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Welcome to the first edition of the theoryofknowledge.net premium newsletter.
TOK has always been about applying critical thinking skills and an ability to view problems via different perspectives to real life situations. The new assessment criteria place extra emphasis on this process, so it’s more important than ever for students to be able to identify and develop knowledge issues, and use up-to-date and engaging examples to support arguments and opinions.
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The premium newsletter will include consideration of 15 different real life situations. These will be combination of a specific events and wider social phenomena.
We’ve added a consideration of different perspectives and implications related to each real life situations, to help students (and educators) get to grip with these tricky aspects of TOK.
We'll include a focus on a different area of knowledge or way of knowing every month, with quotes to get you thinking about its nature and scope, key terms associated with it, and links to people and ideas that will help you to explore it.
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AoKs/WoKs: Ethics, faith, reason, religion, human sciences
KQs: Should Western countries intervene in other sovereign nations? Are there limits to moral relativism? Are our ethical reactions governed by reason or emotion? Do we all have a responsibility to involve ourselves in atrocities committed against humans? Is there ever a justification for the use of force to solve situations?
Description: The abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls by the terrorist group ‘Boko Haram’ in Nigeria has received widespread coverage in the world’s press. CNN provides six reasons why the case should matter to the rest of the world.
Considering different perspectives: Find out how Boko Haram tried to justify their actions by researching the group, who makes it up, and what their beliefs are. Can we understand their motives for carrying out this - and other - attacks? Leaders around the world have been very forthright about condemning this attack, in contrast to how they sometimes approach atrocities going on elsewhere. Why do you think they were so quick to pass judgement in this case? We’ve heard relatively little from the families of the girls involved. Why do you think this is?
What are the implications of this RLS? Weigh up the ethical and practical implications of involvement by western countries. Should the US, Europe, and other countries be willing to risk the lives of their own soldiers and advisers in order to help rescue the kidnapped students? Could this set a precedent for action elsewhere?
AoKs/WoKs: Language, human sciences, indigenous knowledge systems.
KQs: Do foreign words damage the integrity of local cultures? To what extent can we prevent language from evolving on its own? How important is language in defining a society’s identity?
Description: The phenomenon of "zero translation" - English abbreviations and acronyms appearing without any translations in the press - has sparked a fierce debate in China, with the Chinese Communist Party's official newspaper People's Daily the latest to join the fray.
Considering different perspectives: How might we view this issue from the point of view of different language users? Think in terms of those who speak a big ‘world’ language (Chinese, English, Spanish, Arabic, etc.) compared to those who speak much smaller – or even endangered – languages. This is a particular issue for indigenous peoples. How have the French approached this issue – they have a particularly militant way of protecting their beloved language?
What are the implications of this RLS? Think about the role language plays in shaping our identities, and whether the development/change/erosion of our language might cause deeper problems in society. This has particular resonance for indigenous societies.
KQs: Can fictional movies provide us with a useful insight into the past? Can we – and should we – try to limit our acquisition of knowledge about history to sources with academic authority? Do artists have an obligation to tell the truth about what happened if their work is based on reality?
Description: The story about the final hours of the Titanic has become the stuff of myth - but how much have the various film versions of the story helped to create and reinforce these legends? This article looks at various films based on this event.
Considering different perspectives: From the point of view of a filmmaker, what are the problems in having to adhere to ‘the truth’ about what happened in the past? From the point of view of a viewer, should we expect accuracy if a film is ‘based on real events’? Are these issues relevant to artists operating in other artistic fields? Think about your own knowledge of history – to what extent is it built upon fictional accounts of the past?
What are the implications of this RLS? Think about the sources that most people use in order to gain knowledge about the past. What part do fictional movies play in providing us with information about history – and what might be the consequences if they are invariably sensationalized and inaccurate? On the other hand, think about ways in which a creative, imaginative approach might assist us in finding out more about what happened in the past.
AoKs/WoKs: Ethics, the arts, emotion, human sciences
KQs: To what extent should people have the right to express themselves and behave in any way they want? Who has the authority to determine how the individuals in a society should behave? Does homogenous behaviour help create a healthy society?
Description: Communist MP Valery Rashkin has submitted an official request with the Russian government to pull his country out of the contest and create an alternative competition called 'The Voice of Eurasia'. "I watched the results of last Saturday's Eurovision with deep pain… Giving first place to a bearded lady is a slight on humanity and suicide!"
Considering different perspectives: The two contrasting perspectives are those who believe that people should behave according to a set-norm, and those who think that people should be free to decide how to express themselves. Think about what leads people to fall into these different groups, and the relationship they have with the authorities. Compare more authoritarian states with more liberal ones – which ones seem to have created a more effectively functioning society, and is it a result or a cause of allowing people more self-autonomy?
What are the implications of this RLS? If people are given the right to behave in any way they like, what might the implications of this be? On the other hand, if we believe that there should be limits to freedom of expression, speech, sexuality, religion, behaviour, etc., who should set these limits, and what should they be based on?
AoKs/WoKs: Emotion, reason, intuition, human sciences, technology
KQs: To what extent is empathy based on emotion and intuition? How important is empathy is communications between individuals? Can we use computers to help us relate to each other more effectively?
Description: Researchers have found that a computer is much better than people are at telling the difference between real and faked pain, a discovery that may lead to methods to detect children’s pain and to treat depression.
Considering different perspectives: Think about how different societies communicate with each other – which cultures encourage more interaction between individuals, and in which ones is it forbidden to engage strangers in communication? How good do you think you are at assessing other people’s moods and emotions?
What are the implications of this RLS? We assume that we are able to read the emotions of other people instinctively, but what does this research seem to indicate? What are the implications of this in terms of how we relate and communicate with other people? Can we link the different types of societies mentioned above with an overreliance on emotion or reason?
KQs: To what extent can statistics provide us with knowledge about a society? What conclusions can we draw about a society based on its relationship with alcohol? Is a healthy society a drunk or sober one?
Description: A World Health Organisation report provides country profiles for alcohol consumption in the 194 WHO member states, looking at the resulting impact on public health and policy responses.
Considering different perspectives: Look at the countries with very different levels of alcohol consumption: consider how the following play a part in creating these variations: beliefs on individual freedom, religion, authoritarianism, culinary and social traditions.
What are the implications of this RLS? Develop your ideas above further, and think about what the implications on society of these different characteristics. Can one approach be transplanted into a completely different culture and society? Can societies learn from one another, or can they only operate within their own traditions, laws, and outlooks?
KQs: To what extent is mathematics innate to humans? What determines a number’s connotations? To what extent can we assign emotions to numbers?
Description: Writer Alex Bellos explains how from the very first time humans ever used numbers, we’ve given them human-like qualities. From favourite numbers to numbers that we’re suspicious of, from 501 jeans to Oxy 10, our feelings may all come down to some serious, subconscious inner-math….a deeply human arithmetic buried in our heart.
Considering different perspectives: Look at the relationship people have had with numbers over the years – perhaps the interesting thing about this RLS is how consistent people seem to be in terms of the way they relate to numbers. This also seems to be the case across different cultures. Do you have a favourite number? If so, why? What do you associate it with?
What are the implications of this RLS? Listen to what the podcast says about precise numbers (like ‘Oxy 10), and numbers that are more random (’11 herbs and spices’). What does this say about the role numbers play in how we perceive how the world works?
KQs: To what extent is science subject to continual revision? Does the provisional nature of science indicate that its knowledge is unreliable? Is science a way of knowing, or an area of knowledge?
Description: The periodic table of elements is one step closer to welcoming a new addition to its ranks after scientists independently confirmed the existence of the highly radioactive 117th element.
Considering different perspectives: Consider the extent to which scientific knowledge in general, and the periodic table in particular, has developed over time. When and what have been some of the biggest changes in how we understand the universe?
What are the implications of this RLS? If scientific knowledge is only ever provisional, can we trust it to provide us with truth about the world? Or should we be as skeptical about its findings as less objective areas of knowledge? Do we need to base our understanding of the world on other forms of knowledge, and be more tolerant of ‘non-positivist’ outlooks?
KQs: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutelyâ€. Do you agree? Is luxury a privilege of leadership? Should leaders of less wealthy countries live less wealthy lives?
Description: South African President Jacob Zuma's new homestead, built in one of South Africa’s poorest areas, Nkandla, in KwaZulu-Natal, covers the equivalent of eight and a half football pitches and has swallowed 246m rand (£13.7m) of taxpayers' money. "Nkandlagate" has become the defining scandal of Zuma's five-year reign and left him fighting for his political life in this week's elections.
Considering different perspectives: Consider the level of poverty in South Africa in general, and this region in particular – does this mean that leaders and officials should be sensitive about their ways of life? Weigh this up against the fact that the country is undergoing a great deal of development – is it necessary for its leaders to be able to project an image of accomplishment and modernity in order to maintain that growth?
KQs: What does it say about society that trusting other people too much can lead to danger? To what extent is dishonesty a necessary part of survival? Should we condition children not to trust people they have never met before?
Description: Once called "cocktail personality syndrome," Williams Syndrome—particularly as it affects children—has captivated science writers for the past decade. In 2008's Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, Oliver Sacks describes visiting Berkshire Hills Music Academy, where he was immediately received by unusually friendly children.
Considering different perspectives: This RLS needs to be considered from the point of view of those who are affected by conditions such as Williams Syndrome, as we need to understand what it is like to not have control over our innate reservations when we meet strangers. Try to consider whether our willingness (and ability) to communicate with other people has declined or increased over time – was the past really a golden age of good manners and friendliness that older generations often tell us it was?
What are the implications of this RLS? Does the fact that we feel obliged to teach children how to mistrust strangers indicate that society has in some way broken down? Is there a trend in society that we need to combat in some way (and if so, how?)
KQs: What should take precedence: the right to access information, or the right to privacy? Who should control the information available on the internet? Is privacy the enemy of knowledge? Should we have the right to remove from the Internet any information about ourselves?
Description: The Court of Justice of the European Union, which affects the region's 500 million citizens, requires that Internet search services remove information deemed "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant." Failure to do so can result in fines. According to Google’s Executive Chairman, Eric Schmidt, “A simple way of understanding what happened here is that you have a collision between a right to be forgotten and a right to know.â€
Considering different perspectives: Consider this RLS through the viewpoint of time: never before have we been able to access so much information about so many people; what new pressures on society does this situation bring? Think about it from the point of view of those who want open access to information (Google), and those who want to protect individual privacy (the lawmakers in Europe). Where do the individual users fit in? What’s your opinion?
What are the implications of this RLS? There are huge implications here for how we use the internet, and the extent to which we allow strangers to be able to access information about us. If we go down the road of enforcing privacy, will this lead to censorship (the ‘slippery slope’ fallacy)? If we don’t, will we be prey to aggressive advertising, cybercrime, and authoritarian governments?
AoKs/WoKs: Sense perception, human sciences, reason, emotion
KQs: How objective and reliable are our senses? To what extent can our senses be manipulated? Which stimulus is stronger: our social sensibilities, or our sense perception?
Description: In his new book Risk Savvy, psychologist Gerd Gigerenzer argues that when it comes to taking risks in life, we are often much better off following our instincts than expert advice
Considering different perspectives: Look at different ways in which we gather knowledge and information about the world – think about rational and empirical approaches, about using quantitative and qualitative data, and the sort of knowledge they provide us with. Link these with different schools of thought, and academic traditions. Think also in terms of the different ways of knowing, and how we have traditionally viewed intuitive, instinctive knowledge versus knowledge based on expert opinion.
What are the implications of this case? Gigerenzer is saying some remarkable things – that experts often do not provide us with accurate knowledge, and that our instinctive, intuitive judgements are often the best guides for the best course of action to take. You could apply this to experiences from your own life, and consider whether relying on intuition/instinct rather than expert, reason-based knowledge has led to you going astray or making the correct choices.
AoKs/WoKs: Sense perception, human sciences, reason, emotion
KQs: How objective and reliable are our senses? To what extent can our senses be manipulated? Which stimulus is stronger: our social sensibilities, or our sense perception? Does sensual enjoyment depend on the financial investment made to acquire it?
Description: People who eat expensive food perceive it to be tastier than the same meal offered at a lower price, the Cornell University study found. The researchers concluded that taste perception and feelings of overeating and guilt can be manipulated by price alone.
Considering different perspectives: You could think in terms of different socio-economic groups in your own society: to what extent is financial investment a necessary part of pleasure? You could also think about the way in which our use of wealth has changed over time. Use your own experiences – are you more inclined to criticize something if it’s free, or if you’ve paid for it? The Chinese have a saying – ‘those who have free seats in a play hiss first.’ Do you agree? Finally, think about materialism in different societies.
What are the implications of this case? If you are looking at perspectives over time, what does it say about the C20th century that designer labels became so ubiquitous during the last 50 years or so? Are we becoming more or less materialistic, and is this is positive or negative trend?
KQs: Why do we feel the compulsion to blame? “To understand all is to forgive allâ€. Do you agree? Should we strive to forgive, rather than to blame? Are some transgressions too serious to forgive?
Description: We've all felt it, that irresistible urge to point the finger. But new technologies are complicating age-old moral conundrums about accountability. This podcast asks what blame does for us - why do we need it, when isn't it enough, and what happens when we try to push past it with forgiveness and mercy?
Considering different perspectives: Think in terms of the different parties involved in cases such as the ones in the podcast: those who have broken rules and laws, and inflicted harm, and those who have suffered as a result. Think also in terms of how different cultures deal with blame, and the role it plays in legal systems: in indigenous societies, for example, punishment often plays less of a role in justice than it does in industrial societies. What is the relationship between blame and religious outlook? What about your own experiences: are you quick to blame, or seek to understand the forces at work in a situation?
What are the implications of this case? There are huge implications in terms of individuals’ and society’s approach to blame. If we view blame as something that is instinctive and right when someone has wronged us, we develop a certain type of society; if we try to go beyond blame, then we create a completely different one. This affects how we view the role of law and order, and punishments handed out to criminals.
KQs: To what extent can human science ‘case studies’ ever provide us with the truth? Is depth a necessary casualty of breadth when it comes to building up an understanding of the way society works? What defines a personal psychological identity? Can fictional writers teach scientists anything about how to gain a better understanding of psychology?
Description: We’re used to referring to psychological case studies such as Phineas Gage to understand the way the brain works. But this article explores how these provide us only with ‘psychological caricatures’, which omit the humanity of the people involved.
Considering different perspectives: Think about the way in which time can cut us off from the source of knowledge when it comes to psychological case studies – to what extent are the examples given in the article just dusty photos, and to what extent are they real human beings?
What are the implications of this case? Think about the different approaches of artists and scientists – one uses imagination to recreate events; the other is reluctant to draw on anything other than knowledge supported by hard evidence. What are the implications of following these two methods when it comes to understanding the human condition?
Source: The New York Times
Focus on...
1. Quotes and thoughts on language
Read through the following quotes, and consider what they tell us about how language helps us to acquire knowledge.
Do any of the quotes contradict one another?
What do they reveal about the relationship between language and the other ways of knowing and areas of knowledge?
Which of the quotes most resonate with you - and why?
There is nothing in philosophy which could not be said in everyday language. Henri Bergson
Language fits over experience like a straight-jacket. William Golding
Man acts as though he were the shaper and master of language, while in fact language remains the master of man. Martin Heidegger
Language is the mother of thought, not its handmaiden. Karl Kraus
You learned the concept ‘pain’ when you learned language. Ludwig Wittgenstein
Language is a form of human reason, which has its internal logic of which man knows nothing. Claude Levi-Strauss
Music happens to be an art form that transcends language. Herbie Hancock
The problems of language here are really serious. We wish to speak in some way about the structure of the atoms. But we cannot speak about atoms in ordinary language. Werner Heisenberg
Human language appears to be a unique phenomenon, without significant analogue in the animal world. Noam Chomsky
For more quotes on the nature of language, and how it interacts with the other ways of knowing and areas of knowledge, have a look at our language quotes page.
2. Some key language terms and ideas
Make sure you understand and can use the following terms and ideas when it comes to language. How can they help us to understand language as a way of knowing? For a definition of each of these terms, check out our TOK terms and ideas page.
Connotation
Constructed languages
Denotation
Euphemism
Linguistic relativity principle
Natural language
Onomatopoeia
Universal grammar theory
3. Key thinker on language: John McWhorter
John McWhorter is an associate professor in English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. An expert on linguistics, his work has involved him linking language to cultural history, socio-political issues, and race relations. He is also interested in the way language and writing develops, and how technological advances, such as social media, affect it.
In this entertaining TED talk, McWhorter discusses the impact 'texting' has had on language, and how - contrary to popular fears - it does not threaten the integrity of language, or the downfall of civilization. Indeed, what he says seems to suggest that texting has become a new way of knowing in its own right.
Tips on the TOK essay and presentation
The presentation: Speaking in public
One of the most challenging aspects of TOK is delivering your presentation to an audience. Is your audience going to be engaged by what you have to say? Are you going to be able to get across your ideas without your voice faltering? Is the humour that you have added going to be appreciated? Is the overhead projector going to be working properly? Will your handouts have the desired effect on the class?
We’ve put together a few tips that you can find by accessing our page on how to deliver a presentation. They include information on the following:
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The TOK Essay Guide
The November 2014 TOK Essay Guide is now available for download. The guide has been expanded to 47 pages, with extensive consideration of the six different prescribed titles.
The guide provides step-by-step advice on how to structure your essay, identify and develop KIs, support arguments with evidence, and add perspectives and implications. It is availble as a single-user edition for individual learners, and a multiple-user edition for teachers.
The awesome TOK Sessions Packs are now being used by hundreds of educators around the world. They provide 85 different lessons on all aspects of the new curriculum, and give instant peace of mind to anyone teaching TOK.
One TOK Coordinator of a respected international school* commented:
'Key concepts are perceptively and succinctly articulated, yet explorative, illuminating and insightful. Stimulating and accessible.'
The inspirational TED Companion Pack presents TOK-related questions on 60 different TED talks, enabling students to learn about key thinkers and ideas, be involved in the most important contemporary knowledge issues, and gather material for their essays and presentations.
16 Essential speakers are identified, and advice is provided for including the key ideas of the talks into essay and presentations.
