Teaching
CategoryA Good Time To Try “Additive Grading” (guest post by Ian Schnee)
In this guest post*, Ian Schnee, Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies at the University of Washington, shares an interestingly flexible approach to grading that might be especially well-suited for a time in which we might expect a higher likelihood of disruption to our students’ lives. (more…)
How Should We Grade Students During a Pandemic? (guest post by Wes Siscoe)
How, if at all, should instructors grade their college students this coming term? In the following guest post*, Wes Siscoe, a postdoctoral fellow at Florida State University and the Mellon Course Design Coordinator for the Philosophy as a Way of Life Project at the University of Notre Dame, offers some suggestions.
How Do Moral Philosophy Courses Affect Student Behavior?
Do college philosophy courses in ethics affect the real-world choices of the students who take them? A trio of philosophers recently took up this question and have just published their results. (more…)
Yes, There’s Still Time to Design an Excellent Fall Course (guest post by Paul Blaschko)
It’s almost August (sorry!). Do you know what you are doing in your courses this fall? Don’t panic. Paul Blaschko is back with another guest post* to explain how you still have time to put together a great course. (more…)
Six Ways to Use Tech to Design Flexible, Student-Centered Philosophy Courses (guest post by Paul Blaschko)
As the pandemic continues, there are lots of uncertainties about how universities will function in Fall 2020, but it is likely that many courses will be taught entirely online or have substantial online elements. In this guest post*, Paul Blaschko provides some advice for making those courses go well. (more…)
Lower-Level Course Materials on Race, Racism, and Protests
Philosophy professors who will be teaching courses like “Contemporary Moral Problems” this fall may be interested in adding a unit on race, racism, protests, and related issues that have been at the forefront of the public’s attention recently. (more…)
Hybrid or Blended Classes: How Can They Be Done Well?
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, some universities are telling students that, this fall, they will be able to choose to take particular courses either in-person or online. This means some professors will face the challenge of teaching simultaneously to students sitting in a classroom with them and to students who are videoconferencing in to the class session. (..
Uncovering A New Approach to Teaching Philosophy Texts (guest post)
“Texts can be challenging in multiple ways, some more useful than others…” (more…)
California State University System This Fall Will Be Primarily Online
Timothy White, Chancellor of the California State University (CSU) system, which includes 23 campuses, announced that most courses scheduled for the Fall 2020 term will be taught online, rather than face-to-face, owing to the current Covid-19 pandemic and a possible “serious second wave” of it. (more…)
Win a Jingle for Your Course
Daniel Groll, associate professor of philosophy at Carleton College, has been creating videos of short jingles written to promote online courses he and his colleagues are teaching. (more…)
Which Essays Should All Philosophy Graduate Students Read?
A philosophy professor tasked with teaching the required proseminar for incoming graduate students has a question for Daily Nous readers. (more…)
Having Fun Teaching Philosophy Online? Christina Van Dyke Is.
Christina Van Dyke, professor of philosophy at Calvin College, like many of us, had to move her courses online. She has been teaching her students Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics lately, posting videos online for her students to watch. But she’s not content to record a lecture over slides. (more…)
Now May Be The Time To Transition to Tutorial Instruction (guest post)
The pandemic and the various disruptions it is causing to the operation of academic institutions has prompted people to reflect on the value and qualities of those institutions. This guest post*, by Preston Stovall, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic, is one example of this. (more…)
Running Interactive Philosophy Classes Online (guest post by Alex Hyun & Scott Wisor)
The following is a guest post* by Alex Hyun and Scott Wisor, both of Minerva Schools at Keck Graduate Institute (one of the Claremont Colleges) in which they provide specific advice on a variety of matters related to teaching philosophy courses effectively online. (more…)
A Second “Teaching Philosophy Online” Session
Ian Schnee and Paul Franco, philosophers at the University of Washington who ran a videoconference session last week about teaching philosophy courses online, are hosting a second one this Wednesday. (more…)
Teaching Philosophy to High Schoolers Stuck at Home
With K-12 students across the world at home instead of school, and with school districts varying in how they are educating them under these circumstances, some parents are taking it upon themselves to supplement their children’s education. (more…)
“Teaching Philosophy Online” Sessions
Ian Schnee and Paul Franco, philosophers at the University of Washington have organized a series of online sessions to help those who are looking for suggestions and guidance about teaching their philosophy courses online. (more…)
The Pawfessor Is In (guest post by Jordan MacKenzie)
The following is a guest post* by Jordan MacKenzie, assistant professor of philosophy at Virginia Tech, in which she shares some of her strategies for sucessfully moving courses online. (more…)
Readings for Students on Philosophy & the Pandemic
As philosophy professors make adjustments to how we are teaching in response to the pandemic, are we also adjusting what we’re teaching this term? (more…)
Videos of Philosophy Courses – An Editable Spreadsheet
In order to aid philosophy professors during the pandemic as they transition from in-person to online teaching, Liz Jackson (ANU) and Tyron Goldschmidt (Rochester) created a spreadsheet of videorecorded philosophy classes and lectures. (more…)
A Professor’s Video for her Suddenly Online Students, And…
Julia Strand, assistant professor of psychology at Carleton College, is one of many faculty whose courses were abruptly moved online because of efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. (more…)
A Rare Learning Opportunity
“Do you remember when they cancelled college because of the coronavirus?” (more…)
Moving Your In-Person Course Online
In attempts to slow the spread of the coronavirus, some schools are requiring faculty to convert their in-person courses to online courses in the middle of the term. What issues come up in this transition, and what are good ways to handle them? (more…)
Philosopher-Led Prison Education Program Receives $1 Million Grant
The Northwestern Prison Education Program (NPEP), an initiative “to provide a high-quality liberal arts education to incarcerated students in Illinois” while reducing recidivism, led by Northwestern University professor of philosophy Jennifer Lackey, has received a $1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to expand its programs. (more…)
Summer Programs in Philosophy for High School Students 2020
Are you organizing a summer program in philosophy for high school students, or know of any? (more…)
Summer Programs in Philosophy for Graduate Students – 2020
This is a post for the listing of summer programs in philosophy for graduate students. (more…)
Summer Programs in Philosophy for Undergraduates – 2020
As in the past, I’m opening up a post for the listing of summer programs in philosophy for undergraduate students. (more…)
A Collection of Stories for Teaching Ethics
Luc Bovens, professor of philosophy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, has created a website that gathers together and organizes various “short stories in world literature by both classical and contemporary writers” that may be useful in teaching a range of questions in ethics and social and political philosophy. (more…)