UCL - Didactics of philosophy

[FILO2311]

[30h + 15h] 4 credits

Teacher(s): Heinz Leonardy

Language: French

Level: Second

Aims
Main themes
Content and teaching methods
Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Aims

Teach students to prepare, give and grade philosphy courses, both as to levels of content and methods of instruction.

Main themes

Contents: The principles that should guide the preparation of philosophy courses. Particularly, as to the contents of lectures, the importance to be accorded respectively to philosophical concepts, arguments, authors, to the history of thought, to other disciplines taught (physics, history and syntax...), to the lived experiences of students, to present-day realities, etc. And as for methods of instruction, the place that shoukd be reserved for practical work, cooperation between students, the directive role of the instructor, philosophical texts, the media, audio-visual materiel, and confrontation of opposing viewpoints, as well as the place to be reserved for dialogue, conversation and discussion.

Method: In the context of exercices, students should prepare a philosphy lecture under the professor's direction. There will also be working meetings with instructors in secondary education allowing students to benefit from their experience and advice.

Content and teaching methods

This course is based on a double questioning : First of all, the one presiding over all philosophy teaching, at least since Kant and Hegel : Should one teach/learn to philosophize ? Subsequently, the following question as its corollary : What in philosophy deserves to be taught and how should one proceed ? The accent will be placed more on the " material to be taught" than on " the how ", given that the latter will be taken into consideration in an in-depth way in the seminars and exercises accompanying the student-teacher training courses.

In the context of the common search for elements of response to these two questions, we shall also take up more " practical " aspects concerning e.g. the space to be reserved to the history of philosophy in a thematic approach, the role philosophy can play in the students' scholastic itinerary, perhaps as founding a veritable interdisciplinarity or else as mediatory or, quite simply, the role philosophical reflection can play in the concrete, daily life of every citizen.

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Prerequisite: hold a baccalaureate diploma (licence) in philosophy
Support: didactical library of philosophy