Philosophy and Ethics (ATAR)
Course Outline
Philosophical thought shapes what people think, what they value, what they consider to
be true and how they engage with others and the world around them. It is one of the
foundations of all academic disciplines. It seeks to shed light on questions such as: what
is real? What and how do we understand? How should we live? What is it to be human?
Who am I? It deals with issues and problems that cannot be addressed adequately by
appealing to experience and experiment alone. The Philosophy and Ethics ATAR course
aims to empower students to make independent judgements in the basis of reason.
In philosophy and ethics, disagreement is common. Methods of inquiry and the skills
of critical reasoning help us deal more effectively with disagreement. This course
places considerable emphasis on students contributing constructively to a philosophical
Community of Inquiry. A philosophical Community of Inquiry at its simplest is a
collaborative and cooperative process through which students learn with others and from
others, how to engage in philosophical disclosure. A philosophical Community of Inquiry
uses the skills of critical reasoning to help students deal more effectively and tolerantly
with disagreement. Doing philosophy is a practical activity. We do philosophy, for
example, when we seek to define something, when we challenge assumptions, when we
construct an argument and when we think about what we are doing, how we are doing it
and to what ends. The study of philosophy gives us a set of skills that better enables us to
understand, evaluate and engage with our world.
Career Prospects
This ATAR course develops thinking skills and moral discernment that students apply to
a range of practical situations in their personal, social and working lives. The course is
relevant to students focusing on the study of philosophy at university. It is of equal value
to those following career paths that require the evaluation of arguments, such as law, or
those needing to make complex judgements, such as in medical, pastoral or other human
service occupations. It is also relevant to those entering careers involving aesthetics, such
as advertising and design.
Syllabus
The Year 11 syllabus is divided into two units:
• Unit 1 – Reason and Persons
• Unit 2 – Reason and Culture
In Unit 1, students examine reasoning, inference, doubt and proof: the construction of
world views; ideas of mind, body and personhood; ideas of action, intention, motives,
free-will and determinism; and the elements of a personal ethic. In Unit 2, students
examine ideas of beauty and aesthetics: the interpretation of art and literature; the idea of
culture; intuition and emotion and personal relationships and friendship.
Assessment Profile
Assessments involve critical reasoning, philosophical analysis and evaluation and
construction of argument.
Formal Prerequisites
Students will need to be able to think critically and to express themselves well by oral,
written and multimedia means. An upper level C grade, or preferably a B grade, in Year 10
English or Religion, Philosophy & Ethics is the preferred minimum academic requirement.
Contact:
The Reverend Canon Dr Philip Raymont
Head of Faculty, Religion Philosophy and Ethics
[email protected]
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