THEORIES OF REALITY
PHL 203 - Winter 2021
Virtual (CRN 34567), Online (CRN 34568)
Prof. Borrowdale

ZOOM LECTURE/DISCUSSION
MON 2-3:50pm

 ZOOM OFFICE HOURS
MON 4-5pm, WED 1-2pm and by appointment
 
CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE PHILOSOPHY TUTORING
Philosophy Tutor: Sue Long
Hours TBA

For help with Moodle, Zoom or any other technology issue, please visit the Student Help Desk (SHeD)

TEXT: This course uses Open Educational Resources (OERs) embedded in Moodle; there is no text to purchase. The text, Theories of Reality: An Introduction to Metaphysics by the instructor, is embedded in the online Moodle class.
 
IMPORTANT: There is a quiz on the syllabus DUE THURSDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK by 11:59pm. If you don't take the Syllabus Quiz by the deadline, you may be DROPPED from the course for non-participation. Try to take this quiz early so you don't miss the deadline. If you decide this class is not for you, please drop right away on MyLane as there is no guarantee you will be dropped by the instructor. This will also help out students on the wait list who would like to add and get started with the class. If you don't drop by SUNDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK, you will be charged for the class. If you drop the class after the 4th week, the class will be recorded on your transcript with a "W" (withdrawn) next to it. The absolute last day to drop or change your grading option to pass/no pass is Friday of the 8th week at 11:59pm.

CONTACTING THE INSTRUCTOR: Please use Moodle messages to contact me. I will do my best to reply within 24 hours. You may receive a notification and copy of Moodle messages in your email. Please don't reply to those directly; log into Moodle and reply there. Using Moodle messages consistently also allows us to track any ongoing issues by scrolling up in the message history. Replying to email notifications or using email to contact me will result in a delayed response and the 24 hour rule will not apply. My students come first; using Moodle for communication will ensure your message gets the priority treatment it deserves. Before contacting me, please review this syllabus and and the Announcements Forum to see if your question is already answered there.

 THIS IS AN ADULT LEARNING SPACE: Expect to come into contact with ideas with which you disagree and to have your beliefs challenged. Students will be treated as mature, responsible adults, capable of engaging in adult conversations which may touch on topics such as race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, sexual relations, cultural differences, morality, politics and religion. It is a prerequisite of this course that you possess, or be willing to develop, the ability to discuss controversial issues in a calm, rational and respectful manner.

TRIGGER WARNING: This class includes frank discussions about death and several seconds of surgical footage in a documentary film. For help with post-traumatic stress or emotional fragility, please visit the Counseling & Career Center.  If you would like to improve your tolerance for subject matter and ideas you may currently find distressing or offensive, I encourage you to remain in the class but with the understanding that thinking about, discussing and critically evaluating this material in a mature and responsible manner is a course requirement.

ACADEMIC FREEDOM OF THE INSTRUCTOR: "The professional freedom of faculty includes the right to explore and discuss controversial issues and divergent points of view, including evaluating, criticizing, and advocating their point of view concerning the policies and programs of the college..."-- Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Lane Community College Educational Association and Board of Education, Section 15.3. According to this section of the faculty contract, the instructor is free not only to discuss contentious, hot-button issues which have the potential to offend you, but to approach them from viewpoints which diverge from the mainstream and deviate from what you might consider "acceptable" opinion. Academic freedom is essential to fostering robust discussion of intellectual issues and the social progress that results from such discussions. Before reacting in knee-jerk fashion to an idea, please try to remember that what offends our sensibilities is often a product of our culture, mass media, upbringing, peer group and personal history rather than any quality intrinsic to the idea itself. Also keep in mind that these things change over time. Many ideas that were considered dangerous, controversial or offensive in the past are now part of the unquestioned status quo. Your job as a thinking person is to sort feeling from fact and to separate rationality and morality from cultural prejudice and personal bias. This type of self-examination is a big part of what it means to be a philosopher.

 Faculty have wide discretion in how they treat academic subjects in the classroom. Although this class will explore a diversity of opinions, some ideas will be emphasized over others. Beliefs which enjoy institutional support from the college may be singled out for scrutiny, as explicitly allowed in Section 15.3 above. Ideas which predominate in academic culture and the social sciences or among college students may face special criticism, while minority or neglected viewpoints may be given special consideration. This is because thinking critically is most important when it comes to beliefs you are likely to have uncritically adopted (or dismissed) due to various dominant social influences. Considerations of "balance" in this course are approached from the institutional level. So, for example, if the college as an institution and the majority of courses favor or promote one view on a controversial issue, this class may balance that out by emphasizing an opposing view.

The instructor attempts to give the best argument for many different views. Just because an argument in favor of a particular view is given in class, Zoom sessions, the text or other external resources does not necessarily mean that it is the instructor's view on the subject. In fact, you may notice that the instructor will make arguments for views which are logically incompatible with one another. Therefore, it makes no sense to assume that every time a view is being presented, the instructor believes it and is attempting to persuade you to accept it. It is up to you to sort through the competing claims and arguments presented in this class and decide for yourself which views to accept.
 
If you disagree with or take offense at any of the views expressed in this class by the instructor or in course materials (1) try to keep an open mind (2) reflect on why you find certain beliefs or opinions vexing or upsetting and use this as an opportunity for self-exploration, to practice self-management skills and to develop your capacity for tolerance of ideas which differ from your own (3) remind yourself that emotions are an unreliable guide to objective reality and that the feelings we associate with certain ideas are often accidents of birth, culture and personal experience (4) keep in mind that exploring or understanding an idea isn't the same as approving of or accepting it and (5) engage the instructor in civil discussion or debate in class sessions (in the case of face-to-face classes) or privately in office hours.

Another relevant section of the faculty contract is Section 16.3, Civic Life, which states, "Each faculty member is also a citizen of his or her nation, state and community; and when he or she speaks, writes or acts as such shall be free from institutional censorship." This means that faculty have an absolute right to express themselves outside the classroom without fear of retribution from the Administration. Therefore, if you encounter the instructor outside the classroom, acting in his capacity as a private citizen, you should recognize that his views do not necessarily represent those of the college and that the college recognizes his right to speak, write and act according to the truth as he sees it and the dictates of his own conscience.

ACADEMIC FREEDOM OF STUDENTS: "Each faculty member is entitled to and responsible for protecting freedom in the classroom in discussion and presentation of subject matter." -- Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Lane Community College Educational Association and Board of Education, Section 15.2. Voicing an opinion that differs from that expressed by the instructor in face-to-face sessions, zoom discussions, online forums will never be penalized, though there may be occasions when debate must be curtailed in the interest of adequately covering course material. Please feel free to continue these discussions in the instructor's office hours. The instructor encourages the voicing of dissenting opinions, especially on controversial issues and when backed by convincing reasons and supporting evidence. This enlivens class, provides an alternative viewpoint, fosters critical thinking and may end up enlightening the instructor, who occasionally realizes he has been wrong. Please couch dissenting opinions in a constructive and respectful manner in order to keep the exchange of ideas civil.

USE OF HUMOR: The instructor frequently employs humor to lighten the mood as well as to illustrate points, add color and make learning fun. This should in no way be interpreted as disparaging any individual or group. Students will always be treated with the utmost respect and will never be mocked or ridiculed.

CONCERNS: I want this class to be a positive learning experience for you. If, at any time, you have a concern, grievance or complaint about the course, please speak with me about it directly in office hours or via Moodle message. You have my personal guarantee that I will hear you out, reflect carefully on what you have to say and that it will have no bearing on your grade. Because the class uses objective testing (with a record of scores on the server), you have additional protection. My only request is that, if I have some feedback for you, you consider it in the same spirit. I'd rather correct any problems than have you be disgruntled for the rest of the term (which is likely to negatively affect your performance in the class) only to complain about it in student evaluations. Why not alert me to a problem when I can actually do something about it? In the unlikely event that you remain dissatisfied, you can still take your concerns to the Dean of the Social Science Division. I am a reasonable, fair and kind human being and care about my students, so I'm sure we will be able to work something out. The Dean's first suggestion will probably be that the three of us meeting to discuss the issue. He is a busy man doing important work for the college. Why not see if we can work things out between us first? Addressing any concerns early, honestly and directly will result in a better outcome for both of us.

WHAT PHILOSOPHY IS: Philosophy is the attempt to come to a systematic understanding of the objective world through the use of reason. The philosophical approach assumes a commitment to follow the truth wherever it leads, however uncomfortable it may make us and in spite of what we may wish to be true. It strives for logical consistency and agreement with the empirical evidence. Philosophy is about asking questions, especially questions no one else wants to ask. Philosophy even questions the unquestionable, including things considered to be "common sense," such as the existence of an external world of matter, free will, God, the soul, an afterlife or the existence of universal, objective moral values (or perhaps the unquestionable certainty of our age is the dogma that morality is culturally relative or completely subjective). Philosophy uses conceptual analysis as its primary tool. Properly analyzing concepts requires the rigorous definition of terms, so the precise use of language is very important to philosophers, or at least to the good ones. This goes all the way back to Socrates. Fuzzy language evinces fuzzy thinking.

WHAT PHILOSOPHY IS NOT: Philosophy is not about exploring your "personal beliefs." Nor is it about your feelings (please avoid the phrase "I feel" when expressing your point of view in class, as hopefully what you have to say is based on more than your subjective emotional state). Philosophy is not about your identity, your sex, your gender, your sexual orientation, your culture or your "race." It's not about your faith or "how you were raised." Please avoid referring to these things in class unless they have some direct bearing on the issue at hand. Although there is an historical tradition associated with philosophy, it is not primarily about history, and even though understanding their historical or cultural context may help us understand the ideas of particular philosophers, it is the ideas themselves with which philosophy is concerned.

REQUIREMENTS
FORUM POSTS
 Weeks 1-10: Due before Sunday 11:59pm 20% of grade
FIRST MIDTERM EXAM Opens: Monday, January 25 at 9am
Closes: Monday, February 1 at 11:59pm 		20% of grade
SECOND MIDTERM EXAM
 Opens: Monday, February 22 at 9am
Closes: Monday, March 1 at 11:59pm		 20% of grade
COMPREHENSIVE MIDTERM EXAM
 Opens: Wednesday, February 24 at 9am
Closes: Wednesday, March 10 at 11:59pm 		20% of grade
FINAL EXAM Opens: Thursday, March 11 at 9am
Closes: Thursday, March 18 at 11:59pm 		20% of grade

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Theories of Reality (metaphysics) attempt to discover and describe the underlying nature of existence. Possible topics include the nature of the self, the relationship between matter and consciousness, free will, the existence of God, death, and the meaning of life. These topics may be approached from the perspective of both Eastern and Western philosophy.

COURSE OBJECTIVES: The objectives for this course are for students to (1) come to a clearer understanding of metaphysical issues through the study of classical and contemporary theories, (2) acquire some factual knowledge about the history of philosophy and important philosophical thinkers, (3) come to their own conclusions about which theories are best or most likely to be true, even if those conclusions are of a tentative nature, (4) acquire critical and analytical reasoning skills along the way, and (5) bring their conclusions about ultimate reality to bear on their other beliefs, values, goals and way of life.

ZOOM LECTURE/DISCUSSION: In addition to written text in Moodle, there will be a Zoom lecture and discussion each week Mondays 2-3:50. Make sure to listen to these each week, as they will explain the readings in Moodle. There may be material on the exams which is contained in these sessions but not explicitly stated in the text. You can watch live or watch the recording posted later in the day. The first hour will be lecture and may be prerecorded. The second hour will be live discussion with student participation.

FORUM POSTS: The purpose of the forum assignment is to allow you the opportunity to interpret, evaluate and apply what you have learned, and to discuss the merits and implications of class concepts and theories with your classmates. It emphasizes peer-to-peer learning in which you learn from your fellow students. Every Monday a new forum prompt will be posted. To receive full credit for the forum, you must make at least one post of 100 to 300 words. Most weeks there will be multiple topics from which to choose. Your post can be made to any topic. You do not have to post to every topic. You just need one post to the forum for the week before the deadline.

To make an original post, click the "reply" link in the prompt. To reply to another student, click the reply link in that student's post. Your post must substantially and directly address the prompt and displays a familiarity with the reading, i.e. your post must be distinguishable from someone who hasn't done any of the reading, looks at the prompt and "gives their opinion." Avoid all titles, headers, greetings and signatures. Moodle displays your name, the date, the topic and the forum week; duplicating this information clutters up the forum. When replying to another student, you can include that student's first name in your reply. Write in block format with no indenting, single-spaced with spacing between paragraphs, and using the default font. It is recommended that you compose your post in Google Docs or Word (or similar word-processor) and check the word count by choosing Tools --> Word Count. This will also prevent your post being lost in case of a connection error in Moodle. If you're pasting from Google docs, Microsoft Word or similar programs, you may need to save as plain text first. After you've posted, make sure that your post's formatting looks OK, that the font size and type matches everyone else's and that there are no extra spaces above or below the text (a common problem with copying and pasting). Your post formatting must look exactly like the prompt. Formatting errors will be penalized. See the Student Help Desk for help using Moodle forums.

Read the prompt carefully before answering. Be careful about misinterpreting or misunderstanding the question or wandering into irrelevant biographical information or personal anecdotes unless you're absolutely sure they apply to the subject. The inclusion of irrelevant material a.k.a. "going off on tangents" may result in no credit. Posts which do not directly address the prompt will not receive credit. When replying to another student, make sure that student's post is not off-topic or you may not receive credit for your reply. Support your answer with examples that demonstrate your understanding of the concepts being discussed, and present arguments to support your claims. If you have trouble coming up with 100 words, you probably need to include an examples to clarify your claim or an arguments in support of it. It is up to you to convince me that you understand the material, not up to me to try to wring some modicum of comprehension out of vaguely worded assertions without examples or illustrations or to try to figure out whether what you say could be reasonably construed as an "argument." If you receive no credit and tell me what you meant by your post was such and such, I will tell you that then you should have written that.

You will have 30 minutes to edit your post. Moodle will display your word count; make sure it is over 100 but under 300 words. Carefully revise and proofread your post for typos, awkward language, conceptual vagueness and inconsistency. Posts making unsupported or contradictory claims will be penalized. Your post should not read like a stream of consciousness of you trying to figure things out "on the fly." It should not be a series of disjointed observations. If it helps you to write something like that first, go ahead, but then revise it into a clear, methodical and coherent argument. Avoid meaningless, introductory throw-away comments or restating the question; get straight to the point. If you pad your post with meaningless fluff at the beginning, you may no receive credit for insufficient word count. Be concise.

Plagiarism, which includes but is not limited to copying and pasting from websites, will result in a penalty of one letter grade on the first offense (10% of your course grade) and an F in the course on the second offense. If you do the readings, you should have no trouble responding to the prompt in a way that is sufficient for credit without looking at any other sources.

Postings will be awarded a grade of "2" (full credit), "1"(partial credit) or "0" (no credit) and are due before Sunday 11:59 pm at the end of each week. You can post as many times as you like. Please note that I have the gradebook set to ignore empty grades. Therefore, if you miss the deadline for a forum post, it won't show up in your grade until the end of the term when I will turn that setting off. I have that setting on to give you an accurate assessment of your grade throughout the term, assuming you complete the assignments.

Late posts will not receive credit. Set a weekly reminder in your phone or online calendar so you don't forget to post (while you're at it, you might want to put in the exam dates and grade option/drop deadline, too). Posts of fewer than 100 words will receive no credit. If your post is over 300 words, edit it down. Posts of over 300 words will be penalized. There will be an Extra Credit Forum in Week Ten to make up for two missed or no-credit posts.

EXAMS: The exam format will be multiple choice and true/false questions. The final will not be comprehensive. Read the study questions at the end of each section of the text and make sure you can answer each of them. You may even want to write out the answers, which you can consult while taking the exam. If you don't know the answer to a particular question, search the relevant section of the online textbook, the Powerpoints and your notes from the zoom sessions. If you are still unsure or have questions about the reading, handouts or Zoom sessions, attend the Zoom tutoring hours listed above. Even if you don't have any particular questions, you are encouraged to attend Zoom tutoring hours for help in doing your very best on the exams. Also, make sure to take the short practice quizzes each week.

Once you take the exam, you will immediately receive your score. If you would like to review the questions you got wrong, visit the Philosophy Tutor's Zoom Office Hours. Reviewing which questions you got wrong on the first two midterm exams will be helpful to you when you take the Comprehensive Midterm Exam, which will cover the same material.

The lowest of your three midterm exam scores is automatically dropped (note that this does not include the Final Exam). This means that even if you get an F on the First Midterm Exam, you can get some help with the class, figure out where you went wrong, apply yourself, and possibly end up with an A in the class.

 You will have a week to take the First and Second Midterm, a few more days for Comprehensive Midterm and five days for Final Exam. Exams are taken via Moodle with a time limit of one hour. The opening and closing times of exams are listed in the table above and in the course outline at the end of the syllabus. Clicking on any exam in the main course view in Moodle will also show you the opening and closing dates as well as the chapters and weeks it covers.

EXAM DEADLINE POLICY: Since you will have at least a week to take each midterm, you will be expected to meet the deadline, however, you may contact the Philosophy Tutor, listed at the top of this syllabus, by Moodle message (not email)  to request an extension without penalty. Please include the class, the exam and the date you would like it extended to in your message. If you miss the deadline for the Final due to some unforeseen circumstance or emergency situation, contact the instructor via Moodle message for options ASAP.

Since I have the gradebook set to ignore empty grades, if you miss an exam, just like a missed forum post, you won't see the effect on your grade until the end of the term when I turn that setting off. If you got an 80% on the First Midterm but that's the only exam you take, the gradebook might tell you that you have a 80 in the course, or even an 84% if you didn't do any forum posts either, but your grade would be 16%, an F. Again, Moodle will tell you your grade based on the assignments completed so far. Anything you don't complete will be converted to a zero at the end of the term. Make sure to complete all of the exams by the deadlines!

GRADING: There is no curve. At the end of the term, the class will be graded on the following absolute scale, with course totals rounded up to the nearest whole number:

A+ 97% -100% A  93% - 96% 
A-  90% - 92%
B+  87% - 89% B  83% - 86% B-  80% - 82%
C+  77% - 79% C  73% - 76% C-  70% - 72%
D+  67% - 69% D  63% - 66% D-  60% - 62%
  F 0% - 59%  

GETTING HELP WITH THE CLASS: If you are having difficulties with the class, please see the Philosophy Tutor as soon as possible. The tutor's Zoom office hours are at the top of this syllabus and linked near the top of the main course page in Moodle. The tutor can go over your exam with you and help you to improve your grade on the next one as well as on the Comprehensive Midterm Exam. If you have questions about basic concepts or the study questions, please see the tutor before seeing the instructor. You can earn extra credit for each tutor visit of at least half an hour, up to a total of three. Do no t try to ge t a handle on class topics by reading Wikipedia or the Encyclopedia of Philosophy or looking for videos on YouTube. If you are confused, more information is probably not going to help you. You need to focus in on the information provided in the course and master it. If you have trouble, make sure to watch the Zoom sessions and get help from the tutor and instructor.

EARLY OUTREACH AND REFERRAL (EOR) PROGRAM: At Lane Community College, we want every student to be successful. The Early Outreach and Referral (EOR) Program is a campus-wide effort to support students early in the term when they first begin experiencing difficulty in a class. If I see you are having difficulty in this class (ex. missing classes, missing assignments, and/or receiving low test or assignment scores) I may refer you to our Early Outreach Specialist. Once referred, the Early Outreach Specialist will follow up with you by phone or email to find out how to best support you by connecting you with necessary resources and helping you develop and implement a success plan, which may include individual tutoring or other services. Please respond to these messages. Our current specialist, Mike Walker is really nice, a good listener and has helped many struggling students to succeed. If he contacts you, let him help.

ADVANCED QUESTIONS: If you have a particular issue from the readings or Zoom sessions which you would like to explore, discuss or perhaps debate in more depth than is practical in Moodle messages, please visit me during my zoom office hours. I am also happy to help clear up any questions you may still have after seeing the tutor first.

TECHNOLOGY USE AND HELP: This is an online course. It requires you to use (but not necessarily own) a computer, laptop, netbook or tablet or smart phone with access to the internet. Laptop and Chromebook loans are available through the Student Help Desk (SHeD). The syllabus, schedule, announcements, supplementary material and resources, quizzes, exams and grades are all distributed via Moodle. Contact the Student Help Desk (SHeD) or call them at 463-3333 for assistance with all of your technology-related questions.

COURSE SCHEDULE AND OUTLINE

Readings will be available in Moodle and should be completed before the beginning of the class week in which they occur in order to participate intelligently in the discussion or to follow the discussion in Zoom.

WEEK 1: What is Reality? What is Truth? What is Philosophy? (Ch. 1)

WEEK 2: Ontology and the Mind-Body Problem: Idealism, Dualism vs. Materialism, Functionalism, Artificial Intelligence (Ch. 2)

WEEK 3: Personal Identity (Ch. 3)
College closed Monday for Martin Luther King Day

WEEK 4: Life After Death: Cryonics and Near Death Experiences (Ch. 4)
First Midterm Exam on Weeks 1-3, Ch. 1-3, opens Monday 9am

WEEK 5: Life After Death: Reincarnation, Ghosts, Religious Arguments (Ch. 4)
First Midterm Exam closes Monday 11:59pm
 
WEEK 6: Free Will: Determinism vs. Libertarianism (Ch. 5)

WEEK 7: Free Will: Compatibilism (Ch. 5)
College closed Monday for Presidents Day

WEEK 8: Does God Exist?: The Ontological Argument, The Cosmological Argument (Ch. 6)
Second Midterm Exam on Weeks 4-7, Ch. 4-5, opens Monday 9am
Comprehensive Midterm Exam opens Wednesday 9am
Grade Option/Drop Deadline Friday 11:59pm (change at http://mylane.lanecc.edu)

WEEK 9: Does God Exist?: The Teleological Argument, The Problem of Evil (Ch. 6)
Second Midterm closes Monday 11:59pm
 
WEEK 10: Does God Exist?: The Moral Argument, Religious Experience, Revelation (Ch. 6, supplements), The Meaning of Life  (Ch. 7)
Comprehensive Midterm Exam closes Wednesday 11:59pm
Final Exam opens Thursday 9am

FINAL EXAM WEEK
Final Exam closes THURSDAY 11:59pm

Lane Community College (LCC) is dedicated to providing inclusive learning environments. The Center for Accessible Resources (CAR) coordinates all academic accommodations for students at LCC. If you anticipate or experience academic barriers due to a disability, to request assistance or accommodations, contact the Center for Accessible Resources (541) 463-5150 or accessibleresources@lanecc.edu.