I have asked you questions and posted ideas I think important. What I want to know, after a semester of TOK, is what questions do you have? Please post your questions and answer other student's queries.
Well I guess I'm the first to reply so I can't exactly answer any questions, however, I will pose a few that will perhaps get some nice answers?
- How can we, supposedly as "IB Learners" put together all the topics we've covered in TOK this semester? I think it's important to keep in mind that everything is related, and IB just loves to stress that. How can this impact our paradigm? (Paradigm is another word that IB loves to use)
-What duty, (if any), do we owe the world, especially after talking and learning about it in TOK? Is there perhaps a planetary global citizen tax that obviously can't be payed in any form of currency but in actions? Szymborska discussed this in one of her poems, Here. She quite eloquently puts it, "Life on earth turns out quite cheap. For dreams for instance you don't pay a penny...For owning a body–only with the body."
-Has TOK made you a better person? Why do you think so?
TOK has been a multidimensional experience. For me, that's the only way to accurately describe it. Nearly one semester in the books, and I can't say I've learned a lot about what I thought the class covered. I have, however, learned a great deal about myself. My cognitive processes, ways of understanding, and biases have all come to the forefront. I now possess a deeper, more-complete understanding of these, and I anticipate I'll end up exercising them at some point in the future, both near and distant.
I only have a couple of questions, as most things I've been bottling up this semester have been exposed in 1st period's recent week-long satirical fest.
-Why are we constantly trying to redefine paradigms? I like most of mine the way they are. Maybe other people don't. I don't really know.
-Are we trying to find the meaning of life in this class? That's a gray area of sorts. Lots of people have tried, but we know how that went. We aren't any better than them.
I apologize for the slight amount of sass in my questions.
For me personally, TOK has caused me to stop and think about topics that I previously would have never considered. More than once, TOK has caused me to even challenge some of my own beliefs. I was wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences with TOK? My other question is why isnt't TOK a required class? is learning about different perspectives and belief systems less important than finding the 13th derivative of an equation?
I really only have one question to ask after this semester of TOK. How do we measure the value of a question? Some might argue there's no such thing as a stupid question, but I don't believe that. There's plenty of stupid questions that are nothing more than a waste of time, the problem is that people disagree on what qualifies as a stupid question, or a worthwhile question. I don't expect to find a standardized gauge of a question's value, but I'd like to know how others decide whether a question is worth their time.
To answer Zach's first question, i think we redefine paradigms in order to gain a new perspective on the world, and to see if we can break that model. Maybe its because we would like to know if we actually like our paradigms, or to discover the faults and fix them. Is there such a thing as fate? or does each person have control over their own lives by the will of their own choices? Does each choice and decision have a ripple effect?
I really like TOK (although I'll admit that I find it difficult to squeeze in the homework from it). I agree with Jason that it should be a required class, but for a different reason. I feel that TOK is an accumulation of all our classes, which is really nice especially due to the ideas it brings to the table. In IB especially, we all have different strengths and weaknesses in learning. It's great to be talking about a primarily english-type topic and then have somebody interject about art or math or whatever, it opens up a possibility which isn't previously offered, which is to combine classes into one. This is extremely important, as I feel one of the greatest failures of specialists today is that they often work in isolation, which is highly limiting. The things that I would like to talk about are: Current events in the world and the implications across the disciplines. I just think that would be cool to look at, especially with the "Je suis Charlie" and the inverse, "Je suis Ahmed". I would like to talk about the concept of infinity more. I would like more quote days. I think it would be really cool if we could all submit quotes and then take a couple of days to go over them as a whole class. (My submission would be from Christopher Robin: "You're smarter than you think, stronger than you feel, and braver than you believe." I would like to have more days where we decide as a class what we will talk about, but not debate style. Debate style cramps my style. I would like to have a period of time where we just talk about something that either we are passionate about or that has happened to us. The way I see it is that we just see each other as other bodies in a class, for the most part. This would put an idea behind the body. I would like to talk about the concept of the hero. I, personally, believe the hero to be dead. It would be an interesting discussion, in the least. I would like more activities. For example, we could have an "If I were somebody else..." Sort of activity where we all create a sort of persona and act based upon this persona. Not only would this be fun, but also hilarious. I would like an end of the year party. Who doesn't like a party after all? And finally, I would like an IB TOK Facebook page to be made. It's not always easy to remember to check out your school page, and with Facebook (Which I assume everyone has or could get fairly easily) we would be able to see when blogs are due and the like. I always forget to do the blogs, just because it's not at the front of my mind.
It's interesting to reflect and analyze what I have learned over the last semester because the first thought that comes to mind for me is, "l learned how to set my alarm clock to 5:30" or "I learned that I'm not the on-time person I considered myself to be." I realize I am grateful for this class in ways I didn't notice at first. I have learned to asked questions about myself and those around me at a much higher level. That being said, I don't know if I can ask any coherent questions on this blog. My brain still confuses me immensely and I'm hoping to organize the questions I ask in my mind in a translatable way over the next semester.
I would like to acknowledge Cameron's question. I don't have the answer but I think it's a very interesting thing to consider, the value of one's question. I will keeping thinking on that one.
The biggest question that I usually have in class is, is it worth trying to strive and dedicate your whole life to try to create a "perfect life" or is it better to just accept what you have and try to be content with what’s easy?
Jonathan Martinez- Going off of Jason's point, it is interesting to note that TOK has taught us to question and challenge beliefs that we may had or still have. But the thing is that we beliefs and reasons why we believe in what we believe and usually due to logical reasoning. So if what we previously believed in something and challenged it with other factors and it couldn't stand its own, their is probably a reason why. The questions we make in this world, should be answered, and if their is nobody to answer those questions, then we must find the answers to those questions. Everything in this world has an answer, whether we have the capacity to answer it or not, is a different matter.
To respond to Nate Smith's question, has ToK made me a better person I say yes and no. Yes because it has helped me to learn to be open to new perspectives and notice that there is a reason to everything, so before I go to judge I need to ask my self why is the other person that way?, instead of just assuming and judging. I also say no to this question because I haven't taken any significant form of action to become a better person. For my question I would also like to ask why ToK wouldn't be a required course? It teaches so many important life lessons/life skills and helps you to prepare for your future.
My question would be: How do we apply everything we've learned in class and especially TOK in our day to day lives? I believe this is an important question because we learn so much about ourselves and others through this class yet most of the information is presented in a way that a is very complex.
ToK has opened me up to many different perspectives to issues and questions and also to think more deeply and harder to them. It also has made me think about things I usually wouldn't think about. Also I would question why isn't this a required class, it gives a idea what issues you might have in your future ahead of you
My question would be: How do we apply everything we've learned in class and especially TOK in our day to day lives? I believe this is an important question because we learn so much about ourselves and others through this class yet most of the information is presented in a way that a is very complex.
I agree with peter in thinking that this should be a required class. This class gives perspective to many other parts of life and I believe everyone should have the opportunity to experience it. We are such intellectually advanced creatures and everyone takes it for granted. This class has enlightened me into more ways of knowledge and more ways to see how wonderfully complex everything is. This class has also helped me see new perspectives and intriguing possibilities for my future. Next semester I would love to talk more about reality, aliens, and the future.
Some of the questions that I have are mainly questions that people cannot necessarily answer. The biggest question that I have is why do people not say what they want to say when they want to say it? So many people have so much to say or so much that they want to say to people but don't, which results in relationships that are not really developed. Relationships between anyone become strained when there is lack of true communication and I find it interesting that people run into this barrier of things that they want to say but don't.
To answer Justin's question, I think that in order to apply this TOKness that we've learned this year into our daily lives, we need to be more aware of everything around us and notice what people do and why they do it in an effort to understand one another better. If we understand why people do things, we can better understand them and the world around us, which incorporates the "thinking about thinking" mindset.
I guess one of my questions stem from TOK taking a step back and looking at things from a distance. We look over all of this material and examine all the thoughts behind knowledge but really what's the point? Is there a point to anything and why is there a point to it? Why do we find it useful to analyze and even to know in general? Maybe the answer to these is so obvious that thinking about it too hard blurs the answer itself.
In response to Kinsey's question, which obviously cannot be answered lightly and fully in my reply, I believe that people don't say things because of societal and cultural formalities. This is evident when you view children, small kids tend to say anything they want even if it makes you cringe or leaves you stunned. As we grow up we tend to pick up on the things that are ok to say and the things that, no matter how bad we want to say them, are not ok to say.
I have many questions from this semester. To begin my question is how does reflecting on our knowledge help us further understand it? Another one is, how does learning about these extensive subjects in this way (ex: Love, Faith and the real world experiences associated with them) influence us when we they occur in our future? An additional question I have is how has this class changed the way you look at others and there view on the world? I know for me personally it has deepened my understanding of why others think and believe the way they do. Understanding this has allowed me to gain a larger respect for others and their differing opinions.
In response to the large discussion in this blog on requiring TOK to everyone, I believe that this class is very important because it allows you to look at the many different perspectives people have. But I believe that this class should be paired with a history class much like Modern World History. So we could gain a deeper understanding on how these different elements that we discuss in TOK affect people and the world around us. This would be great because in some cases the subjects we discuss about our future such as love and faith are difficult to truly understand because we have not experienced them yet.
I see a lot of questions are variations upon a similar theme, like how we apply this class to our lives or how this affects our knowledge in the long run. I guess I'm unoriginal in asking just, all these open ended questions, what do we do with them? Do we take them into our minds and souls to make us a better person and more aware? Because that's the only answer I can think of. We end up a lot of times with questions that can't be answered, and so we go backwards to try to derive their roots instead. I think that is great, but it's like holding an amorphous blob in your hands wondering what really to do with it. That being said, I adore this class to the depths of my soul and I think it's awesome. Plus I totally agree with everyone when they say it should be required. Because it's amazing. On the other hand if it was required would it be so amazing? If we get the people who don't really care, are just being forced to do it. If that happened, a little of the joy might go out of it.
One main idea that has come into question time and time again throughout ToK is the type of content that is discussed in class. We have had several debates in class about whether or not we should not talk about a religion because of the separation between church and state, as well as several other topics. My question is basically how do you define the parameters on which ToK is based? It seems like there is such a broad range of topics discussed in the class, but others that seem forbidden. Since this class is philosophical and we use it as an attempt to learn more about ourselves and deepen our understanding about the world in general, how can we learn the entirety of what ToK has to offer if the class itself is being constricted by specific parameters?
Uhg, okay, my computer fritzed out and deleted the whole paragraph I just tried to post, so I'm going to write this really simplistically: I'd like to looke deeper at the name of the course itself. The "Theory of Knowledge", we've gone into a lot of areas of knowledge, but nit the theory of knowledge as a whole necessarily. What makes humans think we know anything? Do we really have any knowledge for sure? Bob Dylan thinks that humans know nothing about anything, I find that theory interesting.
I'm going to hop on the band wagon and say that Tok should be a required class. We discuss so many topics that kids who don't take the class would otherwise never talk about, like 'love' for instance. Many probably think "K well it's like forreals not necessary to talk about love and thinking and like stupid theories about the brain like goshuhh" but from reflecting on my thought progression throughout taking the class I think it is. I've been able to connect many facets we've discussed in Tok to other subjects in school and I've just learned more about myself. Such as, how I think about things, knowing how I think about things has developed my problem solving skills and my ability to express my thoughts as well. I'm not sure whether that all makes sense so I'm sorry if it doesn't.. please forgive me. Anyways, I would like to ask you all if you also have been able to find a benefit from our discussions in tok in your other classes?
My question is: Why are public schools not including as basic curriculum more instruction about practical matters such as the whole general concept of Theory of Knowledge, financial literacy, economics, legal systems etc., - the things that everyone has to deal with in life regardless of the career path taken. Something that moved me from TOK was giving the students an inspiration to become independent thinkers which is hard to achieve with all the societal pressures to conform and to accept. A class like TOK could help students think critically therefore creating a meaningful life. Responding to Ellie Devos’s question “Does each choice and decision have a ripple effect?” Chaos theory posits that beyond a certain point science cannot predict. A corollary is the butterfly effect which is akin to a butterfly flapping its wings in China, causing a minute change in its environment which in turn has another effect on something else until eventually a major weather event occurs somewhere else in the world. In other words something small can cause something big to happen. So yes it does have a ripple effect but according to chaos theory the effect is not ultimately predictable.
With so much discussion on religion, rights, and innovation it is an important but blurred question of: who should decide how freely people are allowed to express themselves?
-How are we all the same? -Should we stop technological progress?
To answer Kinsey's first question some people don't say what they want to say when they want to say it because of fear. They do not want to make a fool of themselves, or although technically having free speech, there are certain things, that according to society, should go unsaid; but that line is very unclear. Some people also need time to think over just how they want to say it. especially concerning a controversial topic, it is important to carefully word how you state your opinion.
ToK is different than any other class offered in the public school system, and it has completely altered my way of thinking. Not only do I question everything now, but I also have a new desire to learn multiple perspectives on controversial topics. This semester was spent mostly questioning our society, and the effect's freedom of speech has on individuals. One question I continue to have is, how do we as human beings have any right to control our world? Why do we so desperately try to control our lives when we truly have no control over what will happen?
Theory of Knowledge has become one of my favorite courses that I have taken in high school. This is not necessarily due to my "loving" the class, but rather, I enjoy the degree to which the class frustrates me. Not in the classic "Math homework sucks ass" type way, but in the way that TOK, as a class, challenges me. Sometimes I find it easier to blow off the class all together, and opt for satire out of fear of sounding pretentious. Sometimes it feels entirely impossible to answer some of the questions we are asked in TOK, that or the questions are all answered with an unintelligent, "Well, it depends." Be that as it may, the whole basis of TOK is a pursuit of answering questions I suppose, so continue to attempt to answer arbitrary questions we shall. Here's a few now: - How in the world are we, as students, supposed to prioritize things? If I care about grades, I don't care about my social life. If I care about my social life, I don't care about my grades. If I try and care about both, I am halfheartedly invested in each. Beyond this though, how do we decide what matters most? -What can we do to be more understanding? How can we improve ourselves to be less selfish, and why do we care? -Lastly, how exactly is the TOK essay supposed to work? Just kidding.
During this semester in ToK, I struggled immensely with one of the prompts I was given. The quote I was supposed to right to was: "The whole point of knowledge is to create meaning and purpose in our personal lives." I think I struggled so much with this question because I began to question what the whole point of knowledge actually was. Why do humans continue to grasp for the unknown for no particular reason other than personal knowledge? Is the search for knowledge a human instinct, or do people compete with each other to become the most knowledgeable? A famous quote reads... "The more we know, the more we know we don't know." If this seems to be true, why do people want to learn more just to realize they know nothing?
Another big topic that raises questions in my life is decision making. Decisions are always a very big part of life, so I think it's necessary to talk about it in an educational environment. The constitution protects American citizens' right to make decisions, so why do most people’s problems result from making poor decisions? Would it be easier to have people decide things for you? Parents play a big role in decision their children's decisions. Is it, in some cases, best to have somebody wiser make a decision for you even though you want something else for yourself?
I realize that I will be one of the last people to post on this blog, so I have little hope that my questions will be answered, but I do have a few.
ToK has helped me realize how little I think about what I do compared to earlier in my life. I used to analyze everything I did and think about it in a very ToKish way. Around the time that I started high school, I started to do things without thinking about them. ToK has helped me 'think about thinking' more, but I guess my question would be why would my 'ToK mind' start to shut off around high school? Is it because I was getting more work and I didn't have time to think about it? Am I just getting really lazy? I have realized now how important it is to think critically about what you do and why you do it, so why don't we stress this more in school?
ToK has made me question just about everything I know which I try not to think about too much because I start feeling purposeless. But I do have some pressing questions. Do any of our accomplishments really have any long term meaning? When you think about fish, usually you think about how they swim in water. It's pretty obvious to us because we know what water is. But the fish doesn't. It's just swimming. So what huge concepts are we missing? And is there any way to explain to the fish that its swimming in water, or is it just not meant to know? Is there someone/thing looking down on us and saying Ha! they don't even know ____. Why do we have gallbladders? We are perfectly functional without them. We can digest food perfectly well without them.
I think this is fantastic class that has the ability to look at concepts in a completely different way than other classes, and I really value that. Another thing I thought was really helpful was the discussions about the real issues in life that will get in the way of our goal setting. Talking about aspects like this not only to improves our understanding of our scholastic endeavors but adds more knowledge to that which we will take into our real lives outside of this, determining what we want our future to look like. Though I too doubt my questions will be answered due to the fact is the last night to do such things, I guess I have a couple that this whole "TOK type of thinking" has brought about. One thing I am constantly struggling with is how we are expected to go out into the world with goals set, only to have them torn down by our innate sense of altruism and unpredictability of the world. How do we balance our own needs with the needs of those who are important to us? How do we determine whether we are responsible for others? Is selfishness always wrong?
I feel that TOK is a great class to discover why people do what they do and more importantly why we do what we do. This has caused me to question many of my own actions: First off why? why do we do what we do? Do we all have the same goal in life without knowing it? Has our path in life already been decided without us actually realizing it? I guess the general trend of all of my questions is what is our purpose in life, do we just live so we can die? I guess this s one of those big questions that are hard for anyone to answer but if we could just get a glimpse into what some of these answers could be that would be amazing. Another set of questions that rise to me is, what are we missing in terms of knowledge? will we ever know? How do we know we have learned everything that there is to know about something?
I feel that TOK is a great class to discover why people do what they do and more importantly why we do what we do. This has caused me to question many of my own actions: First off why? why do we do what we do? Do we all have the same goal in life without knowing it? Has our path in life already been decided without us actually realizing it? I guess the general trend of all of my questions is what is our purpose in life, do we just live so we can die? I guess this s one of those big questions that are hard for anyone to answer but if we could just get a glimpse into what some of these answers could be that would be amazing. Another set of questions that rise to me is, what are we missing in terms of knowledge? will we ever know? How do we know we have learned everything that there is to know about something?
Why do we talk about the things we do, and avoid research on the topics? Many of the questions that we ask in class are already-explored concepts and questions that have likely already been answered. If we were to do adequate research, and compare and contrast findings, we would be able to delve into the "true" unknown questions and concepts instead of asking base-level philosophical questions. Why do we not explore sex, drugs, rock and roll, the taboo and further unknown? We can't continue to talk about these issues in an abstract sense and expect to get anywhere. We need the class to talk about their raw, visceral thoughts, emotions, and findings if we expect to gain "true" knowledge and data. People are afraid to talk about the taboo, yet are enthralled by it. We need to abolish taboo barriers if we expect to further our knowledge and understanding of the world, and progress as a species in society. Why don't we do that now?
My questions after the first semester of TOK: Why do we do the things we do? What leads us to believe what we believe and what can lead us to changing these thought? How do we determine what's right and wrong? Does it really matter? How do you know what is the truth? How often do you lie or get lied to?
So hate to be that person and this may just be solely due to the size of our TOK class but I feel like TOK hasn't really broadened my mind or view on life or anything. All we have really done is have people argue about their own viewpoints and watch Ted Talks. This is by no means a critique on Mr. Christopher's ability to teach this concept of open minded whole new world mind blown type thing because I do know he has the abilty to do so. My questions are: Why did this not happen in our class? Where does determination come from? Why is it that people feels the need to be competative? How do ideas become?
I think TOK has been an interesting experience in terms of illuminating a lot of the metacognition that occurs subconsciously throughout the decision making process. I agree with Owen that it would be interesting to incorporate more current event issues to consider through the lenses of TOK style thinking. I would really love to examine the education system as well more in class and ways that it varies around the globe and throughout time.
First to answer a few of Ellie Brown's questions I think how we determine what is right and wrong and what the truth is, is strictly with our own perception and what we have been raised to believe in. I think the truth and the right answers are personal and different for everyone and we won't ever reach a point where we all agree on the truth or what is right and wrong because all of our perceptions are different from one another. I really like the question that was posed why aren't we as high school students required to take this class. Above all I think this class has the most applicable meaning to the real world and can help tremendously in later life. It really requires you to question things and expand what you already know. By questioning things and looking at your own beliefs and perception, I think we can all learn a lot from and about ourselves and change certain things we don't like. I still think a fascinating question that we talked about a little at the beginning of the year was what do you see when you die? And what exactly happens to your body when you die? Are there any out of body experiences?
My question is simply why. Why treat knowledge as something we don't know. Why shouldn't we assume what we know as fact and work our way from there rather than assume that what we know may be incorrect? To answer Jorunn's question, determination is a product of the knowledge that it can be done coupled with the fact that part of you or someone else believes it can't be done.
My question is how much of the 'high school' 'teenager' world around us temporary? like how much are we going to take from it? And i agree i think that TOK is an important and interesting class and should be required, or at least more strongly advertised
I feel as though my time spent in TOK throughout has left me with a lot of questions that I'm not necessarily sure I'm looking for an answer, or discussion in response. It seems as though our class discussions can often end up being repetitive, leaving me more frustrated with the initial question that i may have had. There are still things i would like to go out learning, i am just unsure of how i would like to learn them.
I've really enjoyed this class for its relatively fluid structure. Although I would agree with Jorrun's statement in that a class of this nature would ideally be of a smaller size, I feel as though I've learned quite a bit just from being present in this classroom on a daily basis. My big question right now is: Being young people about to exit high school and begin our independent lives, how should we best go about living our lives "to the fullest?" How does the meaning of this phrase differ from person to person? And due to these differences, can the above question ever truly be answered accurately in one person's advice to another?
I really enjoy TOK! However, I've found difficulty trying to connect the objective answer and the emotional answer to a knowledge issue. By objective answer, I mean the answer that is backed up by widely accepted knowledge or statistics; the intellectual-ness.... and for the emotional answer, I mean the answer reached through personal experience or individual beliefs. I've had trouble finding a balance between the two. It is either that I've had too little experience to answer the question or that the research is misguided in answering the question. I think the most successful way to answer a knowledge question is to find and present both 'ways' of answering, both objective and emotional responses.
How can we become better students and establish a greater rapport between ourselves and our teachers? I feel as though we, as a class, have done well in communicating with our teacher and in having that communication be reciprocated. But, this kind of connection can always be worked upon and improved. In many way, communication is the most critical element of education, and the one that needs the most reflection and evaluation.
Well I guess I'm the first to reply so I can't exactly answer any questions, however, I will pose a few that will perhaps get some nice answers?
ReplyDelete- How can we, supposedly as "IB Learners" put together all the topics we've covered in TOK this semester? I think it's important to keep in mind that everything is related, and IB just loves to stress that. How can this impact our paradigm? (Paradigm is another word that IB loves to use)
-What duty, (if any), do we owe the world, especially after talking and learning about it in TOK? Is there perhaps a planetary global citizen tax that obviously can't be payed in any form of currency but in actions? Szymborska discussed this in one of her poems, Here. She quite eloquently puts it, "Life on earth turns out quite cheap. For dreams for instance you don't pay a penny...For owning a body–only with the body."
-Has TOK made you a better person? Why do you think so?
TOK has been a multidimensional experience. For me, that's the only way to accurately describe it. Nearly one semester in the books, and I can't say I've learned a lot about what I thought the class covered. I have, however, learned a great deal about myself. My cognitive processes, ways of understanding, and biases have all come to the forefront. I now possess a deeper, more-complete understanding of these, and I anticipate I'll end up exercising them at some point in the future, both near and distant.
ReplyDeleteI only have a couple of questions, as most things I've been bottling up this semester have been exposed in 1st period's recent week-long satirical fest.
-Why are we constantly trying to redefine paradigms? I like most of mine the way they are. Maybe other people don't. I don't really know.
-Are we trying to find the meaning of life in this class? That's a gray area of sorts. Lots of people have tried, but we know how that went. We aren't any better than them.
I apologize for the slight amount of sass in my questions.
For me personally, TOK has caused me to stop and think about topics that I previously would have never considered. More than once, TOK has caused me to even challenge some of my own beliefs. I was wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences with TOK?
ReplyDeleteMy other question is why isnt't TOK a required class? is learning about different perspectives and belief systems less important than finding the 13th derivative of an equation?
I really only have one question to ask after this semester of TOK. How do we measure the value of a question? Some might argue there's no such thing as a stupid question, but I don't believe that. There's plenty of stupid questions that are nothing more than a waste of time, the problem is that people disagree on what qualifies as a stupid question, or a worthwhile question. I don't expect to find a standardized gauge of a question's value, but I'd like to know how others decide whether a question is worth their time.
ReplyDeleteTo answer Zach's first question, i think we redefine paradigms in order to gain a new perspective on the world, and to see if we can break that model. Maybe its because we would like to know if we actually like our paradigms, or to discover the faults and fix them.
ReplyDeleteIs there such a thing as fate? or does each person have control over their own lives by the will of their own choices?
Does each choice and decision have a ripple effect?
I really like TOK (although I'll admit that I find it difficult to squeeze in the homework from it). I agree with Jason that it should be a required class, but for a different reason. I feel that TOK is an accumulation of all our classes, which is really nice especially due to the ideas it brings to the table. In IB especially, we all have different strengths and weaknesses in learning. It's great to be talking about a primarily english-type topic and then have somebody interject about art or math or whatever, it opens up a possibility which isn't previously offered, which is to combine classes into one. This is extremely important, as I feel one of the greatest failures of specialists today is that they often work in isolation, which is highly limiting.
ReplyDeleteThe things that I would like to talk about are:
Current events in the world and the implications across the disciplines. I just think that would be cool to look at, especially with the "Je suis Charlie" and the inverse, "Je suis Ahmed".
I would like to talk about the concept of infinity more.
I would like more quote days. I think it would be really cool if we could all submit quotes and then take a couple of days to go over them as a whole class. (My submission would be from Christopher Robin: "You're smarter than you think, stronger than you feel, and braver than you believe."
I would like to have more days where we decide as a class what we will talk about, but not debate style. Debate style cramps my style.
I would like to have a period of time where we just talk about something that either we are passionate about or that has happened to us. The way I see it is that we just see each other as other bodies in a class, for the most part. This would put an idea behind the body.
I would like to talk about the concept of the hero. I, personally, believe the hero to be dead. It would be an interesting discussion, in the least.
I would like more activities. For example, we could have an "If I were somebody else..." Sort of activity where we all create a sort of persona and act based upon this persona. Not only would this be fun, but also hilarious.
I would like an end of the year party. Who doesn't like a party after all?
And finally, I would like an IB TOK Facebook page to be made. It's not always easy to remember to check out your school page, and with Facebook (Which I assume everyone has or could get fairly easily) we would be able to see when blogs are due and the like. I always forget to do the blogs, just because it's not at the front of my mind.
It's interesting to reflect and analyze what I have learned over the last semester because the first thought that comes to mind for me is, "l learned how to set my alarm clock to 5:30" or "I learned that I'm not the on-time person I considered myself to be." I realize I am grateful for this class in ways I didn't notice at first. I have learned to asked questions about myself and those around me at a much higher level. That being said, I don't know if I can ask any coherent questions on this blog. My brain still confuses me immensely and I'm hoping to organize the questions I ask in my mind in a translatable way over the next semester.
ReplyDeleteI would like to acknowledge Cameron's question. I don't have the answer but I think it's a very interesting thing to consider, the value of one's question. I will keeping thinking on that one.
Have a wonderful summer, everyone:)
The biggest question that I usually have in class is, is it worth trying to strive and dedicate your whole life to try to create a "perfect life" or is it better to just accept what you have and try to be content with what’s easy?
ReplyDeleteJonathan Martinez-
ReplyDeleteGoing off of Jason's point, it is interesting to note that TOK has taught us to question and challenge beliefs that we may had or still have. But the thing is that we beliefs and reasons why we believe in what we believe and usually due to logical reasoning. So if what we previously believed in something and challenged it with other factors and it couldn't stand its own, their is probably a reason why. The questions we make in this world, should be answered, and if their is nobody to answer those questions, then we must find the answers to those questions. Everything in this world has an answer, whether we have the capacity to answer it or not, is a different matter.
To respond to Nate Smith's question, has ToK made me a better person I say yes and no. Yes because it has helped me to learn to be open to new perspectives and notice that there is a reason to everything, so before I go to judge I need to ask my self why is the other person that way?, instead of just assuming and judging. I also say no to this question because I haven't taken any significant form of action to become a better person. For my question I would also like to ask why ToK wouldn't be a required course? It teaches so many important life lessons/life skills and helps you to prepare for your future.
ReplyDeleteMy question would be: How do we apply everything we've learned in class and especially TOK in our day to day lives? I believe this is an important question because we learn so much about ourselves and others through this class yet most of the information is presented in a way that a is very complex.
ReplyDeleteToK has opened me up to many different perspectives to issues and questions and also to think more deeply and harder to them. It also has made me think about things I usually wouldn't think about. Also I would question why isn't this a required class, it gives a idea what issues you might have in your future ahead of you
ReplyDeleteMy question would be: How do we apply everything we've learned in class and especially TOK in our day to day lives? I believe this is an important question because we learn so much about ourselves and others through this class yet most of the information is presented in a way that a is very complex.
ReplyDeleteI agree with peter in thinking that this should be a required class. This class gives perspective to many other parts of life and I believe everyone should have the opportunity to experience it. We are such intellectually advanced creatures and everyone takes it for granted. This class has enlightened me into more ways of knowledge and more ways to see how wonderfully complex everything is. This class has also helped me see new perspectives and intriguing possibilities for my future. Next semester I would love to talk more about reality, aliens, and the future.
ReplyDeleteSome of the questions that I have are mainly questions that people cannot necessarily answer. The biggest question that I have is why do people not say what they want to say when they want to say it? So many people have so much to say or so much that they want to say to people but don't, which results in relationships that are not really developed. Relationships between anyone become strained when there is lack of true communication and I find it interesting that people run into this barrier of things that they want to say but don't.
ReplyDeleteTo answer Justin's question, I think that in order to apply this TOKness that we've learned this year into our daily lives, we need to be more aware of everything around us and notice what people do and why they do it in an effort to understand one another better. If we understand why people do things, we can better understand them and the world around us, which incorporates the "thinking about thinking" mindset.
I guess one of my questions stem from TOK taking a step back and looking at things from a distance. We look over all of this material and examine all the thoughts behind knowledge but really what's the point? Is there a point to anything and why is there a point to it? Why do we find it useful to analyze and even to know in general? Maybe the answer to these is so obvious that thinking about it too hard blurs the answer itself.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Kinsey's question, which obviously cannot be answered lightly and fully in my reply, I believe that people don't say things because of societal and cultural formalities. This is evident when you view children, small kids tend to say anything they want even if it makes you cringe or leaves you stunned. As we grow up we tend to pick up on the things that are ok to say and the things that, no matter how bad we want to say them, are not ok to say.
I have many questions from this semester. To begin my question is how does reflecting on our knowledge help us further understand it? Another one is, how does learning about these extensive subjects in this way (ex: Love, Faith and the real world experiences associated with them) influence us when we they occur in our future? An additional question I have is how has this class changed the way you look at others and there view on the world? I know for me personally it has deepened my understanding of why others think and believe the way they do. Understanding this has allowed me to gain a larger respect for others and their differing opinions.
ReplyDeleteIn response to the large discussion in this blog on requiring TOK to everyone, I believe that this class is very important because it allows you to look at the many different perspectives people have. But I believe that this class should be paired with a history class much like Modern World History. So we could gain a deeper understanding on how these different elements that we discuss in TOK affect people and the world around us. This would be great because in some cases the subjects we discuss about our future such as love and faith are difficult to truly understand because we have not experienced them yet.
I see a lot of questions are variations upon a similar theme, like how we apply this class to our lives or how this affects our knowledge in the long run. I guess I'm unoriginal in asking just, all these open ended questions, what do we do with them? Do we take them into our minds and souls to make us a better person and more aware? Because that's the only answer I can think of. We end up a lot of times with questions that can't be answered, and so we go backwards to try to derive their roots instead. I think that is great, but it's like holding an amorphous blob in your hands wondering what really to do with it. That being said, I adore this class to the depths of my soul and I think it's awesome. Plus I totally agree with everyone when they say it should be required. Because it's amazing. On the other hand if it was required would it be so amazing? If we get the people who don't really care, are just being forced to do it. If that happened, a little of the joy might go out of it.
ReplyDeleteOne main idea that has come into question time and time again throughout ToK is the type of content that is discussed in class. We have had several debates in class about whether or not we should not talk about a religion because of the separation between church and state, as well as several other topics. My question is basically how do you define the parameters on which ToK is based? It seems like there is such a broad range of topics discussed in the class, but others that seem forbidden. Since this class is philosophical and we use it as an attempt to learn more about ourselves and deepen our understanding about the world in general, how can we learn the entirety of what ToK has to offer if the class itself is being constricted by specific parameters?
ReplyDeleteUhg, okay, my computer fritzed out and deleted the whole paragraph I just tried to post, so I'm going to write this really simplistically: I'd like to looke deeper at the name of the course itself. The "Theory of Knowledge", we've gone into a lot of areas of knowledge, but nit the theory of knowledge as a whole necessarily. What makes humans think we know anything? Do we really have any knowledge for sure? Bob Dylan thinks that humans know nothing about anything, I find that theory interesting.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to hop on the band wagon and say that Tok should be a required class. We discuss so many topics that kids who don't take the class would otherwise never talk about, like 'love' for instance. Many probably think "K well it's like forreals not necessary to talk about love and thinking and like stupid theories about the brain like goshuhh" but from reflecting on my thought progression throughout taking the class I think it is. I've been able to connect many facets we've discussed in Tok to other subjects in school and I've just learned more about myself. Such as, how I think about things, knowing how I think about things has developed my problem solving skills and my ability to express my thoughts as well. I'm not sure whether that all makes sense so I'm sorry if it doesn't.. please forgive me. Anyways, I would like to ask you all if you also have been able to find a benefit from our discussions in tok in your other classes?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteMy question is: Why are public schools not including as basic curriculum more instruction about practical matters such as the whole general concept of Theory of Knowledge, financial literacy, economics, legal systems etc., - the things that everyone has to deal with in life regardless of the career path taken. Something that moved me from TOK was giving the students an inspiration to become independent thinkers which is hard to achieve with all the societal pressures to conform and to accept. A class like TOK could help students think critically therefore creating a meaningful life.
Responding to Ellie Devos’s question “Does each choice and decision have a ripple effect?”
Chaos theory posits that beyond a certain point science cannot predict. A corollary is the butterfly effect which is akin to a butterfly flapping its wings in China, causing a minute change in its environment which in turn has another effect on something else until eventually a major weather event occurs somewhere else in the world. In other words something small can cause something big to happen. So yes it does have a ripple effect but according to chaos theory the effect is not ultimately predictable.
With so much discussion on religion, rights, and innovation it is an important but blurred question of: who should decide how freely people are allowed to express themselves?
ReplyDelete-How are we all the same?
-Should we stop technological progress?
To answer Kinsey's first question some people don't say what they want to say when they want to say it because of fear. They do not want to make a fool of themselves, or although technically having free speech, there are certain things, that according to society, should go unsaid; but that line is very unclear. Some people also need time to think over just how they want to say it. especially concerning a controversial topic, it is important to carefully word how you state your opinion.
ToK is different than any other class offered in the public school system, and it has completely altered my way of thinking. Not only do I question everything now, but I also have a new desire to learn multiple perspectives on controversial topics. This semester was spent mostly questioning our society, and the effect's freedom of speech has on individuals. One question I continue to have is, how do we as human beings have any right to control our world? Why do we so desperately try to control our lives when we truly have no control over what will happen?
ReplyDeleteTheory of Knowledge has become one of my favorite courses that I have taken in high school. This is not necessarily due to my "loving" the class, but rather, I enjoy the degree to which the class frustrates me. Not in the classic "Math homework sucks ass" type way, but in the way that TOK, as a class, challenges me. Sometimes I find it easier to blow off the class all together, and opt for satire out of fear of sounding pretentious. Sometimes it feels entirely impossible to answer some of the questions we are asked in TOK, that or the questions are all answered with an unintelligent, "Well, it depends." Be that as it may, the whole basis of TOK is a pursuit of answering questions I suppose, so continue to attempt to answer arbitrary questions we shall. Here's a few now:
ReplyDelete- How in the world are we, as students, supposed to prioritize things? If I care about grades, I don't care about my social life. If I care about my social life, I don't care about my grades. If I try and care about both, I am halfheartedly invested in each. Beyond this though, how do we decide what matters most?
-What can we do to be more understanding? How can we improve ourselves to be less selfish, and why do we care?
-Lastly, how exactly is the TOK essay supposed to work? Just kidding.
During this semester in ToK, I struggled immensely with one of the prompts I was given. The quote I was supposed to right to was: "The whole point of knowledge is to create meaning and purpose in our personal lives." I think I struggled so much with this question because I began to question what the whole point of knowledge actually was. Why do humans continue to grasp for the unknown for no particular reason other than personal knowledge? Is the search for knowledge a human instinct, or do people compete with each other to become the most knowledgeable? A famous quote reads... "The more we know, the more we know we don't know." If this seems to be true, why do people want to learn more just to realize they know nothing?
ReplyDeleteAnother big topic that raises questions in my life is decision making. Decisions are always a very big part of life, so I think it's necessary to talk about it in an educational environment. The constitution protects American citizens' right to make decisions, so why do most people’s problems result from making poor decisions? Would it be easier to have people decide things for you? Parents play a big role in decision their children's decisions. Is it, in some cases, best to have somebody wiser make a decision for you even though you want something else for yourself?
I realize that I will be one of the last people to post on this blog, so I have little hope that my questions will be answered, but I do have a few.
ReplyDeleteToK has helped me realize how little I think about what I do compared to earlier in my life. I used to analyze everything I did and think about it in a very ToKish way. Around the time that I started high school, I started to do things without thinking about them. ToK has helped me 'think about thinking' more, but I guess my question would be why would my 'ToK mind' start to shut off around high school? Is it because I was getting more work and I didn't have time to think about it? Am I just getting really lazy? I have realized now how important it is to think critically about what you do and why you do it, so why don't we stress this more in school?
ToK has made me question just about everything I know which I try not to think about too much because I start feeling purposeless.
ReplyDeleteBut I do have some pressing questions.
Do any of our accomplishments really have any long term meaning?
When you think about fish, usually you think about how they swim in water. It's pretty obvious to us because we know what water is. But the fish doesn't. It's just swimming. So what huge concepts are we missing? And is there any way to explain to the fish that its swimming in water, or is it just not meant to know? Is there someone/thing looking down on us and saying Ha! they don't even know ____.
Why do we have gallbladders? We are perfectly functional without them. We can digest food perfectly well without them.
I think this is fantastic class that has the ability to look at concepts in a completely different way than other classes, and I really value that.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I thought was really helpful was the discussions about the real issues in life that will get in the way of our goal setting. Talking about aspects like this not only to improves our understanding of our scholastic endeavors but adds more knowledge to that which we will take into our real lives outside of this, determining what we want our future to look like.
Though I too doubt my questions will be answered due to the fact is the last night to do such things, I guess I have a couple that this whole "TOK type of thinking" has brought about.
One thing I am constantly struggling with is how we are expected to go out into the world with goals set, only to have them torn down by our innate sense of altruism and unpredictability of the world. How do we balance our own needs with the needs of those who are important to us? How do we determine whether we are responsible for others? Is selfishness always wrong?
I feel that TOK is a great class to discover why people do what they do and more importantly why we do what we do. This has caused me to question many of my own actions:
ReplyDeleteFirst off why? why do we do what we do? Do we all have the same goal in life without knowing it? Has our path in life already been decided without us actually realizing it? I guess the general trend of all of my questions is what is our purpose in life, do we just live so we can die? I guess this s one of those big questions that are hard for anyone to answer but if we could just get a glimpse into what some of these answers could be that would be amazing.
Another set of questions that rise to me is, what are we missing in terms of knowledge? will we ever know? How do we know we have learned everything that there is to know about something?
I feel that TOK is a great class to discover why people do what they do and more importantly why we do what we do. This has caused me to question many of my own actions:
ReplyDeleteFirst off why? why do we do what we do? Do we all have the same goal in life without knowing it? Has our path in life already been decided without us actually realizing it? I guess the general trend of all of my questions is what is our purpose in life, do we just live so we can die? I guess this s one of those big questions that are hard for anyone to answer but if we could just get a glimpse into what some of these answers could be that would be amazing.
Another set of questions that rise to me is, what are we missing in terms of knowledge? will we ever know? How do we know we have learned everything that there is to know about something?
Why do we talk about the things we do, and avoid research on the topics? Many of the questions that we ask in class are already-explored concepts and questions that have likely already been answered. If we were to do adequate research, and compare and contrast findings, we would be able to delve into the "true" unknown questions and concepts instead of asking base-level philosophical questions. Why do we not explore sex, drugs, rock and roll, the taboo and further unknown? We can't continue to talk about these issues in an abstract sense and expect to get anywhere. We need the class to talk about their raw, visceral thoughts, emotions, and findings if we expect to gain "true" knowledge and data. People are afraid to talk about the taboo, yet are enthralled by it. We need to abolish taboo barriers if we expect to further our knowledge and understanding of the world, and progress as a species in society. Why don't we do that now?
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ReplyDeleteMy questions after the first semester of TOK:
ReplyDeleteWhy do we do the things we do?
What leads us to believe what we believe and what can lead us to changing these thought?
How do we determine what's right and wrong?
Does it really matter?
How do you know what is the truth?
How often do you lie or get lied to?
So hate to be that person and this may just be solely due to the size of our TOK class but I feel like TOK hasn't really broadened my mind or view on life or anything. All we have really done is have people argue about their own viewpoints and watch Ted Talks. This is by no means a critique on Mr. Christopher's ability to teach this concept of open minded whole new world mind blown type thing because I do know he has the abilty to do so. My questions are:
ReplyDeleteWhy did this not happen in our class?
Where does determination come from?
Why is it that people feels the need to be competative?
How do ideas become?
I think TOK has been an interesting experience in terms of illuminating a lot of the metacognition that occurs subconsciously throughout the decision making process. I agree with Owen that it would be interesting to incorporate more current event issues to consider through the lenses of TOK style thinking. I would really love to examine the education system as well more in class and ways that it varies around the globe and throughout time.
ReplyDeleteFirst to answer a few of Ellie Brown's questions I think how we determine what is right and wrong and what the truth is, is strictly with our own perception and what we have been raised to believe in. I think the truth and the right answers are personal and different for everyone and we won't ever reach a point where we all agree on the truth or what is right and wrong because all of our perceptions are different from one another.
ReplyDeleteI really like the question that was posed why aren't we as high school students required to take this class. Above all I think this class has the most applicable meaning to the real world and can help tremendously in later life. It really requires you to question things and expand what you already know. By questioning things and looking at your own beliefs and perception, I think we can all learn a lot from and about ourselves and change certain things we don't like. I still think a fascinating question that we talked about a little at the beginning of the year was what do you see when you die? And what exactly happens to your body when you die? Are there any out of body experiences?
My question is simply why. Why treat knowledge as something we don't know. Why shouldn't we assume what we know as fact and work our way from there rather than assume that what we know may be incorrect? To answer Jorunn's question, determination is a product of the knowledge that it can be done coupled with the fact that part of you or someone else believes it can't be done.
ReplyDeleteMy question is how much of the 'high school' 'teenager' world around us temporary? like how much are we going to take from it?
ReplyDeleteAnd i agree i think that TOK is an important and interesting class and should be required, or at least more strongly advertised
I feel as though my time spent in TOK throughout has left me with a lot of questions that I'm not necessarily sure I'm looking for an answer, or discussion in response. It seems as though our class discussions can often end up being repetitive, leaving me more frustrated with the initial question that i may have had. There are still things i would like to go out learning, i am just unsure of how i would like to learn them.
ReplyDeleteI've really enjoyed this class for its relatively fluid structure. Although I would agree with Jorrun's statement in that a class of this nature would ideally be of a smaller size, I feel as though I've learned quite a bit just from being present in this classroom on a daily basis. My big question right now is: Being young people about to exit high school and begin our independent lives, how should we best go about living our lives "to the fullest?" How does the meaning of this phrase differ from person to person? And due to these differences, can the above question ever truly be answered accurately in one person's advice to another?
ReplyDeletemadeleine tucker my answer is do what makes you happy no matter what every body else thinks
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy TOK! However, I've found difficulty trying to connect the objective answer and the emotional answer to a knowledge issue. By objective answer, I mean the answer that is backed up by widely accepted knowledge or statistics; the intellectual-ness.... and for the emotional answer, I mean the answer reached through personal experience or individual beliefs. I've had trouble finding a balance between the two. It is either that I've had too little experience to answer the question or that the research is misguided in answering the question. I think the most successful way to answer a knowledge question is to find and present both 'ways' of answering, both objective and emotional responses.
ReplyDeleteHow can we become better students and establish a greater rapport between ourselves and our teachers? I feel as though we, as a class, have done well in communicating with our teacher and in having that communication be reciprocated. But, this kind of connection can always be worked upon and improved. In many way, communication is the most critical element of education, and the one that needs the most reflection and evaluation.
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