Philosophy

SYLLABUS
Tulsa Community College, Southeast Campus
Fall, 2009

Course: Introduction to Philosophy
Monday Section No PHI 113 305
Begins: 6 pm Ends: 8:50 pm Call No: 14194
Instructor: Terry Bell Rm. SE1227
Office Hrs: Adjunct

TO CONTACT YOUR INSTRUCTOR
Office: N/A
Phone: 918-639-0907
Email: terry_bell@mail.tulsacc.edu TO CONTACT THE DIVISION OFFICE
Liberal Arts
Division Associate Dean: Kevin Clayton
Division Office Number: Rm. 4107
Division Phone Number: 595-7673

Required email address: All students are provided an email address through TCC. This email address will be the required email address for this class. All course communication will be sent to this email address. If your email address changes, please notify me asap.

PREREQUISITES FOR THIS COURSE
none

COURSE DESCRIPTION
Philosophy Seeks to answer the fundamental questions such as: How do I know this to be true? What kind of life should a human being live? Is there a such thing as religious or scientific truth? What is the world ultimately like? Philosophy attempts to develop and use critical methods; that is, to develop standards of logical thinking as opposed to emotional reaction. Philosophy, then seeks to develop analytical skills that will be useful in every aspect of life as well as enriching and fulfilling to the individual.

GENERAL EDUCATION GOAL STATEMENT
The General Education Goals are designed to ensure that graduates of Tulsa Community College have the skills, knowledge, and attitudes to carry them successfully through their work and their personal lives. General Education Goals relevant to this course include Critical Thinking, Effective Communication, Engaged Learning, and Technical Proficiency.

DISCIPLINE GOALS
The objective of this course is to provide the student with a working knowledge of principle philosophical views and their proponents from Socrates to the present. Students will acquire a practical knowledge of basic philosophical terminology, thinking and trends and the integration of these ideas into other disciplines.

COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon successful completion of this course students will be able to:
• Recognize key philosophers who have shaped the thinking of the Western world.
• Understand the philosophies of these influential philosophers.
• Interpret the meaning of the various philosophies as they intersect our current lives and world view.

TEXTBOOKS:

S. Morris Engel, The Study of Philosophy, 6th edition

Required email address: All students are provided an email address through TCC. This email address will be the required email address for this class. All course communication will be sent to this email address. If your email address changes, please notify me asap.

TEACHING METHODS
Activities in this course will include reading assignments, writing, and discussion. The class will focus on three basic areas: 1) Text book, 2) Application (bringing philosophy to the marketplace of life), and 3) the integration of philosophy into other fields of study (i.e. psychology, theology, etc.).

ATTENDANCE – TIME COMMITMENT – STUDENT EXPECTATIONS
Attendance:
Attendance will be taken at each class meeting. It is the responsibility of the student to sign the attendance sheet. Excessive tardiness or early departures will have a negative impact on evaluation. The professor is required by school policy to report students who have missed more that six class hours to the admissions office (that’s anything more than two classes). The Dean of Student Service will report those students with special financial aid packages to the appropriate service. Students are responsible for obtaining assignments from a classmate or the instructor and for completing any missed work on time.

EVALUATION TECHNIQUES
1. 2 Exams (Midterm and Final). Student required to use Scantron Answer Sheets ( available in bookstore) and #2 pencil.
2. Possible periodic quizzes on reading assignments.
3. Papers…see next section, “Threshold Qualifiers.”
4. Attendance. Failure to attend consistently will result in a lower evaluation. Excessive late arrivals or early departures will negatively affect evaluation.
5. Class Discussion. Participation is essential.

Threshold Qualifiers for Grades
Though Introduction to Philosophy contains some very complex ideas I have tried to develop the course in such a way that any student willing to work hard enough can make an “A.”
Midterm will be multiple choice, all questions will be given to you verbatim in advance in the form of Review Questions posted on Blackboard and if necessary given in person. It will be the responsibility of each student to know the answers to these questions. On the final, you will have at least one essay question. I will go over the list of possible essays with you in the review before the exam.

Here’s how you can get an “A” in this class:
Write five 3-5 page papers from any of the following three categories:
a. Movie Critiques
b. Bios of Great Philosophers
c. Your own personal philosophy of life “Why I Am a…..”

Example: 2 movie critiques, 2 biographies of great philosophers. And one personal philosophy paper. In this syllabus, I have provided for you three lists containing ideas for 1) movie critiques, 2) Great Philosophers, and 3) Developing a personal philosophy. While it would not be necessary to submit this exact number of papers from each category, it is recommended that you submit papers from more than one category.
2. Assuming you have good attendance, have participated in class with a respectful and positive attitude and submit the above mentioned papers, you need meet the threshold qualifier for making and “A.”
3. Your papers and your exams must average an “A.”
4.

Here’s how you can get a “B” in this class:

The same as the above except instead of writing five papers you only need to write three. All of your work needs to average a “B.”

Here’s how you can get a “C” in this class:

The same as the above except only two papers will be required from you and all of your work needs to average a “C.”

Please note….if you get “A’s” on your exams but only turn in 2 papers, you will still get a “C” for the course. If you turn in 5 papers and fail both exams you will not be eligible for an “A” in the course.

Grading:
2 Exams 200 points
Papers possible 125 points
Class Participation 75 points
Total: 400 points

% Grade
90-100 A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
59 below F

Assignments:
Category #1: Movie Critiques
Critique Three movies. Each movie critique should be no less than three no more than five pages in length. I am not looking for a movie “review.” I want a philosophical critique showing me that the concepts you are learning in this class are operative in your critical thinking capacity. In other words, show me examples of the Metaphysical, Epistemological, Ethical, Religious (etc) in these films. I am not interested in an evaluation of scripting, acting or special effects.
Do not prepare a title page. Your name should be on the top of the paper along with the date and title of movie being critiqued. You may turn in your critiques any time during this semester. Final date to accept papers is Nov. 23. A letter grade will be taken off for each class period late. The following is a list of movies filled with great philosophical content. You are not limited to these movies, but should you choose others, talk with me about it first.

The Third Miracle
Cold Mountain
Signs
Jacob the Liar
A Beautiful Mind
American Beauty
Matrix
We Were Young and Soldiers
One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest
Awakenings
Shawshank Redemption
Green Mile
Dead Man Walking
The Sixth Sense
The Mission
Ghandi
Brave Heart
The Messenger
Shindler’s List
Hook
Legends of the Fall
October Sky
Cry, Beloved Country
Apocolypto
AI Artificial Intelligence
Second Hand Lions
The Passion

Category #2: Influential Philosophers

Naom Chomsky
Blaise Pascal
Immanuel Kant
David Hume
Soren Kierkegaard
Karl Marx

Category #3: Your Personal Philosophy
1. Why I believe (do not believe) in Materialism.
2. Why I think Marx was right (wrong).
3. Why I am an atheist (theist).
4. My personal philosophy of how to find meaning in life.
5. How I explain evil in the world.
6. What is my personal code of morals and what system is it built on.
Other Assignments may develop as the semester develops.

INSTITUTIONAL STATEMENT: Each student is responsible for being aware of the information contained in the TCC Catalog, the TCC Student Policies & Resources Handbook, and semester information listed in the class schedule. All information may be viewed on the TCC website: http://www.tulsacc.edu

CLASS
Meeting

TOPICACTIVITY
READING

1..Aug 17
The Subject of Philosophy

2..Aug 24 Introduction to Philosophy
“Thinking About Thinking

3..Aug 31
What Is Philosophy……. Nature and Scope of Philosophy
Chap 1

4..Sept 7
Happy Labor Day

5..Sept 14
It All Began Here
Chap 2

6..Setp 21
Socrates: “And So I Go About the World”
Chap 3

7. Oct 5
Aristotle and Logic: Common Fallacies
Chap 4 & 5

8..Oct 12 Review for Midterm and Catch up

Chapter 6

9.. Oct 19
Midterm

10..Oct 26
Ethics: What Are We Like, What Should We Do?
Chap 7

11..Nov 2
Religion: What is the Nature of God?
Chap 8

12. .Nov 9
Metaphysics: What is the Nature of Our World?
Chapter 9

13.. Nov 16
Epistemology: How Can We know all of this?
Chap 10

14. Nov 23
The Analytic Tradition
Papers Due
Chapter 11
Chapter 12

16. Nov 30
The Continental Tradition
Fairness and Feminism
Review for Final

17. Dec 7
Final

MAKE-UP AND LATE ASSIGNMENT/EXAM POLICY
Except in emergency situations (at discretion of instructor) late assignments and make-up exams must be pre-arranged with professor.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY – PLAGIARISM
The cornerstone for intellectual achievement is academic integrity. Tulsa Community College recognizes that academic honesty is the vital key to a student’s true intellectual growth and ultimate personal satisfaction and success.

Academic dishonesty or misconduct is not condoned nor tolerated at campuses within the Tulsa Community College system. Academic dishonesty (cheating) is defined as the deception of others about one’s own work or about the work of another.

Plagiarism is a specific type of academic dishonesty. It is claiming, indicating, or implying that the ideas, sentences, or words of another are your own; it includes having another person do work claimed to be your own, copying the work of another and presenting it as your own , or following the work of another as a guide to ideas and expressions that are then presented as your own.

Cases of academic dishonesty in this course will result in the following disciplinary action:
• the student will complete a substitute assignment
 the substitute assignment will receive a reduced score – 75% is the highest score possible
 in cases of extreme plagiarism, the student will receive a zero (0%) and still complete a substitute assignment
• repeated instances of academic dishonesty will result in administratively withdrawing the student from the class, or recording a grade of “F” for the student at the end of the semester
The complete Tulsa Community College Statement on Academic Integrity can be found in the Course Information section of the Blackboard course site

ADA POLICY
STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS: Students with documented disabilities are provided academic accommodations through the disabled Student Resource Center (918-595-7115) or Resource Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (918-595-7428/TDD-TTY 918-595-7434). If any student is in need of academic accommodations from either office, it is the student’s responsibility to advise the instructor so an appropriated referral can be made no later than the first week of class. Students may also contact the disabled Student Services Offices directly at the telephone numbers indicated. ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS WILL NOT BE PROVIDED UNLESS APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTATIONS IS PROVIDED TO THE DISABLED STUDENT SERVICES OFFICES TO SUPPORT THE NEED.

SUMMITTING ASSIGNMENTS
All assignments are to be submitted on the date posted in the above calendar. All critiques and papers will be due on July15. Late assignments will be penalized by 5% of total grade for the assignment per day.

COMMUNICATING WITH THE INSTRUCTOR
Email: All TCC students receive a designated “MyTCC” email address (ex:
terry.bell@mail.tulsacc.edu). All communications to you about TCC and course
assignments will be sent to your MyTCC email address; and you must use MyTCC email
to send email to, and receive email from, the instructor regarding this course.

Inclement Weather: TCC rarely closes. If extreme weather conditions or emergency
situations arise, TCC always gives cancellation notices to radio and television stations.
This information is also posted on the TCC website (www.tulsacc.edu).

INSTUTIONAL STATEMENT
Each student is responsible for being aware of the information contained in the TCC Catalog, TCC Student Policies and Resource Handbook, and semester information listed in the Class Schedule.

TRANSFERABILITY:
Please visit with the TCC Counseling Center or the Counseling Center at the college or university to which you plan to transfer to determine transferability status of this course.

FAILURE TO WITHDRAW POLICY
Failure to withdraw may result in the student’s receiving a regular grade of “F” at the end of the semester.

COMPUTER SERVICES ACCEPTABLE USE
Access to computing resources is a privilege granted to all TCC faculty, staff, and students. Use of TCC computing resources is limited to purposes related to the College’s mission of education, research, and community service. Student use of technology is governed by the Computer Services Acceptable Use Statements/Standards found in the TCC Student Policies and Resource Handbook. The handbook may be on the TCC web page at http://www.tulsacc.edu/archive/misc/policies.pdf.

SYLLABUS CHANGES: Occasionally, changes to the syllabus may be necessary. Students will be notified of any changes to the syllabus in writing.