Final Class Meeting Notes

A couple of people wanted the notes from the little PowerPoint I made for class today; here's a link to the presentation.

Final Class Meeting Philosophy 110

Your Last Exam for Philo 110

Don't be too sad! Here's a link to your final exam in Philosophy 110.

Answers are due by 1 p.m. on Thursday, December 16 in PS-117.

Philosophy 110 Final Exam

Let me know if you have questions.

See you Thursday!

Grade Update

Hi all,

Here's a link to a new grade update form. As always, it's in sets of 3; pages 1-3 are your overall course grades, the next set is term paper grades, then exams, the forums, etc. You still have one term paper (the one you're working on now) and one exam (the one on Rawls during finals week) to complete, plus your final forum response. Some of you have completed your forum response-to-a-colleague, but I didn't record your grade, yet, to avoid falsely inflating your average.

Let me know if you think there are mistakes - with this much data entry it's always likely that there will be some errors. Much easier to fix now than after grades are turned in!

Philosophy 110 Grade Update 11-23

Reading for December 2-9

Here's a link to the PDF of your next reading: Rawls Reading Dec. 2-9

Let me know if you have questions.

Forum 4: Salaam Bombay

Assignment
Spend at least 20 minutes thinking about the question below, and write a substantive response to post in comments.

Your response to the question is due by Sunday morning at 8 a.m.; respond to a colleague by Tuesday morning at 8 a.m.

A good response will be at the very least 1/2 a page, double-spaced in a word processing program.

In your response to your colleague, try to drive the conversation forward in some way. Press the person (politely) on their response; ask a question to try to examine the idea; disagree (politely); examine the premises the person is relying on - that is, try to add to the original post with your response. Don't just say you agree with the person.

Question
*UPDATE*

Let's ignore the question of responsibility for the time being, as it's distracting from the second question: if you think the situation is unjust, why? If not, why not?

Address all of the questions below:

The people depicted in this film lived in circumstances that made human flourishing extremely difficult if not impossible. Do you think it's just (that is, does it reflect justice) that they're more or less trapped in these circumstances? If so, why? If not, why not? Who's responsibility is it to try to improve the circumstances of the desperately poor?

Term Paper 2: Utilitarianism

Here's a link to the second term paper assignment. You won't be able to complete the paper until we've covered On Liberty in class - I'm just posting this early in case it will help you to have the paper in mind while we go over the material.

The term paper is due November 30.

Term Paper 2: Utilitarianism.

The Texas statute is Texas False Disparagement of Perishable Food Products Act, Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. §§ 96.001-.004

Grade Update

Here's the link to your grade update. Philosophy 110 Grades

If you're missing a grade and you know you completed the assignment, or if I typed a grade in wrong, let me know.

Have a great weekend!

Midterm 2: Kant

Here's the link to your second midterm.

Please type your answers. Answers are due next Tuesday, November 2.

Email me if you have any questions. Good luck, and have fun!

Midterm 2: Kant

Grade Update

Here's a link to your current grades in the course: Philosophy 110 Grade Update

Look up your grades by student ID number.

Grades are listed in 6 sets of 3 pages each. The first set shows a general overview of the grades for the course. The column on the very furthest right shows your current percentage grade in the course, as a decimal. .895 or higher is an A; .795-.894 is a B, etc. The second-to last column on the right shows the total number of points you've earned so far.

The next set of three pages shows current term paper grades (you don't have any, yet), then midterm grades, forum grades, forum response grades, and the set after that shows current quiz grades.

Except for the final column on the main, "Grades" page, all of the numbers listed are points, not percentage grades. The highest points you could get for each forum post is 75; the highest for each response is 50, for each quiz, 25. The Midterms are worth 150 points each.

Forum 3: The Laramie Project

***UPDATE 3***

Please read all of the comments before you post - we're covering a lot of old territory with new comments, and my goal for these projects is to make them a real conversation. So see what other people have talked about before you post, and then take that into consideration in your own comments.

**UPDATE 2**
Please stick very closely to the questions below. There are all kinds of discussions one could have about the ethical issues raised by this film, and there's value in having those discussions. But if we're all going off in different directions, it's impossible to pursue any one question in depth, and that's what I want to do.

In particular, please refrain from sharing your religious affiliation and the beliefs of your particular branch of that religion. It does not help to elucidate the questions raised below, and will have a strong tendency to throw us off track in discussions. Remember what we learned in the Euthyphro.

**UPDATE**

Don't forget to sign your name to your post! I have more than one class at a time posting to various blogs, wikis, and whatnot, and my elderly brain cannot keep track of everyone's handle. Put at least your first name and last initial so I can record your grade.

Please post your response to one of the questions below by Saturday, October 9, at 8 a.m. Then respond to 1 of your colleagues by Monday, October 11 at 8 a.m. Your comments should be substantive and thoughtful. Try to elaborate on your ideas, and explain why you think about things the way you do.

1. Many people were particularly upset that Matthew Sheperd was murdered because he was gay. Do you think there's something particularly bad about crime when it's aimed at someone because of their inherent characteristics (like their race, ethnicity, gender) rather than, say, because you got in a fight over something with them? Why or why not?
2. What ideas and assumptions do you think the young men had, that made them react the way they did to Matthew?

If you missed watching the movie in class, you can get it from the library: The Laramie Project

I can't find transcripts from McKinney's trial online; here's a story about the defense from the New York Times.
image published by Xnatedawgx under a creative commons attribution/share alike license

First Term Paper

Here's a link to your first term paper assignment: Nicomachean Ethics

The paper is due Tuesday October 12.

Get started right away so that I can help you if you have any questions. Contact me if you're having any problems at all on the paper - if you need help organizing your thoughts, understanding part of the question, or determining whether you're missing something important.

You're welcome to watch the movie again online if you want to review. Here it is on YouTube; streaming on Netflix; streaming on Amazon.

Good luck, have fun!

Grades for Forum 3

Here's a link to your grade on the Mission forum.

Look up your grade by your student ID. If you know you posted, but don't see your grade, send me an email. I probably just typed your ID in wrong.

The first column is your student ID number. The second column is your percentage grade for the first post. The third column is the number of points you earned, out of 75, for the first post. The fourth column is the number of points you earned for your reply to a colleague, out of a possible 50 points.

Let me know if you have questions.

Watch the Movie Streaming Online

Some of you have expressed an interest in watching parts of the film again. Here's a link to rent the movie online: The Mission.

Discussion Forum: The Mission

General Instructions

1. Choose one of the questions below to answer in depth.
2. Spend at least 10 minutes brainstorming your answer to the question; don't be satisfied with the first answer(s) that come(s) to mind, but continue to think more deeply about the problem for the entire 10 minute period. Write your answer in a text-editing or word processing program - don't write it directly in the comment box!
3. The, spend another 10 minutes editing your answer - challenge yourself about your answer, ask yourself why you think the way you do, and develop your answer more completely.
4. Finally, copy and paste your answer in the comment box, below.
5. A good answer will be at least half a page long as you're writing it in your processing program.
6. Answers are due by 4 a.m. Saturday morning.
7. By 4 a.m. on Monday morning, respond to one of your colleagues. You can (respectfully) challenge the person's reasoning, expand on what someone else has said, use a colleague’s idea as a jumping off point to develop something else, or ask a colleague (in detail, and showing why and how you’re confused or unsure of their reasoning) to expand on what they’ve said. But be sure you’re demonstrating serious engagement with the ideas.

Questions
Choose one of the questions below to work on.

1. Mendoza's views of what constitutes the good life undergo sweeping changes in the film; how do his views change, and what do you think it says about how to live a good life?
2. Do you think all, or only some, or none of the people in the film exhibited courage? Why do you think so? Everyone certainly meant to be courageous - how would you describe each person's view of courage?
3. Gabriel's view of courage is based on his religious commitments; could you make an argument for that view, without depending on a particular understanding of the divine?
   

Midterm 1: Euthyphro

Here's the link to the Midterm: #1 - Euthyphro

Don't forget to start early!

Let me know if you have any questions while you're working on the exam.

Good luck!

Forum 1 Grades

Hi all,

Here's a link to your grades for the first forum. Look up your student ID number to find your grade.

The forum posts are worth 75 points, so a perfect score is 75. The first column will list your student ID number; the second column lists your percentage score for the post as a decimal (for example, a 0.92 is a 92%, or A-; a 1 is 100%, or A+), and the third column lists your points earned.

Have a great weekend!

Getting a Google Account

Forum 1: Critical Thinking

Write at least one long paragraph in answer to each question, below. I want everyone to answer both questions.

Post your answers in the comments, below. Just click on "comments" and enter your information.

1. Think back over the arguments you made in the discussion of the case study. What were some things you were assuming to be true?
2. Think about your opinions and beliefs regarding the case study, throughout the whole process so far. How have your attitudes and beliefs changed?

Be sure to include at least your first name and last initial in your response, so I can give you credit for doing the assignment! Have a good weekend - don't forget to read chapters 1-4 in Rulebook for Arguments.

Assignment #1

Syllabus and Schedule Fall 2010

Here are links to your syllabus and schedule for the course.

To print these documents, click on the "print" link at the upper left corner.

Philosophy 110 Syllabus

Philosophy 110 Schedule Fall 2010

Final Grades for Course

Hi everyone,

Hope you're having a great summer! Thanks for an engaging course, and I hope to see you again! Here's a link to your final grades: Spring 2010 - Final Course Grades Philosophy 110.

(Photo (c) Luc Viatour, published under GNU Free Documentation License. More gorgeous photographs at lucnix)

Some extra information regarding the paper

This might possibly be relevant to your consideration of the new law in AZ, particularly in terms of Rawls' first principle of justice and Mill's (that's possessive, not plural!) concerns about liberty.

Extra Credit Assignments

Philosophy 110 Spring 2010

Extra Credit

Earn up to 50 points for each assignment completed satisfactorily. Each paper should be a minimum of 2 pages to answer the assignment sufficiently to gain any points. Papers should be typed, double-spaced, and in no larger than 12-point font.

1. Aristotle and Mill both want to promote human flourishing, but come to quite different conclusions about how best to do that. Write a paper in which you compare and contrast their views about what constitutes human flourishing and how best to achieve it.
2. Give a brief description of a situation you faced, in which you didn't know what was the best thing to do. Give a detailed description of how you would apply the categorical imperative to that situation (that is, actually walk through the application of the c.i. to that situation), and say what decision(s) you would come to by using the c.i.
3. Propose a change to an existing law and give a detailed analysis of why your change would be a better rule to have in our moral code.

Final Term Paper

Here's a link to the assignment for your final term paper. Let me know if you have any questions while you're working on it.

You can get started on #s 1 and 2 now.

The transition to Google docs format didn't quite deal with the footnotes, so you'll see a bit of weird formatting. The tiny numbers 1 and 2 in question 1 are footnotes.

Here are some links to general information about and coverage of SB1070:

This is a Times story about the bill before it had been signed into law. Covers some of the general provisions and some of the controversy over the bill.

This is a synopsis of the bill with basic legislative information about it.

Midterm Review Questions

Here's a link to a Midterm Review Sheet for the upcoming Kant midterm.

Questions on the exam will be taken from that sheet, although they may be reworded.

On Tuesday, when you get together in groups, you can work on the review sheet together. Your answers on the Midterm will have to be in your own words, though.

Grade Updates

Here's a newly updated copy of your current grades.

Look your grades up by Student ID number (excel drops the 0's off of the front of numbers, so if your student ID starts with any zeros, drop them to find your ID).

The first three pages show your overall grade thus far. The farthest column to the right shows your current percentage grade (as a decimal - .74368574 would be a 74%, or C). Each set of three pages after that gives you a breakdown of an individual part of your grade - short papers, group project, quizzes, etc., so you can see what you've gotten on each assignment, if you're missing any assignments, etc. Let me know if you think there are mistakes right away! It's much easier to fix things now before anything is officially posted.

If you owe me assignments, get them to me right away. All of the assignments are posted on the blog.

Grades for Forum 3

Here's the link for your grades for Forum 3 - let me know if you have any questions. I copied and pasted your student ID numbers straight from the class roster this time, so I hope there won't be any errors. If you know you posted and you don't see a grade, though, let me know right away.

See you on Tuesday!

Getting a Google Account

Questions for Laramie Project 4/1/10

**UPDATE**

Don't forget to sign your name to your post! I have more than one class at a time posting to various blogs, wikis, and whatnot, and my elderly brain cannot keep track of everyone's handle. Put at least your first name and last initial so I can record your grade.

Please post your response to one of the questions below by Saturday, April 3, at 8 a.m. Then respond to 1 of your colleagues by Sunday, April 4 at 10 p.m. Your comments should be substantive and thoughtful. Try to elaborate on your ideas, and explain why you think about things the way you do.

1. Many people were particularly upset that Matthew Sheperd was murdered because he was gay. Do you think there's something particularly bad about crime when it's aimed at someone because of their inherent characteristics (like their race, ethnicity, gender) rather than, say, because you got in a fight over something with them? Why or why not?
2. What ideas and assumptions do you think the young men had, that made them react the way they did to Matthew?

If you missed watching the movie in class, you can get it from the library: The Laramie Project

I can't find transcripts from McKinney's trial online; here's a story about the defense from the New York Times.
image published by Xnatedawgx under a creative commons attribution/share alike license

Grade Updates

Here's a link to your current grades for the course. You can look up your overall course grade, and then more specific grades, by student ID number. Look at the heading for each page to see which set of grades you're looking at (for example, your total forum grade thus far shows up on the "course grades" page under "forum." You can see what you got on each segment of the forum grade by going to the page labelled "forums").

You can see what a perfect score is for each assignment by looking for "perfect" at the bottom of each section.

Course update Spring 10

Term Paper 1: Aristotle

Here's the link for your first term paper on the Nicomachean Ethics.

You should write about all three of the bulleted points in the assignment.

Let me know if you have any questions! Get started early so that you can contact me in plenty of time if you need help, and don't hesitate to contact me for help if you're having trouble organizing your ideas or if you're running into other problems.

This is a reliable outside source if you'd like to consult further works: Aristotle and the Human Good

Be aware that it doesn't go into everything that we talked about, though.

Grades for Forum 2

Here's the link to your grades from the second forum.

Let me know if you have any trouble viewing the PDF, and let me know if you posted something but don't see a grade. It might be that I mis-typed your student ID number, or I may have missed your post. If you don't see a grade but know that you posted, please include the date and time of your post(s) in your email.

See you Thursday!

Discussion Questions

Please post a comment on one of the questions below. Post your answer by Saturday morning at 8 a.m.

Please respond to two of your colleagues by Tuesday morning at 8 a.m.

Make sure your answers are substantive and that you've given them plenty of thought, and elaborate on your answers. Good answers will be at least two generous paragraphs long.

1. Do you think Father Gabriel showed courage in the movie? What do you think made him courageous, or not? Do you think Father Rodrigo (Mendoza) showed courage? What do you think made him courageous?
2. Do you think violence is ever an appropriate response? Why or why not? What did you think about the divisions over the use of violence in response to the closing of the missions in the movie?
3. Do you think Cardinal Altamirano ought to have refused to carry out the terms of the treaty? What would it have accomplished? Does it matter that it wouldn't have stopped the closing of the missions? Why or why not?
4. The Waunana Indians of Columbia portrayed the Guarani in the film; rather than paying them individually for their roles, the director arranged to fund a trust for the entire village (the trust was used, in part, to lobby the government of Columbia for certain land rights for that group). Do you think that arrangement is at all problematic? Would you imagine Roland Joffe sugggesting that he fund a trust for the city of New York, in lieu of paying Robert DeNiro for his work?
   

Grades for Forum 1: Schaivo Case

Here's a link to your grades from your first forum. You'll have to look up your grade via your student ID number. The second column is your grade on your post (your original answer to the question); the third and fourth columns are your grades on your responses to colleagues. You could earn 100 points for your post, and 50 points for each response. If your answer was extraordinarily substantive and really helped forward the conversation, I gave you some extra credit. Contact me if you posted and you don't see a grade - several of you didn't put your names on your post, so I couldn't give you credit.

See you Thursday!

Grades for First Homework

Here's a link to the pdf of your grades for the first homework.

The first column is your student ID number; you'll have to look up your grade by student ID. The next column is your percentage grade, and the final column is the points you earned, out of 150. If you got *over* 150, it's because you earned extra on the assignment for an especially good post.

Two of you posted under screen names that I couldn't identify, without telling me your real names, so there are two grades that still need to be attached to people. If you forgot to put your name on your homework, tell me what your screen name was so I can give you credit for your work.

If I missed a post, let me know what *day* and *time* you posted so that I can find it.

Don't forget to read Euthyphro for Tuesday - have a great weekend, and I'll see you then!

Forum on Schaivo Case

For the forum, you can concentrate on

• the broad question of what should have been done in this case (continue to keep T.S. alive with the feeding tube, or remove the feeding tube), OR,
• the narrower question of what constitutes showing respect for life in this case.

Please post your original response by this Friday at midnight, and then respond to two of your colleagues by Tuesday at 8 a.m.

Here's a link to the article I was reading from with the outline of the case.

Homework due Wednesday at Midnight

Answer the following question; give your reasons in as much detail as you can. Say why you think the way you think about the question, and then explain each of your reasons, so that you're getting into your own reasoning as deeply as you can.

A man has been sentenced to prison for robbery. He admits that he is guilty. BUT, you also know the following:

• He won't ever do anything of the kind again
• He is not insane
• He is not a danger to society
• His wife and children depend on him for support
• You will be able to keep it completely secret that he has not gone to prison, so it won't have any effect on others in terms of deterrence.

Should you put him in prison anyway? Why or why not?

Simply click on "comment" below to post your homework answer. I look forward to reading your contributions!

Don't forget to put at least your last initial so I can give you credit for the assignment!

Spring 2010 Syllabus and Schedule

Adapted from image © Piotr Gryko under Creative Commons attribution/share alike

Philosophy 110: Introduction to Ethics

Spring 2010 Syllabus

Professor Colleen Boyle

devushka99@gmail.com

510.235.7800 x4289

Office hours 8:40 – 9:30 a.m. T/Th

12:40 – 1:30 p.m. T/Th

Office: PS-117

Section # 6326

Course website: http://philosophy110ethics.blogspot.com/

Introduction

How do we live together in this world? What, if any, duties do we owe to one another? What responsibilities do we have for our actions? What is just, and how do we pursue justice in our own actions? How would we build a community that exercises justice?

The fundamental questions that the discipline of Ethics pursues are more than ever in the forefront as we think about what we owe one another, how we ought to live, and what our responsibilities are in the world; and especially as we grapple with numerous difficult, painful questions like what to do regarding the war we’ve been engaged in for close to six years; how to handle immigration; whether people have a right to healthcare; how to respond to the growing prison population, and many others.

Ethics is the discipline that tries to work out questions of justice, right, and good, and to help us apply the answers we come to in our own lives: in how we treat our friends, loved ones, colleagues and classmates; how we treat ourselves; and how we treat others in our society (through our votes, for example, or our direct help – or our indifference).

Course Description

This course demonstrates the uses of philosophy in daily life. It includes study of ethics topics, such as issues of right and wrong, differing opinions, sexual ethics, and ethical problems at work.

Student Learning Outcomes

· Students will be able to recognize and distinguish both relative and universal ethical statements

· Students will be able to recognize cultural variations in the statement or presentation of ethical positions

· Students will develop recognition of the evolving nature of ethical questions

Course Expectations

By the end of this course, you should be able to

1. understand and reiterate some of the basic parts of several foundational theories of ethics (theories that have had major influences on contemporary American thinking about right, wrong, politics, and morals),

2. apply your own experiences and insights to particular ethical questions,

3. apply the theories we’ve studied to particular ethical questions,

4. reflect on how your experiences have shaped your attitudes and beliefs about ethics

5. work productively in groups to develop thoughtful, reflective responses to particular ethical questions,

6. write two concise, detailed papers in which you analyze a situation and apply a theory or theories to help you develop an answer to an ethical question raised by the situation.

Required Books

Plato, Five Dialogues. Hackett Publishing, 2^nd edition.

Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics. Hackett Publishing, 2^nd edition.

Immanuel Kant, Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals. Hackett Publishing, 3^rd edition.

J.S. Mill, On Liberty. Hackett Publishing Co.

Weston, Anthony, A Rulebook for Arguments. Hackett Publishing, 4^th revised edition.

Rawls, John, A Theory of Justice. Belknap Press.

All of these books are available online, used, many for less than $5.00 each – in some cases, for $1.50/ea. Be sure to get the correct Hackett edition so that you can follow the page numbering.

Handouts, to be given in class. You are responsible for acquiring any handouts you miss due to absence.

Course Requirements

1. You should come to every class unless you are really sick or you have a genuine emergency. All of the lectures, exercises, projects, and discussions are designed to help you learn, engage with the material, and deepen your understanding.

2. You should come to every class on time. If you’re late, you’ll miss important announcements and introductory material at the beginning of class, distract your classmates, and indicate a lack of respect for the class. When students come late it delays projects and discussions and undermines the class. Leave plenty of time to park, and assume that you’ll hit traffic on your way to school; make a genuine, good faith effort to arrive on time to every class.

3. Come prepared. Being prepared means that you’ve done the assigned reading carefully and completed any written homework assignments; that you’re mentally ready to engage the material, to raise questions and issues for discussion, and to respond respectfully to your colleagues. It also means making sure that you have the correct book with you, and that you have notebook paper, a working pen or pencil, and any required handouts. Get your book, notebook, and writing implement out at the beginning of class: assume that you’ll be taking notes and using the assigned text unless I tell you otherwise.

4. Turn all assignments in on time. If you’re having trouble completing an assignment, contact me in advance of the due date so I can answer questions, help you organize thoughts, develop a plan, and give you an extension if you need it. Everyone has trouble with an assignment, sometimes, so ask for help if you need it!

5. Make a sincere effort to engage with the material. Some of the ideas and writing we’ll be covering is complex and challenging; some of it is written in a style that’s more difficult to read than modern texts. I will break things down into smaller pieces, and try to connect more abstract ideas to concrete questions so that it’s easier to follow and more immediately accessible. But there will be times when you’ll need to concentrate on difficult material for sustained periods.

6. Treat everyone else in the class with consideration and respect. This means not just listening quietly while others are speaking and responding to others politely, but also actively working to engage with their comments, along with the material we study in the class.

Assignments and Grading

We’ll complete the following assignments:

1. 2 Term papers of 3-4 pages each 200 points each = 400

2. 4 Tests or other assessments 150 points each = 600

3. 5 Forum posts (see below) 100 points each = 500

4. 10 Forum responses (see below) 50 points each = 500

5. 4 Group projects 150 points each = 600

6. 10 Reading quizzes 50 points each = 500

7. Participation 400

8. Total = 3100

A = 2775 – 3100 points

B = 2465 – 2774 points

C = 2155 – 2464 points

D = 1845 – 2154 points

F = fewer than 1845 points

Course Standards

It is very important that your answers on the midterms and final, and your statements in your essays, are as concise, to the point, and lucid as possible. You must regularly and accurately refer to the issues and authors you are evaluating both in your recapitulation of the argument, and in your own evaluation of that argument. You may use examples from “real life” to clarify or underscore your point, but you must make it clear what point you are defending with your example. It does not matter what position you choose to defend in your writing. It does matter that you give a clear and in-depth argument for your position, take account of opposing arguments and the arguments we have covered in class, and show evidence in your writing that you have carefully reflected upon all the available arguments and let the arguments lead your thinking on the issue.

The following are general grading standards (I’ll give you more specific standards for individual assignments):

A an excellent, detailed account of the question assigned, making use of

careful and original reflection and illustrative examples

B a good grasp of the material, with some evidence of original reflection and an attempt to critically engage the assignment

C a basic grasp of the material, with no evidence of original reflection or attempt to critically engage the assignment

D failure to grasp the material

F non-attendance, or extremely sloppy writing (e.g., unfinished thoughts, excessive misspellings or grammatical errors, no attempt made to engage the assignment)

Plagiarism and Academic Integrity

The standard penalty for violations of academic integrity in this course will be an F grade for the course. Such violations include cheating on an exam, helping someone else to cheat, resubmitting a paper written for another class, and plagiarism. Plagiarism is the representation of someone else’s words or ideas as one’s own. The most egregious cases of plagiarism are easy to avoid because they are so obviously dishonest:

· turning in someone else’s paper as your own

· allowing someone else to turn in a copy of your paper as his or her own

· downloading a paper from the internet and altering it a little to fit the class

· employing a “research service”

Be warned: instructors are quite adept at recognizing cases of plagiarism.

Other cases of plagiarism are more subtle. Sometimes students plagiarize unwittingly, out of carelessness or ignorance of the standards for attributing ideas to their sources. However, ignorance is no excuse. You are responsible for knowing the standards and taking care to follow them.

Whenever you make use of another’s words or ideas in a paper, you must give proper credit. Usually this means inserting a footnote or a parenthetical reference that refers to a Works Cited page. If you’re not sure how to give a proper reference, consult a style guide or your instructor. Your instructor can also answer questions about when you must give a reference. If in doubt, play it safe.

You must provide a reference not only when you use the exact words of another, but also when you paraphrase her words, summarize her ideas, or borrow her metaphors.

When you do use someone’s exact words, be sure to mark them as such, either by putting them in quotation marks or by setting them off from the main text and indenting them on both sides. Be careful not to change the wording at all in a direct quotation; if you must change it, use square brackets to indicate your changes.

When you paraphrase, state the author’s ideas in your own words. Don’t just rearrange the words in the sentence and replace some of the words with synonyms. Note: even though you’re using your own words, you still need to give a reference, since the idea is not yours.

You may not work with anyone else on any of the assignments unless I specifically instruct you to do so. All of your written work must be original and unique.

Etiquette

During the class period, please turn off all non-medical electronic devices. Yes, your laptop is a non-medical electronic device. If you must use a laptop for note taking because of a disability, please provide the correct form from the DSPS office. For emergency contact, please instruct your contact to call police services.

We will be discussing a variety of controversial issues in this course. You may hold passionate beliefs about some or all or those issues. Please remember always to treat the opinions and beliefs of your classmates with dignity and respect at all times, even when you strongly disagree with those opinions. You may be asked to leave the class if you fail to treat any of your colleagues with civility.

Be respectful of the class and of your colleagues. You are not forced to attend class; therefore, if you would prefer to engage in other activities such as checking email, texting your friends, chatting with your friends, or surfing the web, do so elsewhere. Private conversations in class, and even quietly texting, are very distracting to your fellow students. Many students make enormous personal sacrifices to attend college: please don’t disrupt their class. You may be asked to leave if you’re disrupting class. While you are in the classroom, you are expected to make a genuine attempt to engage with the classroom activities.

Disabled Students Programs and Services

“The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504, requires Contra Costa College to make all programs accessible to qualified individuals with learning, physical, or psychological disabilities. Students who would like to receive accommodations for their learning, physical, or psychological disabilities should contact the Disabled Students Programs & Services (DSPS) office and schedule an appointment. (510) 235-7800 ext. 7220.”

Please feel free to come see me during office hours, or email me at devushka99@gmail.com, if you have a disability you think I should know about, or if there’s anything else I should know about.

Participation in the Forums

We’ll be watching several movies in class that raise ethical questions related to some of the material we’re covering. You’ll be asked to post at least one original response to a question or questions on each class website forum, and to post at least two responses to a colleague’s contribution on each forum.

Please contact me right away if you’ll have a problem with regular internet access.

Below is a general guideline to what makes a good contribution to a forum. There may be specific rules about particular forum questions.

An excellent contribution:

· is responsive to the question posed; you have made serious attempt to engage question

· engages the ideas and reflections of your colleagues substantively and thoughtfully

· is reflective and substantive, and often ties in questions to more general ideas covered in course

· is polite and respectful of colleagues, regardless of disagreements

Group Projects

We’ll do at least 4 group projects during class. Your group project grade will have 2 parts: the overall quality of the completed project, and your own contribution to the group. The individual portion of your grade will consider:

· whether you arrived on time to begin the project

· whether you participated for the entire project, particularly if it continued over more than one class period

· whether your homework assignment in preparation for the group project was completed on time

· the thoughtfulness and completeness of your homework response

· whether you continually engaged with your fellow group members, asked questions to drive the assignment forward, and participated regularly in the group discussion

· whether you collaborated helpfully with the group: discussing disagreements respectfully, putting forward ideas, raising helpful questions or criticisms, and behaving collegially.

Philosophy 110: Introduction to Ethics

Spring 2010 Schedule

This schedule is provisional and subject to change. You are responsible for keeping abreast of changes to the schedule, which will be announced in class and posted on the course website.

Assignments should be completed for the day on which they’re listed. All work done outside of class should be typed.

Preparation

1.26 What is Ethics? Introduction, learning styles survey, cases.

1.28 Critical Thinking: case study. Post your response to the course website by midnight on Friday, January 28! (150 points)

2.02 Critical Thinking continued. Homework: read chapters 1-4 Rulebook for Arguments.

2.04 Critical Thinking continued. Homework: read chapters 5, 7-9 Rulebook for Arguments.

Plato

2.09 Group work in class: case study.

2.11 Group work in class continued. (150 points)

2.16 Please post your response to the course website by midnight on Friday, Feb. 14! (150 points) Homework: read Euthyphro (in Five Dialogues) pp. 1 – 11 (up to 9c)

2.18 Homework: read Euthyphro pp. 11 – 14 (up to 11c).

Assessments!

2.23 Review for Midterm 1; take-home midterm given out.

2.25 Midterm 1 due (150 points); in class: discussion.

Aristotle

3.02 Movie: The Mission.

3.04 Movie continued.

3.09 Please post your response to the course website by Sunday, March 7! (150 points) Discussion in class and intro to Aristotle.

3.11 Homework: read Book I, Ch. 1-4, 7 & 8 from Nicomachean Ethics. In class: Aristotle.

3.16 Homework: read Book II from Nicomachean Ethics. In class: Aristotle.

3.18 In class group assignment: case study. Term Paper 1 assignment given out.

Assessments!

3.23 Midterm 2 review. Take-home midterm given out.

3.25 Midterm 2 due. (150 points)

Kant

3.30 Movie: The Laramie Project. Term Paper 1 due. (200 points)

4.01 Movie continued. Please post your response to the course website by midnight on Friday, April 2! (150 points)

4.06 Spring Break

4.08 Spring Break

4.13 In class: discussion and introduction to Kant.

4.15 Homework: read 393-395 & 400-404 from Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals. In class: Kant part 1.

4.20 Homework: read 422-425 from Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals. In class: Kant part 2.

4.22 In class: Kant part 3. Take-home Midterm 3 handed out.

4.27 In class group assignment: case studies; class discussion (What counts as treating someone as an end-in-themselves?)

Assessments

4.29 Grade updates. Group work continued (150 points). Midterm 3 due. (150 points)

4.30 Last day to withdraw.

Mill

5.04 Homework: Read pages 9-28 from On Liberty. Utilitarianism.

5.06 Homework: read pages 53-67 from On Liberty. Rule Utilitarianism. Term Paper 2 assignment given out.

5.11 Movie: Salaam Bombay!

5.13 Movie continued. Term Paper 2 due. (200 points)

Rawls

5.18 Homework: read A Theory of Justice pp. TBA. In class: Rawls part 1.

5.20 Homework: read A Theory of Justice pp. TBA. In class: Rawls part 2. Take-home final handed out.

Final Assessments

5.27 Final due no later than 1 p.m. in my office, PS-117. (150 points)