its relevance and importance to what is at issue.

(S8) Students will develop skills in peer assessment and the balanced consideration of each other’s work.

(S9) Students will develop their skills in making appropriate use of information technology, including use of online sources and visual presentation aids.

Which problems will be addressed depends on the expertise of the staff involved in introducing the problems. As far as possible, the tutor will be a member of staff with an active research interest in the problems discussed. Here is an indicative and non-exhaustive list of relevant philosophical problems that may feature in the module:
- John McTaggart’s proof that time does not exist
- Nick Bostrom’s argument that it is very likely that we live in a computer simulation
- Putnam’s argument that we most certainly do not live in a computer simulation
- Giubilini and Minerva’s argument that there is nothing wrong with killing babies for whatever reason
- Logical determinism: the argument that because it is either true or false today that x will happen tomorrow, x either must happen (if it is true today that x will happen tomorrow) or cannot happen (if it is false today that x will happen tomorrow)
- Santayana’s argument that i t is quite possible that nothing exists, not even us
- Bertrand Russell’s argument that it is quite possible that the world only came into existence five minutes ago
- Zeno’s argument that Achilles will never be able to catch up with the tortoise
- Zeno’s argument that change is not possible
- Anselm’s or Descartes’ ontological proof of the existence of God
- Parfit’s non-identity problem: the argument that you cannot harm someone by bringing them into existence even if you know that they will have a fairly miserable existence, as long as their life is still worth living, because it would not be possible for them to exist in any other way
- Bernard Williams’ Jim and the Indians thought experiment

With the exception of an introductory session, there won’t be any lectures, just two-hour seminars. Students are expected to do their own research and identify relevant additional sources. Each three-week se ction starts with the lecturer (or in this case moderator) introducing the problem (which students will have had the chance to read up on beforehand, the problems and primary sources being known at the beginning of the course). Students will then be put into groups (randomly assigned, the groups changing in every new session). The groups are then given two weeks to develop an answer or solution to the problem, using any resources they can find and deem relevant. A ‘solution’ consists in an attempted refutation of the argument at hand. It is meant to give an answer to the question ‘What is wrong with that argument?’. The groups will meet in the second week with the tutor to discuss their progress, answer questions, and get formative feedback on their ideas for possible solutions. In the third week of each section, the groups present their solutions (15 minutes each).

This process is repeated three times (each time focusing on a different problem), so th at the learner will gain in confidence with each new attempt right up to the final exam.

Active learning is at the heart of this module. Students are assessed through their presentations (three presentations, counting for 40% in total) and a final exam (60%). Students are credited each third week with the mark that their group has achieved for their presentation, unless there is clear evidence that a student has not contributed to their group’s efforts to find a solution, in which case they receive a mark of zero for that session. This creates a strong incentive not only to attend the seminars, but also to actively contribute to finding a good solution to the problem discussed. The second part of the assessment is an exam, in which each student is now finally on their own to apply the skills that they have honed over the course of the module. In the exam they will be confronted with a philosophical problem that they are now tasked to find a solution to. Exams are assessed and marked in accordance with the usual marking guidelines. Both assessments are authentic in the sense that they require students to develop and apply general problem-solving skills, critical thinking, collaboration with others, and the clear articulation of their ideas.

All of the teaching for this module is delivered via seminars. In the first seminar, students will be given an overview of the module, and participate in a trial run of the group work they will be doing in the rest of the module. The final seminar will focus on recapping the material covered throughout the module. The remaining nine seminars will look at three philosophical problems, three seminars or “blocks” for each problem. In the first seminar of each block, students will be introduced to a problem and split into groups to discuss it. In the second, students will get feedback on their solutions to the problem as they develop. In the third, students will present their solutions in their groups. Throughout the module, students participate in independent enquiry-led research facilitated by the seminar leader.

Attendance Recorded: Yes

Group Work - Students work in small groups on finding a solution to philosophical problems. Students receive formative feed back on their solutions throughout the process, but particularly in the seminars dedicated to providing feedback. It is expected that groups have at least four hours of unscheduled and unsupervised meetings in which they develop their solution.

Group Presentation - In the third week of each three-week period, student groups present and evaluate their solutions.