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Introduction to Philosophy Fall
2002 The views expressed here are by students of this course. Their words are unedited. There is material placed in bold by the instructor to highlight certain concerns. FINAL ESSAYS on the Course Itself ********************************************************************************** GDB I found this course to be
extremely effective in assisting me to achieve the learning objectives
of the course. AA When I took the course it was an elective course for me and it was something that I had always wanted to find out more about. Being that it was a Philosophy course and online I thought that it was a good idea to learn about Philosophy and how an online course would work. The course itself was informative, and it did give me a better understanding about religion which is of great interest to me. I thought the questioning of "if God exists" was an issue that everyone must think of on some level. I found that the critical thinking on such matters works well and the insight of the Professor as well as the other students was very helpful. The only suggestion I would have would be to do away with the links to do the readings. I think I would have liked to have seen all of the information combined in the text. I found that I wasted more time opening up other websites this way. It would be a good idea as you mentioned Professor if you would be able to have the information in your text. For those of us who did do the work and put enough effort into this class, and read all of the postings of the students and the Professor, it has lead me to a better understanding of issues that I can relate to now on a different level of thinking. YZ I think what this course has done for me is revolutionize the way I
think. I've always had questions about the universe and basic
philosophical questions such as is there a god, so on and so forth. IF The links sometimes didn't work but the majority of them did work and were very very helpful when trying to answer questions beyond the lectures you gave which were very helpfull as well. I had to take an elective course and this is the one I took. I was curious to know exactly what philosophy was. It was interesting to learn about philosophers thoughts and their thought processes. This course definately helped me get a better understanding of what philosophy is.
*********************************************************************** FINAL ESSAYS on the Course Itself Which of the issues covered this semester has been the most important and why so? Which of the issues covered this semester has meant anything to you personally and why so? Why do you think these issues have been associated with Philosophy and not some other discipline? Why is it that most of these issues have not been so evident as issues in our contemporary culture? Why are not more people aware of these troublesome questions, issues or problems? Why were not you more aware of these issues than you were at the start of this course? Now that you have been educated as to these issues in Philosophy in what way will they have any consequence in your life? *********************************************************************************** IF The issue that was most important to me was the issue of morality vs. immorality. In the discussion board for this topic I took a side thinking it was the right one. When others responded to it and gave another view, it made me reevaluate my original position. That was very important because it was one of the first times I had to reevaluate something I believed. It made me think more which is very important. An issue that touched me personally was the issue of God and the existence of a deity. It let me see how many different views there are on the subject. I’ve never thought about it deeply until this course. I think that the issues discussed in the course have remained for such a long period of time because everyone has different views on them. As long as people think differently there will always be an issue. It’s better to talk about something for hundreds of years than to have everyone believe the same things and have no reason to discuss them. I think these problems aren’t at the top of peoples concerns because it takes a lot of thought and our society had become one that doesn’t like thinking too deeply. Also everyone is worried about stepping on other people’s toes. A lot of issues are kept hush hush. I feel people are aware of the problems but choose to not deal with them; maybe they feel as if bringing up these types of issues would cause more harm than good. I believe that I wasn’t aware of these topics for the same reason. This course had a large impact on me. It has made me think differently about everything and take a different approach to answering questions. I look at all aspects of the problem, ask myself all types of questions that contradict the last in order to get the best solution. It has been a great experience. -------------------------------------------------- KM
The one issue that we covered this semester that was the most important to me was Philosophy of Religion. I sometimes wonder why we need God and how come there is evil.
3.Why do you think that the issues this course has covered have been issues and have remained issues for so long? Different individuals have different perspectives. Existing within a definite time-space location, they share in the basic wealth of a given culture. They participate in the process of civilization. They have been in part determined in what they will think and do by what is at their disposal to work with and what has gone before to make them what they are. Individuals add to their inheritance their own uniqueness, which is centered in their valuation acts. Philosophers are no different from others in regard to their cultural perspectives. Philosophers differ in their conclusions. They build upon what has come before. They react to it and criticize it. They draw from the total wealth of their given civilization and all others they have knowledge of. Philosophers differ in what they end up with, however, they share in a common pursuit and they do so by their attempt to pursue inquiry in a definite manner, i.e. a critical and comprehensive approach.
4.Why do
you think these issues have been associated with Philosophy and not some
other discipline? 5. Why is it that most of these issues have not been so evident as issues in our contemporary culture? Why are not more people aware of these troublesome questions, issues or problems? 6. Why were not you more aware of these issues than you were at the start of this course? When I first enter the course I really didn’t know must but when I started reading up on the issues I got a better understanding what philosophy is. 7. Now that you have been educated as to these issues in Philosophy in what way will they have any consequence in your life? I think now that I have a better understanding in Philosophy, now I make better decisions in life. I hope that you have been able to detect these features of philosophic thought although there are obstacles that most of you have encountered such as (1) the brevity of the treatment given each philosopher examined during this semester, (2) the rather small number of passages and works read and (3) the inexperience of class members with reading and analyzing philosophical treatises. Even so each student should have come to appreciate that Philosophy as an activity and a tradition of thought involves a good deal more than the common usage of the term in popular discourse would intimate. ************************************* AA 1) The most important issue that we covered this semester for me was Philosophy of Religion and the problem of Gods existence. It is important to me because it tries to examine the existence of God. It is something that I have never allowed myself to think of let alone do out loud. In the Catholic faith we’re not suppose to question God, nonetheless doubt if he exists, so now I was able to do so without the guilt. What really made me most curious about our quest for God’s existence was the notion of how an almighty God who knows everything could allow evil things to occur. This is a question that I myself have always wondered about since I was a child. Even though, there is no right or wrong answer, or any proof of God’s existence or why he allows such evils to happen, it has opened my mind up to many wonderful theories, and through the arguments they have helped me to better understand, and gain a knowledge of how to question, the existence of, THE Greatest Conceivable Being. 2) This semester the issue that has meant something to me personally was the “Mind Body Problem”. It meant something to me personally because not to long ago a good friend of my family was in a bad automobile accident. Her body was still alive, while her brain was dead. I wanted to know in what way the mind was connected if at all to the body. In this case, it appeared to have no connection. I wanted to know if she was aware of what was going on, and if her body felt any pain. A theory which, I felt was closest to my own beliefs and tries to explain the connection between the mind and body, was that of Descartes. His theory is based on Dualism. He explains that the mind is a non-physical element and the body is a physical element. He also goes a step further and tried to explain that the point of contact was in the pineal gland. There are many other theories but this is a problem that great philosophers have been plagued with for centuries and one in which we will continue to search for. According to this theory and others that have yet to be proven, it has given me a sense of satisfaction to believe that my family’s friend quite possibly did not realize what was going on with her in her last moments of life. 3) I think that the issues that we have covered this semester remain issues because we do not have a definite answer. All of our theories are based on assumptions, and these issues are still perplexing to us today. People still have the desire to find logical answers to these issues and they will continue the quest for it because, they are still a big part of our lives today. Whether it is Religion and God, Plato, Socrates, or Freedom and Determinism, they are all topics that are of great importance to us still and continue to affect us. 4) I think that these issues have been associated with Philosophy and not some other discipline is because Philosophy is the only discipline that is the most critical and comprehensive way in which man thinks. It is the only disciple that questions every aspect of an idea, or theory and affects every part of an individuals life as well as it’s society. For instance, religion is a comprehensive view, on all aspects of life. It is a theory that is uncritically comprised, however it does not tolerate criticism of faith or basic beliefs of our everyday life. Science is another discipline that is critical in evaluating hypothesis and it’s theories, however it is not comprehensive in the nature of Philosophical thought. Art is also a discipline that can be demonstrating, representing, and encouraging in values, however it is not a discipline that consists of critical thought or comprehensive of philosophical thought. This is why I do not believe that any other discipline can be as critical or comprehensive as Philosophy. 5) These issues have not been so evident in our contemporary culture because based on their traditional world views, they do not appear to be appropriate considering our recent scientific findings and advancement in our knowledge. Our moral views have changed in society making some of these issues no longer suited for our time. People are not more aware of these troublesome questions or problems because the intellectual activity has changed based on the present social conditions of the anti-intellectuals and the anti-rational behaviors that define our current cultural atmosphere and the basis of determining the social and politcal movements within our society. 6) I was not more aware of these issues because I also misused the term of Philosophy. I thought that Philosophy was a way of life, or a notion about life. I never thought that it was a critical or comprehensive thought on so many various issues. To be painfully honest I had no idea of what Philosophy would be all about. Philosophy made me open my eyes to such existing topics that we have covered. Philosophy has given me a basis for how to question and use critical thought on matters that affect my everyday life. It has also, showed me how to attain a logical or reasonable idea on many different topics. 7) For me the biggest consequence Philosophy has is in the questioning of ideas or theories and trying to reach to the truth of the matter. For example, I find myself, asking, “what do you mean by that?” “can you give me an example,” or “explain it to me”. This is something that I didn’t do before and I also find myself to be more careful in the choices of words I choose to speak or write. I believe that Philosophy will have a lasting affect in my life. I’m glad I was able to get through it. ******************************************************************** GDB Question #1 I feel that the issue of Ethics has been the most important issue covered this semester. Ethics is the branch of Philosophy that deals with theories of the Good and how humans are to behave toward one another. Ethics attempts to identify what the moral rules are, how we are to learn them, and why we need them. Ethics is important since civilized, social life would not be possible without morality and ethics. Ethical principles need to be established in order to serve as the basis for a moral order in society. Question #2 I found the issue of the Existence of God to be the most important to me personally. I have thought about whether God exists a great deal throughout my life. I have raised my children with the same religious beliefs and cultural traditions that my parents instilled in me. I believe it is important that children feel a sense of belonging in a cultural, ethnic, and religious community and I have tried to instill that in my children as they were growing up. Whereas Philosophy is based on reason, religion is based on faith. Yet, for this reason, I still reflect upon and speculate about my belief system. Question #3 The issues covered in this course have remained issues for so long because they are basic universal questions about the world we live in and also about ourselves, which are fundamental to human existence. Philosophers ask about the nature of a good life, about the limits of human knowledge and about many other complex, timeless questions. Many people wonder about these issues and would like to have some help or guidance in thinking about such important matters. It is beneficial to analyze these issues, since they can ultimately help you confirm or rethink and change some aspects of the way you think and feel about people and things. Question #4 These issues have been associated with Philosophy and not some other discipline because they are perennial issues and are the most basic questions humans must answer. Philosophers spend a good deal of time in reflection upon these basic issues. Philosophic thought exists alongside of Religion, Science and Art. However, it is distinct from them and yet influences each of them, and responds to developments within each of these fields. Religion offers a comprehensive view of human life, but it is not critically formulated and doesn’t tolerate criticism of its basic beliefs. On the other hand, Science is very critical in the evaluation of hypotheses and theories, but it lacks the comprehensive nature of philosophic thought. The various branches of scientific inquiry aren’t capable of being formed into a single comprehensive view of all reality based upon a single coherent set of basic principles or laws. These issues and questions will continue to be associated with Philosophy. Question #5 Most of these issues haven’t been so evident as issues in our contemporary culture because the future for Philosophy as an intellectual activity has come to be in doubt due to present social conditions. There are anti-intellectual and anti-rational tendencies that characterize the current cultural scene, as well as most of the social and political movements within it. The public has very little conscious appreciation for the philosophic tradition. Part of the problem is the inappropriateness of such traditional world views in the light of recent scientific advances in knowledge. Question #6 I am more aware now of these issues in Philosophy than I was at the start of this course. Some of these issues I have never even thought of before, such as the metaphysical question of what is real and the epistemological questions of what are truth and knowledge, as well as the whole mind vs. body dilemma. On the other hand, the issues of Ethics and Religion I have thought of a great deal before this course. However, this course has now enabled me to think critically and investigate these issues fully in a systematic fashion, and to develop reasoned arguments for my views. I feel that I can now discuss these issues intelligently and communicate my ideas more effectively than before. Question #7 Now that I have been educated as to these issues in Philosophy, I feel that studying Philosophy will have very beneficial consequences in my life and has provided me with invaluable lifelong benefits. I feel that I am now able to think, write, and speak more clearly and critically on my views of these issues. I feel that the process of learning about and reflecting on ourselves, our values, our behavior, and how we fit into this world has helped me to put all these ideas into perspective, and has also helped me to appreciate views different from my own. It certainly has enhanced my analytical skills, which I feel will help me on any standardized tests that I might be taking in the future, such as the teacher certification exams. In this respect, Philosophy and Education have the same purpose – to develop intellectual abilities important for life as a whole, beyond just the skills needed for any particular profession. Philosophy also enhances a person’s ability to participate responsibly and intelligently in public life and community affairs. Overall, it has been a very pleasant and worthwhile experience and I have enjoyed it immensely. ************************************************ FS
Of all the topics discussed this semester, Freedom and Determinism has been of the most importance to me. Before reading and discussing this topic, I had conflicting views. I believed in some aspects of free will and some aspects of determinism. After my reading and discussing the topic with classmates and the professor, I realized that you can not believe in both at the same time, it is one or the other. I had to make a choice, which theory could I relate to? Which theory was the closest to what I believed in? I then realized that the answer to those questions were determinism. Freedom and Determinism, Ethics and the Mind Body Problem are three topics that we covered this semester that had a personal meaning to me. Freedom and Determinism presented two possibilities, (1) that we have the choice to do what we wish with our lives, we have minds, we choose; and (2) our lives are determined, everything happens for a reason, there is such a thing as fate. As stated above, I had conflicting views before I read this section. The theories of freedom and determinism were intertwined together in my beliefs. This is not acceptable in the philosophical world. Further research and re-evaluation on each of these topics what on my beliefs made me realize that I was a determinist. I do not believe that we have the freedom that most people believe in. We are trained beings, everything that we do we have learned on our own or someone had taught us. We are drawn into situations by being rewarded, as in the seven points given to us for simply stating “I am not free. I am determined and conditioned”. Most if not all of the class participated in this example. My beliefs now lie in the theory on determinism Ethics is another topic that caught my attention and related to me in a personal way. This topic talks about what the right thing to do is, what is GOOD. All across the world, every culture holds a set of values that may be different from the ones you and I hold. There are people every day condemning the actions of members of other cultures, for example, female genital mutilation. This topic asks the question “Who are we to judge what other cultures do”? Naturally, people in the American culture are quick to judge others, because our practices are different than others. The same type of thought is also, applied by others, true of the American culture. I believe this to be true. I cannot willingly be able to judge a person, knowing that it is what they believe in. However, there is, or should be an exception, when it comes to situations like rapists, child molesters, serial killers, people who endanger the lives of others by committing a criminal act. This topic taught me to think this way. We are all victims of ethnocentrism. The Mind Body problem is closely related to and discussed this semester in combination with freedom and determinism. This topic explored the idea of the existence of the human mind. In this lesson my ideas and beliefs were thrown “out of whack”. After reading the first few sections I had no idea what to think. When I would read a few sections I would be sure that a mind did in fact exist. But then when I would continue to read I thought the opposite. When entering into discussions with my classmates, some of what they said struck me as interesting and made me lean towards the other view that I had held at the time. It was not until the freedom and determinism section that I truly decided what I believed in, which was that we do not think for ourselves, therefore, there is no mind. It was the decision of believing in determinism which allowed me to see that we do not have minds. Issues that this course has covered have been issues for many years because philosophy is completely subjective. There are no right answers or no correct absolute ways of thinking. Everyone is different, and we always will be. The moral issues that we talk about today and those of years ago will last until the end of time. You cannot force someone to change the way that they are thinking. Whether it involves the argument of good and evil or social philosophy, people will continue to defend their position. As long as there are two people alive, the issues of philosophy will continue to be talked about. “Philosophy is an activity of thought, a type of thinking. Philosophy is critical and comprehensive thought, the most critical and comprehensive manner of thinking which the human species has yet devised. This intellectual process includes both an analytic and synthetic mode of operation. Philosophy as a critical and comprehensive process of thought involves resolving confusion, unmasking assumptions, revealing presuppositions, distinguishing importance, testing positions, correcting distortions, looking for reasons, examining world-views and questioning conceptual frameworks. It also includes dispelling ignorance, enriching understanding, broadening experience, expanding horizons, developing imagination , controlling emotion, exploring values, fixing beliefs by rational inquiry, establishing habits of acting, widening considerations, synthesizing knowledge and questing for wisdom” (ch12, sect2, p2). This is the reason why these issues are issues in Philosophy and not another area of study. These issues require you to think and pick apart what you know to get to the basic meaning of it all. These issues are not evident in our culture because we largely depend on other people, mainly the news to tell us about what is going on. The media tells us how we should feel, rather than letting us decide how we feel. Think of when there is a snow storm coming they tell us that there is a warning, we should stock up on water, and so on. We are not able to think for ourselves on this issue and many issues like this. Many of these issues are not evident in our culture and actually some people may not even be aware that they exist because it is easier not to talk about it, than have to deal with it. We are a culture that does not openly welcome change. As stated above, we are fed our information through the media, and other people. Before we get the chance to think for ourselves someone is telling us what we should think. Before taking this class, I was not aware of these issues mostly because there was never a need to discuss them. By this I mean that since I was unaware of the different positions associated with these issues, and I was confident in what I believed in that I didn’t feel the need to explore other options. I was in a cave, and blind to any consideration of other ways of life. I was incorporated in the American ethnocentrism. Being educated in these issues has brought be the consequence of changing the way that I live. Since I realized that I believe in determinism, I live each day wondering what will happen today, tomorrow, and two and three years from now. Also, being educated on these issues, I am more susceptible to be in confrontation with other people about what I believe. If philosophy has taught me one thing, it has taught me that there is a whole other world out there waiting to be discovered and discussed, and if we just sit around our whole lives in a cave then we will never truly live. ***************************************** YZ
The
issue that has been most important to me was ethics: Ethics because it made
me realize the need for a moral basis in every society. I realized people
in my generation including myself are the very product of the industrial
revolution. We are living in a society which for the most part has been
gravitating away from religion and more towards “individual freedom”. As
Nietz said “God is dead”, this means that everything could be
allowed and there really isn’t any right or wrong because no authority
figure can really say so. I realized from this that there is a real need to
be moral because Law, religion, etiquette can only go so far in promoting
“ethical” behavior in people and those are only external forces. Morality
is an internal force and dwelling into the subject made me realize it is a
separate entity from any religion, law, and etiquette/custom. Given our
present situation, morality which was once promoted by the church must be
facilitated and nurtured in the church’s absence.
The
issue that has been most important to me personally has been the “Mind-Body
problem”. Although the environment which I grew up in has always been one
of materialist monism, I never made the journey itself of contemplating for
myself “why” this is so. The topics that covered this issue gave me points
of view from the other aspects and challenged and reaffirmed my own
position. These issues have been issues because they all possess a duality in “truths”. They all have substantial intellectual evidence backing up opposing views but very little material verifications. In other words, these issues are all products of the human thought process and since we are all individuals that think for ourselves, there will always be logical pathways that lead to different eventual ends. I think that for as long as we humans can “think” and are given the proper environment in which we could “think” for ourselves, these issues will remain issues for each individual that has never made the journey of discovery for themselves. 4. Why do you think these issues have been associated with Philosophy and not some other discipline? These issues are born out of self contemplation. They cannot be associated with other disciplines, at least not purely, because it appeals to knowledge that’s already been bred into us given our different complex environments and experiences in life. This is the only discipline that reaches within rather then out in order to find the truth for oneself given that most of the evidence is logical reasoning and the only way to arrive at those evidences is through “thinking” for ourselves. We are attempting to take the “relative” and make them into “absolutes”, yet these “absolutes” are still relative to a specific given time. 5. Why is it that most of these issues have not been so evident as issues in our contemporary culture? Why are not more people aware of these troublesome questions, issues or problems? They are not so evident as issues because our contemporary culture does not promote “thinking”. I still adhere to the common saying “The masses are asses”. We are true testimonies to this saying. For the most part, life has been hard, is still hard and will continue to be so in the near future. Thinking is a leisurely act for the majority of us, although utilizing it will certainly make life “less” hard. I notice that through out history, intellectuals have always been viewed as “deviants” by their contemporary cultures. If everyone thinks for themselves, who is going to plow the land? Who is going to facilitate the feeling of comrade, the feeling of cultural identity that has common “hatred”, common “likes”? That is why not more people are aware of these troublesome questions, because we are more concerned with the day to day struggles of life and most of us are like carriage horses with blinds on the sides of our eyes to serve the purpose of the “cultural carriage”. Perhaps one day our culture will evolve to a certain point when more people can afford to think this way. 6. Why were not you more aware of these issues than you were at the start of this course?
I
was not more aware of these issues because no one has had the time to sit me
down and guide me along this journey. The awareness has always been there
but the absolute understanding was definitely not there. Now, there is more
awareness which opened up to understanding and sets the foundation for
further understanding in the future. The consequence is that I have been given a set of tools which I can use to explore further and reach further understanding about the issues covered in this course. My world view has changed, has been broadened and will continue to broaden as I further practice philosophical thinking. If I were to liken my brain to a machine and this course as a training program, I would say that this program has been installed and now I have a new program within me that can allow me think further logically and clearly about every aspect of my action and consequences. I have a clearer and more logical control over my thought process. I have essentially moved closer to the conscious from the subconscious. *********************************************** The Topic that I think was the most important one was the Chapter 4: Metaphysics. Here every body in the course gets to know better themselves and the way we see our environment. It is one of the most important questions that human does top themselves and is sure that no one has the answer. Although my personal experience was very conflictive at MODULE 5: Mind-Body Problem / Freedom and Determinism. During this discussion I felt alone, and insulted by the fact that some people think that can buy other person’s life. This course discuss every issue that human had have since no one remembers, It is difficult to set a definite answers to problems that human nature imply , therefore we can kip looking but we will not get to THE ANSWER to all our questions. These issues are part of Philosophy and can not be assign to others sciences because the searching for cosmos and avoiding the chaos is the oldest discipline that human has created and old other sciences get to be thanks to that. In the other hand human raze create the other sciences to live apart the issues that has no answer, or which answer can change from culture to culture. People try to avoid discussing this matter or even ignoring the unknown in order to kip a secure and balance environment. ”Cosmos” and avoid anything that can break apart this balanced world. Including myself, we human try to get along with each other, and be more Social a less conflictive that is why I try not to enter to dip into this issues. But after this course I believe I have more Background to face any discussion and more yet to be surer about mine believes and ideas about Life. **************************************** SF One of the most important issues covered this semester is about Socrates because I think his discipline, “The wise man is the one who knows that he is ignorant”, established the study method of social science and today’s educational system. He also challenged the traditional belief and bravely sacrificed his life to stand against it and maintain his position. Without him, there might not be Civil rights movement in this world. If Socrates had not met Plato, the one of the greatest philosopher of all time, would not have come to light. Personally I found relatable in Plato’s perspective of death and dying. Before knowing him, I was afraid of dying. In Phaedo, he states “even body dies, Spirit remains.” You don’t have to be afraid of dying because Philosophers are pursuing the good for Spirit everyday life. I will not forget his words and its timelessness would influence me for the rest of my life. also realized that it is somewhat similar to the idea of Buddhist, my ancestors. I think one of the reasons why the issues in this course have remained issues is that there are lot of different ideas and opinions about them. I don’t think it is a problem because doing philosophy aims to give different kinds of perspective, but what I state above might be a reason. These issues that I learned in this course would not be associated with Science, for example. I would like to take Metaphysics as an example. When philosophers approach Metaphysics, I think that they first use intuition and try to “get inside” of Existence of beings, and then start to analyze them. However, Scientists would take a different approach; I think they, unlike philosophers, first see things outside from Existence and try to analyze it. In this way, you could say philosophy created science, but there is a significant difference. Why are people unaware of these troublesome issues etc? I think it is because people tend to care about only things that they can personally relate to them. Also people might not realize that they are wise enough to be ignorant, as Socrates states. Why do I think this way? I have to admit, I was one of those “wise people” until I encountered philosophy. But how wise you are to be ignorant is the first step to apply philosophy into your everyday life. Now I understand, for some extent, some of philosophical disciplines and how I convey it to my life. What I am to do from now are developing reasoning skills and aim to explain my position as specifically as I can, like philosophers do. This course has been like a river which is part of the sea of wisdom. I just started heading there. ********************************************************
************************************************************************* AA 1) What I liked best about the course was the method of communicating online. It gave me a sense of freedom, since I didn’t have to sit in a classroom at a set time or day. I got to choose the time that was good for me to do my work without leaving my home or children, which was great. Another thing that I liked was that the essays and questions were based on the readings. 2) What I thought could have been improved was that after each module was finished maybe the module could be removed, and the module we were currently on would be displayed first. Sometimes it was confusing. Also in the readings it would have been good if the links were already part of the reading or the text could have the information of the links already in it, because it was time consuming to open up the links. 3) How you might be able to improve class participation in the discussions you could offer extra points if the students answer the question within the first two days of posting so this way it might give them an incentive to post earlier on instead at the end of the module. 4) For the most part it was sequenced well the only problem I ran into and should have asked you about, was in Module 6. When we had 8 questions I didn’t know if we had to answer all of these questions within the first two days or a couple of them a week. 5) The changes I suggest would be to possibly cut a couple of modules and spend more time on topics that students or the Professor find are most important. So instead of possibly not quite understanding something due to the time frame and the amount of reading maybe they could get a better understanding of the material. 6) I think that your interaction, participation and management of the course was good. You answered the students questions on a timely basis, you questioned all of us and made us express ourselves more clearly and you encouraged those students who answered late in the module to do so earlier on. You also helped those who needed extra help, such as myself, to find information when I was having a difficult time finding information. You moved us along well in the course. 7) The only suggestion I have is that the workload be lessened somewhat, because there where times that I felt that I couldn’t get a good understanding of the material. Sometimes less is better when it comes to understanding something, because, its better to gain knowledge of the material instead of only using what you need to know for the course. ********************************************* IF 1) It was a very comfortable environment. I’m usually very shy in physical courses and it causes me to not participate as much. It was a lot easier to talk to the students in the class. 2) The module readings were very long, but it helped when it came time to do writing assignments. 3) Have more discussions. Instead of one big issue per discussion, maybe break up the topics. The topics have so much information in them that they can be overwhelming sometimes. 4) The due dates were doable but maybe there should be more modules with less in each. Break up the work into different modules. Different sections per chapter instead of one chapter per module. 5) I wouldn’t lessen the amount of work. It was a lot but important to get the most understanding that was possible for the course. 6) I think you did a great job with this. I don’t see how it could be improved. 7) I would just like to thank you for letting me attempt to catch up with my work in the course. I know you didn’t have to but I’m very glad you did. Having the opportunity to submit work I missed and re writing the things I already had written let me read things in the book I hadn’t previously read. It gave me a greater understanding of what philosophy is. Thanks again! ******************************************** LR What did you like best about this course?
I like best about this
course the fact that I can do it in my own time.
The time per Module must
be adjusted.All information must be on the test.
The time dedicated to
the module 5 and 4 was not accurate with the topic Send more personals e-mail, People who are doing good get confused if the email is to all or them or only the ones who are not doing the work. Send a confirmation of the jobs received, or has a record on the black board of the time dropped and send or the confirmation of the arrival. ********************************************* GDB Part 1 What I like best about this course is the fact that it is online. I enjoyed it immensely and would love to take more courses like this one. I enjoyed working at my own pace within a specified time frame. I also liked writing essay papers instead of taking exams. It allowed me to do well. I find taking tests to be stressful and this sometimes causes me to not do as well as I could have. Part 2 I would make the online text even more detailed than it is. Perhaps some of the information in the links can be incorporated into the text. Sometimes, the sections appeared more like an outline than a chapter in a text, limiting the information provided. I found myself going to the Pojman text and different websites for additional information. However, I realize that this involves a lot of work. Part 3 Additional feedback from the Professor might encourage more of the hesitant students to participate. The individual e-mails sent out by the Professor helped a lot. Perhaps more of them could be sent to those students not participating enough. Those of us who participated a lot sometimes found it hard to create and continue a discussion thread when there weren’t enough students to respond and continue the discussion. Part 4 One or two of the modules lasted only one week. I found that one week was not enough time to do all the reading and participate in the discussions sufficiently. A two week time frame is more doable. I think that most of us were usually finishing the essays on the very last day of the deadline – usually Sunday. We were then not prepared on that following Monday to start a discussion, since we still had to read the next chapter, causing some of us to not participate in the discussion until Thursday or Friday of that week. I know that I needed and relied on that first weekend to catch up. I think one of the modules lasted three weeks – that was much too long. Perhaps they could be more evenly spread out, so this would not happen. I think the course materials were sequenced well. Part 5 Well, I would like to say that the quantity of work should be less of course. However, I realize that we only skimmed the surface of some of the concepts, since sometimes the text looked more like an outline than a chapter. I found myself going to the Pojman text and different websites for additional information. Therefore, I would not increase the quantity of work required for this course. Part 6 Although the Professor's feedback was helpful, I would have preferred more of it. I personally need more feedback, just to let me know that the Professor is out there and reading our postings, since there were very few of us students left in the course to participate in the discussions. Part 7 It would be great if the Professor could find or create more online courses to teach for the Education major, since I enjoyed this course immensely. Perhaps you could mentor other staff members to teach online courses. *************************************************** YZ
Part 1: What did you like best about this
course?
The
structure and design are both very excellent and create a good environment
for guided independent study; basically all the signs in the road were good,
effective and were there to guide me on my way.
Part 4: What changes would you suggest be
made to the pacing or sequence of the content and activities for this
course? (e.g., were the due dates doable for you? Were the course materials
sequenced well?) There really isn’t much that can be improved upon. I find your inputs enlightening and informative and your questions thought provoking and intimidating (only in the beginning, but that can’t be improved upon, you are the professor, you will always be intimidating). Part 7: What other suggestions, comments, or recommendations would you have for the instructor? I think that the grading scale should be sequential or graduated, basically more flexible. I notice that the points given for the discussion and essays (except when there were 2 essays due for one module) were for the most part the same starting from the very first module up the last. I suggest that in the first few modules the points assigned to the discussions and essays should be less since there should be a transitional period so that everyone gets used to the format and structure of the course, then, as the course goes on and everyone has had a handle on the way the course is run, higher points should be assigned to the discussions and essays. ******************************** FS
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