PY114-4-AU-CO:
Critical Reasoning
2023/24
Philosophical, Historical and Interdisciplinary Studies (School of)
Colchester Campus
Autumn
Undergraduate: Level 4
Current
Thursday 05 October 2023
Friday 15 December 2023
15
13 October 2023
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
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Philosophical work involves dealing in arguments: assembling evidence in support of some conclusion. Such arguments are occasionally simple but often very complex; they are sometimes valid but they are often fallacious.This module functions as a kind of `boot camp` intended to develop and hone the skills and methods required for university-level work in philosophy and related disciplines.
Each year, the module supervisor selects one or two philosophical topics to be used as target areas for argumentative analysis. These topics vary from year to year but will be selected so as to avoid overlap with other materials covered elsewhere in the first-year curriculum. Possible topics include: Can there be free will in a deterministic universe? What constitutes personal identity over time? What does it mean to follow a rule? How is self-knowledge possible? Students read a sampling of classic texts pertaining to the chosen topic to use as a basis for the primary skill-focused work of the module. In 2023-24, the topic will be: `Free Will`.
The aims of this module are:
- To develop and hone the skills required for university-level work in philosophy and related disciplines.
- To introduce techniques of logical analysis.
- To develop the capacity to present and critically analyse arguments.
- To develop the capacity to use critical thinking reflexively.
- To develop the ability to produce university-level writing.
By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:
- Identify and articulate arguments as presented in philosophical and other forms of prose.
- Have developed a range of skills for the assessment of arguments.
- Identify informal argumentative fallacies.
- Represent arguments using sentential letters and logical connectives.
- Construct and interpret truth tables.
- Have enhanced and developed their ability to write clear, forceful, argumentative essays in which arguments are presented and critically assessed, and in which a thesis is critically defended.
The module is open to students of all abilities. Whatever their starting point, intensive instructional support will be provided to help students achieve a `step-change` in their skills as they embark upon university-level studies in philosophy and related disciplines.
Students enrolled on this module will attend one weekly two-hour lecture (starting in Week 2) and one weekly 50-minute tutorial (starting in Week 3).
Coursework assignments will focus on skills of analysis and writing, and on the basic skills of elementary symbolic logic, including symbolization and the construction of truth-tables. Students will be given the opportunity to discuss their coursework, and will receive close feedback on essay-writing skills and methods. The module provides the opportunity for students to make brief oral presentations, but these will be neither required nor assessed.
Recommended reading
Watson, Free Will (Second Edition), (Oxford University Press, 2003).
This is an unusually work-intensive module, with weekly written homework assignments or logic exercises. It requires a high level of commitment from the students enrolled.
This module will be delivered via:
- One 2-hour lecture per week.
- One 50-minute tutorial per week.
Week 8 is Reading Week; there will be no teaching events and no weekly assignments due.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's
reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
Wk 3 - Formative Assignment 1 |
|
0% |
| Coursework |
Wk 4 Formative Assignment - 2 |
|
0% |
| Coursework |
Wk 5 Formative Assignment - 3 |
|
0% |
| Coursework |
Week 6 Summative Assignment (1) |
|
33% |
| Coursework |
Wk 7 Formative Assignment - 4 |
|
0% |
| Coursework |
Week 9 Summative Assignment (2) |
|
33% |
| Coursework |
Wk 10 Formative Assignment - 5 |
|
0% |
| Coursework |
Week 11 Summative Assignment (3) |
|
34% |
| Exam |
Main exam: Remote, Open Book, 24hr during January
|
| Exam |
Reassessment Main exam: Remote, Open Book, 24hr during September (Reassessment Period)
|
Additional coursework information
Assessment for the module will be based on marked coursework and a final exam.
The coursework will consist of weekly assignments, with the first assignment due in Week 3. There will be a total of 8 weekly assignments. However only three of these assignments are `summative': will be used in the calculation of the coursework mark for the module. The other five weekly assignments are `formative': form an essential part of the skill development for the module, but will not be assigned a numerical mark that will be used in calculation of the coursework mark for the module.
The summative coursework assignments will be due in Weeks 6, 9 and 11. Each of the three summative coursework assignments will be worth 33.3% of the overall coursework mark for the module.
Coursework assignments will take two different forms: two will be short writing assignments; one will be a logic exercise sets.
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Prof Wayne Martin, email: wmartin@essex.ac.uk.
PHAIS General Office - 6.130; pyugadmin@essex.ac.uk.
Yes
Yes
No
Dr Josiah Saunders
Durham University
Associate Professor
Available via Moodle
Of 18 hours, 18 (100%) hours available to students:
0 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.
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