Changing your mind A . Write down one thing you used to believe* and now do not

Changing your mind

A. Write down one thing you used to believe* and now do not B. Write down one thing that you believe now and think that you will believe forever For A., ask yourself – and write down:

• What made you believe it in the first place?• How did you come to change your belief?

For B., ask yourself – and write down:

• What made you believe this in the first place?• Is there anything you can imagine that would change your

mind?

Discuss in pairs

TaK – What is Knowledge?

*believe: to accept as true


What is Knowledge?

A definition: Knowledge -

• the body of truths or facts accumulated in the course of time;

• certain understanding (as opposed to opinion);


Different kinds of Knowledge

A person with genuine knowledge of a subject does not merely have information about it, but understands how the various parts are related to one another to form a meaningful whole.

An analogy:Information is to knowledge what bricks are to a building. While you cannot have a building without bricks, a building is more than just a heap of bricks



Different personal characteristics and experiences affect what people know.

There are different levels of knowledge:

• A superficial grasp

• A good understanding

• A complete mastery



Knowing How (Skills) …• To swim• To dance• To solve maths problems• etc…

Knowing That …• It is cold• 2+2=4• Obama is US President• etc…



Knowing How(Knowledge by acquaintance)

Gaining skills

Tacit*

Subjective

Private

Can be shown

Can originate in experience

May give certainty

Baking bread

Knowing That(Knowledge by description)

Gaining information

Articulated*Objective

Public

Must have reasons/evidence/proof

Can originate in experienceMay give certainty

Recipe for baking bread

*Tacit: understood without being openly expressed*Articulated: can be clearly expressed in words


Subject Knowing How Knowing That

Language A1, A2, B etc

Literature

Gaining skills: knowing how to write an essay; knowing how to be both sensitive and analytical in a commentary; knowing how to read more critically…

Gaining information: knowing that tragedy has certain characteristics; that blank verse is unrhymed iambic pentameter; that alliteration is a device…

Knowing in your IB Programme subjects

(Other 5 Subject Groups?)


Origins of Knowledge

observation

thought

family

television

internet

books

intuition

teachers

friends

religion

etc

“What is true?”“What can I know?”

“What should I believe?”“How can I be sure?”

?’s

?’s

?’s

?’s

?’s

etc

Definitions: True - conforming to reality or fact; not falseKnow – to understand from experience; to apprehend clearly and with certainty


dreams

feelings

experience

?’s

• Knowledge is true belief that has been arrived at by a ‘reliable process’ (by observation, experiment, reasoning etc) . Not just ‘true for me’, but ‘true for all’

(Validity of the justification – ‘poor, unreliable justification’ or ‘excellent, reliable justification’ leading to ‘weaker’ or

‘stronger’ forms of knowledge)

Knowledge = justified, true belief

Belief-knowledge continuum

-10|

Impossible

-5|

Unlikely

0|

Possible

+5|

Probable

+10|

Certain

Belief KnowledgeDoubt


1. Christopher Columbus discovered America in 14922. Human beings are descended from apes3. Murder is wrong4. Aliens have visited earth at some time in its history5. All metals expand when heated6. Human beings have an immortal soul7. If A is bigger than B and B is bigger than C, then A is

bigger than C

Belief-knowledge continuum

-10|

Impossible

-5|

Unlikely

0|

Possible

+5|

Probable

+10|

Certain

Belief Knowledge


Doubt


Two approaches:

Reason (Rationalism): Logic, Reasoning, Sitting and Thinking

Perception (Empiricism): Experience, Observation, Going and Looking

Definitions: True - conforming to reality or fact; not falseKnow – to understand from experience; to apprehend clearly and with certainty



Origins of Knowledge

observation

thought

family

television

internet

books

intuition

teachers

friends

religion

etc Mathematics

Science

Social Science

History

Arts

Ethics

Areas of Knowledge

KnowledgeTrials

?’s

?’s

?’s

?’s

?’s

etc


?

feelings

?’s experience



Knower(s)

Natural Sciences

Language

SensePerception

Emotion

Reason

Mathematics

Human Sciences

History

Arts

Ethics

Ways of Knowing

Areas of Knowledge

Theory of Knowledge DiagramTaK – What is Knowledge?

*ScepticismOpen-

mindedness

*Scepticism: the doctrine that absolute knowledge is impossible, either in a particular domain or in general.


Scepticism

Open-mindedness

Will believe almost anything…


Scepticism

Open-mindedness

Will believe almost nothing…


GoodJudgement

ScepticismOpen-

mindedness


We need to find a balance between being open to new ideas that challenge our ways of thinking,

while keeping in mind than human beings are *credulous animals who are sometimes willing to believe strange things

on the basis of little evidence

*credulous: willing to believe or trust too readily, especially. without proper or adequate evidence

Changing your mind A . Write down one thing you used to believe* and now do not

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