Lessons From Around The World

DIPLOMA
PROGRAMME
Teacher Support Material
Theory of
Knowledge
Lessons from Around

the World
INTERNATIONAL
BACCALAUREATE
ORGANIZATION
Teacher Support MaterialTheory of Knowledge
Lessons from Around the World
Lessons 110, August 2000
Lessons 1120, November 2000
The International Baccalaureate Organization wishes to acknowledge the help of the following teachers
and assessors in the production of this document:
Sue Bastian, former chief assessor, New York

Eileen Dombrowski, deputy chief assessor, UWC Pacific/ Lester Pearson
Bill Frere, teacher, Trinity College Preparatory HS, Illinois
Lucia Harvilchuck, assistant assessor/ teacher, Pensacola HS, Florida
Julian Kitching, assistant assessor/ teacher, SOS-Hermann Gmeiner IC, Ghana
John Mackenzie, former chief assessor/ teacher, The Grange School, Chile
Dennis Oberg, assistant assessor/ teacher, Antwerp IS, Belgium
Ulf Persson, teacher, Hvitfeldska Gymnasiet, Sweden
Pat Prather, assistant assessor/ teacher, Rancho Buena Vista HS, California
Lena Rotenberg, deputy chief assessor, Washington DC
Manjula Salomon, assistant assessor/ teacher, Jakarta IS, Indonesia
Matthew Thompson, teacher, UWC Atlantic College, Wales
David Wilkinson, teacher, UWC India/ Mahindra, India
Ayman Zanoun, assistant assessor/ teacher, Amman Baccalaureate School, Jordan.
International Baccalaureate Organization 2000
International Baccalaureate Organization

Route des Morillons 15
1218 Grand-Saconnex
Geneva
SWITZERLAND
Preface
Conceived at a TOK meeting at Arden House in New York State in 1993, the project to provide
examples of TOK lessons to practising teachers is now coming to fruition. The first ten lessons were
published in August 2000 as the first instalment of Lessons from A round the World. Lessons 1120 are a
further instalment.
Teachers are encouraged to treat these lessons as working documents. Put aside those which you may
consider inappropriate for this years class, amend and improve on those which you think have potential,
and use some just as they are. Dovetail them with your own schemes of work and supplement them with
material which you may have accumulated yourself, or obtained from students or from workshops.
If you think it useful, arrange the lessons according to the ways of knowing and areas of knowledge in the
TOK guide, or arrange them chronologically according to the sequence in which you engage your
students in the course. Each lesson contains a section linking it to other areas of TOK.
We are deeply indebted to the teachers and assessors, listed on the inside front cover, who have worked
so hard to make this project a reality. Further lessons are in final draft form.
Contents
LESSON TITLE AUTHOR
Lesson 1 What Good are Schools? Matthew Thompson
Lesson 2 Does it Matter if what we Believe Eileen Dombrowski

is True?
Lesson 3 Letters from an Indian Judge to an Sue Bastian
English Gentlewoman
Lesson 4 Exercises on Meaning John Mackenzie
Lesson 5 The Power of Names Julian Kitching
Lesson 6 Language and Symbolism Eileen Dombrowski
Lesson 7 Words and not Words: an Ulf Persson
Lesson 8 Nothingness Sue Bastian
Lesson 9 The Map is not the Territory Eileen Dombrowski
Lesson 10 Thinking Logically Julian Kitching
Lesson 11 Routes of Mathematical Manjula Salomon

Knowledge
Lesson 12 Is Math for Real? (a TOK Quiz Dennis Oberg
for Mathematical Knowledge)
Lesson 13 Numbers and Numerals Julian Kitching
LESSON TITLE AUTHOR
Lesson 14 A Show of Hands Bill Frere
Lesson 15 Myths and Fairy Tales Matthew Thompson
Lesson 16 Why was Thales Wrong? David Wilkinson
Lesson 17 One Persons Hypothesis is John Mackenzie

Another Persons Dogma
Lesson 18 Scientific Claims: an African Julian Kitching
Perspective
Lesson 19 The Growth of Scientific Dennis Oberg
Knowledge
Lesson 20 Webs of Explanation Julian Kitching
Lesson 1: What Good are Schools?
Co n t e x t
The curriculum in every system of education reflects our different ideals of the human person, of
our communities and of our understanding of knowledge.
This lesson could form a useful introduction to TOK by offering a wider context of reflection
on the total curriculum. It could also provide a conclusion to the course, giving the students an
opportunity to revise and synthesize their learning. Altogether, it offers students ownership of the
TOK course.
Aim s
To identify the ideals or criteria of excellence in individuals and society.
To consider the nature of sound evidence.
To analyse critically the components of educational systems.
To link the power and process of education to the above-mentioned criteria, and to
consider the kinds of knowledge that are valued.
Cl a s s M a n a g e m e n t
The student handout (from Benjamin Franklin) should be copied and distributed to the class
ahead of time. This is useful as a stimulus.
Probably, two 45 minute lessons are required. One lesson will give students time to discuss
and record their findings. In the second lesson they will report on and analyse their task.
The level of education being considered may or may not be restricted to the Diploma
Programme.
Fo c u s A c t i v i t y
Divide the class into two or three groups. Tell them that they have been elected to the position
of Minister of Education in their country and that they have been given the task of devising the
best possible educational curriculum for the nation. They should be given only two
preconditions.
1 Their aim must be to produce the best individuals and the best society possible.
2 They must impart only knowledge and beliefs which are based on sound evidence.
Teacher Support MaterialTheory of Knowledge Lessons from Around the World IBO, August 2000 Lesson 1page 1
St udent Handout
A useful passage is the following from Benjamin Franklins Remarks concerning the Savages of N orth A merica.
It is an appealing story, in which many relevant issues are raised to stir students to thought: issues of value
judgments, cultural context, definitions of knowledge, applicability of knowledge.
At the treaty of Lancaster in Pennsylvania, anno 1744, between the government of Virginia and the Six
Nations, the commissioners from Virginia acquainted the Indians [Native Americans] by a speech, that
there was at Williamsburg a College with a fund for educating Indian youth; and if the Chiefs of the Six
Nations would send down half a dozen of their sons to that college, the government would take care that
they be well provided for, and instructed in all the learning of the White People.
The Indians spokesman replied:
We know that you highly esteem the kind of learning taught in those colleges, and that the maintenance
of our young men, while with you, would be very expensive to you. We are convinced, therefore, that you
mean to do us good by your proposal and we thank you heartily.
But you, who are wise, must know that different nations have different conceptions of things; and you will
not therefore take it amiss, if our ideas of this kind of education happen not to be the same with yours. We
have had some experience of it; several of our young people were formerly brought up at the colleges of
the Northern Provinces; they were instructed in all your sciences; but, when they came back to us, they
were bad runners, ignorant of every means of living in the woods, unable to bear either cold or hunger,
knew neither how to build a cabin, take a deer, nor kill an enemy, spoke our language imperfectly, were
therefore neither fit for hunters, warriors nor counsellors; they were totally good for nothing.
We are however not the less obligated by your kind offer, though we decline accepting it, and to show
our grateful sense of it, if the gentlemen of Virginia will send us a dozen of their sons, we will take care of
their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them.
Di s c u s s i o n Qu e s t i o n s
Any of the following discussion questions could be extended into a written assignment.
What are the aims of the education system and the institution of which you are a part? What,
through the aims, are you expected to know?
What are the ideals of the society that have determined those aims?
Where did those ideals come from? On what grounds are they justified?
What conflicts can arise from those ideals?
Teac her Not es

Discussion can be extended to wider contexts by offering the students categories of choice.
What choices are faced when these ideals (and the conflicts that arise between them) in
practice influence the nature of the curriculum? Some considerations may be:
Theoretical versus practical
Sciences versus arts/ humanities
What status should be given to
moral/ ethical education
community service
political education
physical education and sports
arts education and sports?
How is it decided which of the so-called great works of science, art, literature and morality
are worthy to be passed on in your school or college?
Discussion can be stimulated and extended by introducing regional, religious, cultural and other
considerations.
The IBO ideals and the Diploma Programme curriculum can be critically analysed as a
de-briefing exercise.
L i n k s t o Ot h e r A r e a s o f T OK
Using the IBO ideals and curriculum as the basic material for this lesson gives it a lasting and
holistic frame of reference for the student.
Fr o m Ot h e r T i m e s a n d Pl a c e s
The handout may easily be replaced by other suitable pieces such as ones by Confucius or Hsun
Tzu, or by Koranic principles or by Australian Aborigine ideals.
Qu o t a t i o n
Do not judge a man until you have walked ten leagues in his moccasins. Proverb
Re f e r e n c e s
Franklin, B, Remarks concerning the Savages of N orth A merica
Bruner, J, The Culture of Education, (1997) Harvard University Press, ISBN 0674179536
Freedman, JO, Idealism and Liberal Education, (1996) University of Michigan Press, ISBN
0472106929
Toffler, A, The Third Wave, (1991) Bantam Books, ISBN 0553246984
The TOK Guide (1999) IBO DR17
Lesson 2: Does it Matter if what we
Believe is True?
Co n t e x t
This lesson works well as one of the opening classes for the TOK course.
Aim s
To give an initial thrust of purpose to TOK by considering the consequences of belief.
To introduce an approach to reading critically.
To introduce truth tests as applicable to everyday thinking.
Keep articles short and read them together in class. The Harem Hell article included as a student
handout could be used. The lesson requires one hour of discussion time, not necessarily
distributed evenly across articles. The follow-up discussion needs roughly half an hour.
Give each student photocopies of three short articles, chosen with a range of credibility.
An absurd newspaper article, to provoke disbelief, eg tabloid articles such as Elvis on Moon or
Sunbather Bursts into Flames on Beach.
A newspaper article which mixes facts and values, especially in treating negatively a cultural
or national group, such as a US treatment of Arab terrorism, or an Islamic treatment of US
decadence.
An article which is more dependable, but is still selective and interpretative, such as a passage
from a history or science textbook.
Read the articles together and discuss each one in turn.
Lesson 2: Does it Matter if what we Believe is True?
Ce n t r a l Qu e s t i o n s
1 Do you believe this article? Why, or why not?
2 Does it matter if what you believe is true?
All other questions are preliminary questions towards a fuller consideration of these two.
Pr e l i m i n a r y Qu e s t i o n s
Are you familiar with the newspaper, the journal, or the author from which the articles are
taken? If so, do you consider the source to be reliable? Why, or why not?
Are there any features of visual presentation which incline you to accept or reject before you
even read the article (eg size of headlines and typeface, accompanying photographs or
advertisements)?
Are there any features of the language used which influence your judgment (eg sensational
phrasing, value-laden language, use of statistics, direct quotation of experts)?
Does the article seem plausiblethat is, does it make sense in terms of what you already
know?
Does the article present any evidence that could be checked or tested?
If you are wrong in your judgmentrejecting something that is true or accepting something
that is falsedoes it matter? Is your own mind or conception of reality damaged? Is anyone
hurt? What are the possible consequences of false beliefs about other national, cultural or
religious groups?
Fo l l o w -u p Di s c u s s i o n
After the students have discussed the articles using their own vocabulary and critical response to
your questions, introduce the following general approach to assessing the credibility of the
articles. The approach should summarize points already discussed and provide a framework to
be used at other points in the course.
T h e T h r e e Ss : So u r c e , St a t e m e n t s , Se l f
1 So u r c e : What are the characteristics of a reliable source? What are the characteristics of an
unreliable source? Does an apparently reliable source necessarily give true statements?
(Consider: reputation, qualifications, accountability.)
2 St a t e m e n t s : What clues to reliability are provided by the text itself? What clues to
unreliability are provided by the text itself?
3 Se l f : What inclination to accept or reject what you read do you notice in yourself? Are you
more inclined to read critically if something does not fit your beliefs?
Similarly, point out to students that they have used, without realizing it, philosophical tests for
truth. If this lesson is used as an opening to the course, introduce the tests lightly, to be picked up
in many other contexts later.
Does it make sense? Is it plausible? Does it hang together?
The Coherence Test evaluates the truth of each new statement in the context of the body
of statements already accepted as true. It involves looking within the text, analytically, and
seeking rational consistency.
Where is the evidence?

The Correspondence Test evaluates the truth of a statement on the evidence. It involves
looking outward, and checking or testing.
What difference does it make? So what?
The Pragmatic Test evaluates the truth of a statement on the basis of its usefulnessthe
workability of predictions based on it, or the practicality of its consequences. (You may wish
to distinguish between practically useful, as in science, and psychologically useful, as in the
benefit of believing self-flattering statements. The latter is not a convincing test for truth!)
You may wish to round off the lesson with a discussion of an ethical dimension to beliefthat valuing
the truth and seeking to avoid harmful consequences are moral values significant in TOK discussions.
Assessment of credibility is relevant to all areas of TOK.
There is room for discussing national or cultural or historical points of view throughout the
lesson, depending on the discussion provoked by your choice of articles.
Qu o t a t i o n s
One who learns without thinking is lost; one who thinks without learning is in great danger.
Confucius
Human beings are never more frightening than when they are convinced beyond doubt that
they are right.
Laurens van der Post, on Apartheid
Re f e r e n c e s
A sample article, Harem Hell, is attached.
Qu e s t i o n s
H ow is the article written? Does it seem reliable?
Exactly where does the action in this article take place? Is it geographically specific?
Who is reported as doing the actions? Arabs? Moslems? Specific nationalities? Nomads or
urban dwellers?
When do these practices take place? (Islam forbade the burying of babies, a practice
reported as carried on until recently. When did Islam begin?)
What claims are made about womens lives? Are all the examples given accurate? How
might you check? Are they all shocking?
So what? Does it matter whether or not you believe the claims in this article? Does it matter
if you frequently encounter similar attitudes?
St udent Handout
Lesson 3: Letters from an Indian Judge
to an English Gentlewoman
Co n t e x t
This lesson is useful after the introduction of the course. It shows that knowledge claims may be
heavily reliant on culture and social perspective. Because the lesson has wide application it may be
referred to throughout the course.
The lesson could also serve to consider the multiple meanings of the word culture, so relevant in
discussions of knowledge, and to consider the differences between members of any designated
group. Causes of cultural cohesion or bias can arise from a combination of geography, ethnicity,
gender, academic training and many other factors.
Aim s
To consider knowledge within a cultural context.
To expand the concept of culture beyond the categories of race, language and nationality.
To account for the variety of knowledge claims.
To note the power of belief systems.
This lesson is easily done in 45 minutes, with a reading aloud of the handout in class followed by
a discussion.
Lesson 3: Letters from an Indian Judge to an English Gentlewoman
St udent Handout
Now I can tell you a little more of some of my work up here, which may perhaps be of interest to you. And
first and most formidable of all, behold our local Snake.
He dwells in a cleft up here on the mountainside, in a large fissure that was caused by an earthquake.
For I must tell you, this part of the world is very prone to earthquakes and for this reason, very sensibly, no
brick building must be of more than three feet high. After that your edifices must all be composed of wood
or of plaster and laths so that he who gets fallen upon by his house in an earthquake is not fallen upon too
much.
Now you and I may have our private ideas as to the causes of earthquakes, but that makes no difference
to the small unlettered man in the country about here, because, you see, he knows. And what he knows is
that the earthquakes come because the Snake has been allowed to get angry and then through the earth
he goes, and confides his troubles to the spirits that sit within the earth and then the spirits get angry as
well, and then, pouf, down come all our houses upon our heads.
The small man in the village knows this, just as he knows that anything we may say to him to the contrary
proves only our ignorance or that we have some private axe to grind. Do not suppose that it is ever by its
Rulers and enlightened men a country is really governed. It is by the small men in the villages, who know.
Another thing the small man knows is just how to placate this angry Snake. The way it is done is as
follows. Once yearly you must make chapattis [bread] mixed with the best of flour and ghee [butter], all
welded together with human blood. It is useless trying to palm off goats blood upon this very intelligent
Snake. He knows what he wants.
Excerpt from Letters from an Indian Judge to an English Gentlewoman
Lesson 3: Letters from an Indian Judge to an English Gentlewoman
Teac her Not es

After reading the handout aloud, the class breaks into two groups. One group establishes step by
step the knowledge claims of the small man based on the evidence. The other group establishes
the knowledge claims of the judge. Each group presents their claims to the other, looking for
strengths and weaknesses.
Ask students to offer knowledge claims that they think are culture-specific, from either their own
culture or others they know about. These knowledge claims could come from personal
experience, or from literature and films.
Observe whether students tend to use culture as a generic term, assuming a homogeneous group.
A trifocal way of understanding people may be useful in considering culture and the variety of
knowledge claims. Each person can be seen to be:
a member of a species, and therefore alike
a member of a group, and therefore having a number of names
an individual, and therefore unique.
With these questions in mind, ask students to give several attributes of each category to
themselves, and to construct a situation where things go wrong because people use the wrong
category for the situation.
This lesson is clearly relevant to Knowers and Knowing, Ways of Knowing, and many of the
Linking Questions in the TOK Guide. In its discussion of the role of culture it also connects more
specifically with general patterns observed in the human sciences and with the role of definition
in language. The claims generated are also relevant to evidence and reasoning, especially in the
light of what counts as a good reason around the world.
Qu o t a t i o n s
Much learning does not teach understanding. Heraclitus
The only reality is that which the mind constructs and the only truth is the minds coherence
with itself.
Tejedor Cesar
A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence. David Hume
Re f e r e n c e s
Olen, J, Persons and Their World, (1983) McGraw Hill College Div, ISBN 0075543117 (especially
chapters 15 and 16)
Lesson 4: Exercises on Meaning
Co n t e x t
Sharing meanings and using categories seem to be important human abilities. How we do these
things seems relevant to a consideration of language, as a way of knowing.
The view that students often seem to hold is that categories correspond to natural kinds that exist
out there in the world, on which we hang labels (words) when we recognize them. According to
this view, the objects that make up this natural kind, whether it be birds or tables, are a part of
this category because they share a common property or feature. Because we recognize this
feature, so the reasoning goes, we are able to group them together and name them.
This view of meaning can easily be shown to be faulty in various ways. The first of these is to say
that even if one could categorize tables in this way, we would have serious problems doing the
same with freedom or good or any number of concepts of that sort. The complexity of
categorization should be illustrated by the activities.
Aim s
To examine the meaning(s) of words and our knowledge of these meanings.
To highlight the importance of categorization in the construction of knowledge.
These activities could take up one or two 45-minute lessons. Discussion in small groups,
followed by a plenary, would be appropriate. At other points in the TOK course there should
be sufficient opportunity to return to the issues raised.
Define the word good. It might help to provide some statements to stimulate discussion.
He is a good man.
She is a good athlete.
There are a good many liars in this outfit.
Are you good for a few dollars?
The common good.
This activity can be repeated with other generic words, such as true.
He was true to his word.
She is a true friend.
Everything he told us was true.
That arrow flies true.
Teacher Support MaterialTheory of Knowledge Lessons from Around the World - IBO, August 2000 Lesson 4page 1
Do we need to know a definition of a word, in order to understand its meaning?
Is knowing how to use a word similar to knowing how to walk or swim; that is, could it be
viewed as a skill?
Do words have meanings or do we give them meanings?
What do people mean when they claim that young people no longer use language properly?
Students may quickly fix on a variety of uses (the moral good versus the good used in
winetasting, for example). It is also possible to narrow the discussion by asking for a single
definition of good when describing human action only (the moral dimension). The likelihood is
that students will be unable to provide an answer to everyones satisfaction. If they object to the
choice of word, arguing that it is too abstract, try them out on Wittgensteins defining game.
These are words that they use successfully every day, and so they are competent users of these
terms and yet they are unable to define them. Does this mean, as Socrates would have it, that
they have no idea of what they are saying? (This is the metaphysical view so eloquently portrayed
in Platos dialogues, where Socrates goads prominent Athenians, requiring them to define key
concepts which they are prone to use as if they were experts on the subject, such as beauty,
justice, virtue, and when they are unable to do so, concludes that no one knows anything. One
cannot improve on Hubert Dreyfuss quip that someone should have suspected that this was not
a good starting point for Western philosophy.)
An alternative view, that could emerge when these questions are considered, is the meaning as use
view. Here words take on meaning as ways in which we use the term (often in varied and
specialized contexts), which need not respond to any one underlying paradigm or model.
Most of the concepts in the programme can lend themselves to the question of whether they
could be considered a language, and therefore the question of meanings becomes relevant. (As
Dennet has recently pointed out in his Darwins Dangerous Idea (Simon and Schuster, 1995, p.371)
it sometimes seems as if the highest praise we can bestow on a phenomenon we are studying is
the claim that its complexities entitle it to be called a language.) Might meanings work very
differently in different types of language? For example, does the word truth always mean the
same thing, or is it applied in the same circumstances, in all the areas of knowledge covered by
TOK? The same could be asked in relation to evidence, or justification. This is central to
TOK. How much of what is going on when we apply such words is common, and how much
is particular, to different areas of knowledge?
For example, in a discussion of what science is, should we include social research and analysis? Is
there one common feature typical of all those practices we call science? Or do we use it in
different ways, some of which make it easier to accommodate social studies than others? The
same applies to the discussion of art, or of good actions, or indeed the word language itself.
How we actually categorize is not an entirely resolved question. This lesson can focus attention
on the extent to which we are passive describers, registering the world about us, or active
interpreters of our surroundings (the or is not of the either/ or variety).
Use of the word good in Australian English? (Im good = Im well)
Use of these words in the past. For example, between the 15th and 18th centuries the word
presently meant immediately. It still does in British English, but means currently in American
English. Words are not static, but shift meaning with time, place, culture and purpose.
Qu o t a t i o n s
Definitions are like beltsthe shorter they are, the more elastic they need to be.
Steven Toumlin
Language is by its very nature a communal thing; that is, it expresses never the exact thing
but a compromisethat which is common to you, me and everybody.
Thomas Ernest Hulme
Meanings receive their dignity from words instead of giving it to them. Pascal
Ours is a Copious Language, and Trying to Strangers.

Mr Podsnap in Dickenss Our Mutual Friend
Re f e r e n c e s
Hayakawa, AR & SI, Language in Thought and A ction, (1991) Harcourt Brace, ISBN 0156482401
Keller, H, The Story of My Life, (1999) Demco Media, ISBN 0606159983
Kolak, D & Martin, R, Wisdom Without A nswers, (1998) Wadsworth Publishing Co, ISBN
053425974X
Lesson 5: The Power of Names
Co n t e x t
Names are often considered to be the most straightforward aspect of languagewords simply
as labels for things. Because of the apparent simplicity of names, this is a good starting point for
the investigation of the nature of language.
This lesson considers examples of names for places and people in order to show how the
word-as-label model is inadequate in itselfhow even apparently simple names embody whole
ranges of connotation, abstraction and generalization, and thus illustrate wider aspects of the
phenomenon of language as a whole.
The lesson is effective as an introduction to the work on language and thought, because it raises
many points which can be addressed later.
Aim s
To investigate the nature and power of names in language and their levels of meaning.
To consider the cultural and historical context of language.
Students will need access to atlases, both present day and historical. Other reference sources of
African history would also be useful. It may be necessary for students to investigate the history
and meanings of their own names in advance.
This lesson lends itself to group work for the geographical part, and individual work for the
collection of personal names.
Timing will depend on whether the gathering of all the information is to be a class activity or a
preparatory one (with students bringing the results of their research to the lesson). Either is
feasible. The structure of the lesson is open and any part of the content outlined may be
sufficient to stimulate the discussion.
Consider a current political map of Africa. Consult a historical atlas and note changes in the
names of countries, particularly since the start of the European colonialist period. Try also to
discover the origins of some current names for African countries.
Make a list of the personal names of members of the class. Exchange information with other
class members about their personal names. Do any of these names have known meanings, other
than simply referring to the person in question?
Amongst the Akans of Ghana, each individual receives a name (in addition to others) which
corresponds to the day of the week on which he/ she was born (see chart below). Does anything
similar happen in other parts of the world?
Teac her Not es
By conducting this lesson with a minimum of technical vocabulary, the students can begin to
discover for themselves the intricacies and complexities of language.
1 Examples of changes might be:
Rhodesia to Zimbabwe
Gold Coast to Ghana
Upper Volta to Burkina Faso
Nyasaland to Malawi
Dahomey to Benin
Many present-day names refer to historical territories quite different from those in
existence now. Often, they were great empires, such as Ghana, Benin, Mali.
Some present day names have quite simple derivations:
Liberia, meaning freedom
Sierra Leone, meaning land of lions (Portuguese meaning thunder as lions roar)
Tanzania is a combination of Tanganyika and Zanzibar.
2 In Africa biblical names such as Solomon, Moses and Emmanuel are common. In Latin
America, Jesus, Mara and Angelo are often chosen.
3 Compare the Akan practice of giving a baby a name corresponding to the day of the week,
with the Mondays Child rhyme in English (see student handout).
If names of countries are simply convenient ways of referring to particular geographical

areas, then why have the names changed? List some specific examples to illustrate your
answers.
Why is it perhaps particularly pertinent to look at African names in this connection? How are
history and language intertwined?
What names denote may change historically (eg Germany, Yugoslavia), but what they
connote also changes in other, not necessarily related, ways. For example, a persons name
may have some meaning other than the trivial sense of being a label, but what is the
relationship between that name and the person concerned?
Different cultures employ different names. To what extent do they correspond to one
another in meaning?
Names refer to people and places we can point to, but they must also refer to images of
these people and places in our minds. What are the different layers of meaning in names? Try
to identify them, separating the different levels. Can we distinguish between the
information-bearing and affective aspects of connotation?
If more than one individual shares the same name, what does that mean? Is this the same as
the use of the word table, for instance?
Personal names go in and out of fashion. How, if at all, can this be related to their meanings?
How are language and taste related?
To what extent is a personal name a reflection of, for example, religion, social class,
nationality?
Fo l l o w -u p
There is an Akan taboo which proscribes the mention of the word snake after dark. People
will sometimes refer to snakes by some other term during this time. Is there anything to be
learned here? What is the relationship between a word and the thing it denotes?
Why is Shakespeares Macbeth sometimes called the Scottish play?
In Germany, there is an official list of names from which the name of a baby must be
chosen. Why would such a list exist?
In the Akan language, as in all others, there are only a certain number of colours which have
names. How does this compare in different languages? What might these differences mean?
Consider the names for describing relatives (father, aunt, cousin, et cetera) in different languages.
Are there any differences in the way this is done in different countries or cultures? Consider the
elaborate kinship terminology of the Akans (see chart below) and compare this with your own
experience. Why do kinship terminologies differ in structure from one society to another?
Re l a t e d Qu e s t i o n s
What do we mean when we talk about meaning? Can we distinguish between different kinds
of meaning, such as the literal versus the symbolic, the dictionary definition of a term versus
its everyday use?
What is meant by definition? Can names be defined?
What are the different functions of language?
Are words simply labels for things, or are they tools with which we investigate the world?
What problems are encountered in translating words and meanings from one language into
another?
Is it possible plausibly to argue that people who speak different languages live in different
worlds? What exactly would this mean?
Qu o t a t i o n s
When I use a word, Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, it means what I choose
it to meanneither more nor less.
Lewis Carroll
Whats in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
Shakespeare
Language is like fixed rails upon which all our thought must run.
Past TOK examination paper
If language be not in accordance with the truth of things, affairs cannot be carried on to
success.
Confucius
A child when it begins to speak, learns what it is that it knows. John Hall Wheelock
Re f e r e n c e s
Chomsky, N, Language and Responsibility, (1998) New Press, ISBN 1565844750
Farb, P, Word Play: What Happens When People Talk, (1993) Vintage Books, ISBN 0679734082
Spuhla, JN, The Evolution of Mans Capacity for Culture, (1959) Wayne St University
St udent Handout
Additional Information Concerning Akan Kinship Terminology
The following chart shows how the Akan use an elaborate system of names in order to identify with
precision the relationships between family members. The far left column shows the generally used terms
in English; the next column the terms in Twi (an Akan language); the third column specifies to
relationship (key below) and the right hand column outlines (if appropriate) the literal meanings of the
Twi words.
English Twi Relation Meaning
Grandmother Nana baa MoMo

Grandmother Nana baa FaMo
Grandfather Nana barima FaFa
Grandfather Nana barima MoFa
Mother Enna Mo
Father Agya Fa
Aunt Enna MoSi mother

Aunt Siwaa FaSi father
Uncle Agya FaBr father
Uncle Wofa MoBr person with right to collect property
Sister Nua baa Si sibling/female

Brother Nua barima Br sibling/male
Sister-in-law Yere BrWi
Brother-in-law Akonta SiHu
Cousin Enna ba baa MoSiDa mother/child/female

Cousin Enna ba barima MoSiSo mother/child/male
Cousin Agya ba baa FaBrDa father/child/female
Cousin Agya ba barima FaBrSo father/child/male
Cousin Wofa ba baa MoBrDa mothers brother/child/female
Cousin Wofa ba barima MoBrSo mothers brother/child/male
Cousin Siwaa ba baa FaSiDa feminine father/child/female
Cousin Siwaa ba barima FaSiSo feminine father/child/male
Daughter Ba baa Da child/female

Son Ba barima So child/male
Key: Mo=mother; Fa=father; Si=sister; Br=brother; Wi=wife; Hu=husband; Da=daughter;

So=son.
Example: MoSiDa indicates a persons mothers sisters daughter, a relation normally

expressed in English simply, and precisely, as cousin.
Akan Names
Day (English) Day (Fanti) Male Name Female Name
Sunday Kwesida Kwesi Esi
Monday Dwoda Kodjo/koji Adjoa
Tuesday Benada Kobina Abena/Araba
Wednesday Wulkuda Kweku Akua/Ekua
Thursday Yawoda Kwaw/Yaw Aba/Yaa
Friday Fieda Kofi Afua/Efua
Saturday Memenda Kwame Ama
Specific information was collected in collaboration with Michael Djan, SOS Hermann-Gmeiner
International College, Ghana
Lesson 6: Language and Symbolism
Co n t e x t
This lesson is useful in raising distinctions between the strengths of body language and the
strengths of language symbolism in communication. It can also help make distinctions between
signs and symbols. It includes a game which leads to discussion on the capacity of language to
communicate what physical gestures cannot.
Aim s
To examine the symbolic nature of language.
To investigate the use of language for abstraction through an introductory game of charades.
This lesson takes 40 to 50 minutes, though the discussion questions can occupy more time. The
class is divided into small groups to play the game first, and then brought back together for
discussion.
Cards such as those which follow must be prepared in advance. They are only suggestions.
Those written by teachers referring to situations to which their own students can relate would be
more effective. You will need one pair of cards per group.
Have all the card As in one colour, and all the card Bs in another colour. You should mark each
card clearly on the back as A1, B1, A2, B2, and so on, so that it is possible to move cards from
group to group for a second round of the game and still keep track of what each group is
doing.
Divide the class into groups of four to six students and disperse them in the classroom. Then
divide each group in half.
Give the first half of the group a card A, on which is written a description of a situation which
they must act out for the second halfwithout using any words. The second half of the group
must guess as accurately as possible what is being communicated, with the goal of being able to
reproduce verbally the description on the card without having seen it.
Then give the second half of the group the equivalent card B, for them to act out in turn.
The TOK twist to this game of charades is that the cards are in pairs. The A cards describe
concrete objects, physical actions, and emotions, all of which are fairly easy to enact. The B cards
shift to greater level of detail, abstract ideas, connection in time, space, or consequence, and other
relationships such as addition, contrast, and exception.
Be prepared for indignant wails from students on first reading a card B.
St udent Handout
CARD A CARD B
You are in love with someone, but all your You are in love with someone, but refuse to
efforts to attract his/her attention fail, and take your emotions seriously, because you
you are left with a broken heart. regard love as a destructive force which
can undermine good judgment and lead
couples into hasty and ill-fated marriages
which can end only in divorce.
You find mathematics very difficult. You Although your marks in mathematics are
have studied hard for a test, but your mark not very good, you enjoy the challenge of
is still bad and you feel extremely studying mathematics, because you find
discouraged. the intellectual rigour satisfying and
consider the subject to be fundamental to
success in other areas such as economics
or engineering.
A friend comes to you, very excited, A friend comes to you, very excited,
because he/she has just won a huge prize because he/she has just been hired to write
in a lottery and wants you to come along a feature article for the regional newspaper
and celebrate. on a project on which he/she will be
assisting an art expert who restores old
paintings and establishes their authenticity.
You have just received a phone call from You have just received a phone call from
your mother who tells you that the family your mother who tells you that your brother
pet dog has died. has just won a huge scholarship to study
astrophysics at a top university in England,
beginning next autumn.
You have just had a serious conversation You have just had a serious conversation
with your parents about whether you should with your parents about going to university
CARD A CARD B
go to university after your Diploma after your Diploma Programme studies, or

Programme studies. whether you should work and save for a
year first in order not to build up a debt from
the very beginning of what will probably be
several years of higher education.
What, on the cards, was easy to act out? What was difficult? Why? Are there some things for
which body gestures and expressions are more effective than words? Are there some things for
which words are more effective in communication?
What is a symbol? What is the relationship between a word and that to which it refers?
Is body language natural, or is it learned? How might body language vary across culturesin the
extent to which it is used for communication, and in the significance given to gestures? Possible
examples for discussion are: ones sense of personal space, the use of eye contact, gestures for
yes and no, for come here, for flirtation, for aggression or insult. How might the accompanying
body language affect the meaning of utterances?
Is sign language for the deaf more accurately considered to be body language or a symbolic
system?
What effect does the existence of our symbol system of language have on knowledge?
How does language compare with other symbolic forms of communication such as
painting, dance, music and mathematics? Would it be possible to place all these forms in a
range or spectrum according to any of the following qualities: preciseevocative;
rationalemotional; representationalabstract; specificgeneral?
Is knowledge restricted to claims made in language? Can a look or gesture communicate
knowledge?
How does the anthropologist or other practitioner of the human sciences gain knowledge of
an individual or culture? How might the context of body language be significant in methods
of observation and interview?
A discussion of the variability of body language around the world, both in its acceptability and its
specific gestures, places language in its cultural context.
Re f e r e n c e s
Axtell, RE (ed.), Dos and Taboos A round the World, (1993) John Wiley and Sons, ISBN
0471595284
Lesson 7: Words and not Words: an
Exercise in Describing and Listening
Co n t e x t
Because this lesson is designed to show how difficult it is to express even a simple idea in such a
way that the receiver will properly understand it, it is best used at the beginning of the course or
as a refresher at other appropriate times. Students are encouraged to consider whether all sorts
of knowledge can be communicated in words.
Aim s
To consider the relationship between perception and language.
To develop an awareness of problems involved in communicating ideas and knowledge.
The class should be divided into groups of five or six students. Each group should appoint a
leader.
In advance of the lesson, teachers will need to make a copy of Picture A and Picture B for each
of the student leaders. All the other students, the followers, will require two pieces of graph
(squared) paper each.
One hour of class time should be allowed for the completion of the two activities. Additional
time will most likely be required for group discussion and reflection.
The lesson consists of two different activities, A and B. They may be taken in any order. During
activities A and B, the followers are required to listen attentively to the leaders instructions and
draw a series of figures on the graph paper. After activities A and B are completed, the teacher, a
student or a group of students could award marks to the pictures completed by the followers.
Once activities A and B are completed, results can be discussed as a class.
Lesson 7: Words and not Words: an Exercise in Describing and Listening
St udent Handout
Activity A
One student is appointed the leader. The rest of the group are followers. The leader describes Picture A
verbally. The followers are to listen and, without collaboration, attempt to draw the picture, with the same
shape, the same size and the same orientation, on their graph paper. There should be no other
A
communication other than the leaders description. No questions are allowed from the followers.
Picture A
Activity B
This activity is similar to

activity A: another
picture such as the one
below should be used,
but the followers are
now allowed to ask for
additional information.
Compare the process of the verbal transfer of knowledge, as done in activities A and B,
with the transfer of knowledge between teacher and student in a school lesson. What
similarities and differences exist?
Compare the process found in activities A and B with the process of a student acquiring
knowledge by reading a text. What similarities and differences are there?
By what means can our ideas and opinions be made more clear to others in a conversation
or when writing?
What is the difference between information and knowledge?
Re l a t e d Qu e s t i o n s
If language works according to sets of rules and conventions, how much scope do we have
as individuals to break the rules, to challenge conventions, to be creative?
Are vagueness and ambiguity shortcomings of language that must be eliminated in the
interest of knowledge, or can they be also viewed as positive aspects of language?
From the writings of Benjamin Whorf (18971941) we learn that:
The categories and types that we isolate from the world of phenomena we do not find there because they stare every
observer in the face; on the contrary, the world is presented in a kaleidoscopic flux of impressions which has to be
organised by our minds and this means largely by the linguistic system in our minds.
From this he concludes his principle of linguistic relativity
. . . which holds that all observers are not led by the same physical evidence to the same picture of the universe,
unless their linguistic backgrounds are similar.
This allows for a different view of ones relationship to reality, and to the role of language in this
relationship. After all, the linguistic distinctions that we use so frequently lead us to believe that the
world is really made up of all those things that I talk about all day. This may be why our language
has all the terms that it doesso we can refer to this huge variety of things out there.
Quot a t ion
The crucial point to be considered in a study of language behaviour is the relationship between
language and reality, between words and not words. Except as we understand this relationship,
we run the grave risk of straining the delicate connection between words and facts, of
permitting our words to go wild, and so of creating for ourselves fabrications of fantasy and
delusion.
Wendell Johnson
Re f e r e n c e s
Minsky, M, The Society of Mind, (1988) Simon and Schuster, ISBN 0671657135
Lesson 8: Nothingness
Co n t e x t
One of the central functions of language is to express thought. However, identifying other
functions of language is important so that the power of language can be assessed. If language is
only a tool by which we express our thoughts, then we may command it and use it for our own
ends. If, however, language is not only a tool but is also a shaper, forming thought, identity and
memory, then we may be commanded by it. Among other things, then, the knowledge we have
is dependent to some extent upon it and we may not be as free as we assume we are.
This lesson belongs to a consideration of language, after the introductory material has been
presented. It is fairly sophisticated, but beginning students have responded well to its inherent
drama.
Aim s
To discuss the fundamental nature of language and its role in all knowledge systems.
To consider linguistic determinism in human life and to question, therefore, claims of free
will.
To consider whether or not language creates, clarifies, or obscures what is true.
This lesson is based on the reading of a single poem. It is divided into two different group
sessions with reports back to a full class and a discussion as a result of those reports. The lesson
usually requires 100 minutes to complete and can easily be done over two consecutive class
sessions.
Gr o u p Se s s i o n I
Divide the class into groups of three and ask each group to complete the following tasks (allow
20 minutes).
One student should read the poem out loud to the other two. The repetition of the
poem may serve to dramatize the fear in the poem.
Choose a recorder or spokesperson.
Write down in one sentence the central knowledge claim of the poem.
Cite as much evidence as possible for that claim from the poem itself.
Summarize what life seems to be with language and what it seems to be without it.
Write down any experiences, anecdotes or memories students have, that are similar to
the contents of the poem or support the central claim of the poem.
Ask students to rejoin the whole class and give each group a chance to present its insights and
examples (allow 30 minutes).
Gr o u p Se s s i o n I I
As the general discussion wanes, have students count off in numbers, 15. Assign knowledge
systems to each number:
1 The arts
2 History
3 Human sciences
4 Natural sciences
5 Mathematics
Have each group prepare a brief report for the whole class on the particular way(s) this poem
would be true or not true for the discipline the group represents (allow 20 minutes).
Ask students to balance theoretical, abstract conclusions with specific cases drawn particularly
from their Diploma Programme subjects.
Once again, ask students to rejoin the whole class and compare their central findings (allow 30
minutes).
Nothingness
I woke up at night and my language was gone

No sign of language no writing no alphabet
nor symbol nor word in any tongue
and raw was my fearlike the terror perhaps
of a man flung from a treetop far above the ground
a shipwrecked person on a tide-engulfed sandbank
a pilot whose parachute would not open
or the fear of a stone in a bottomless pit
and the fright was unvoiced unlettered unuttered
and inarticulate O how inarticulate
and I was alone in the dark
a non-I in the all-pervading gloom
with no grasp no leaning point
everything stripped of everything
and the sound was speechless and voiceless
and I was naught and nothing
without even a gibbet to hang onto
without a single peg to hang onto
and I no longer knew who or what I was
and I was no more
Aharon Amir, translated from the Hebrew by Abraham Birman
What are some feasible working definitions of language?
Why does the poem take place at night in close proximity to sleep and dreams?
How might it be among our worst nightmares to wake up and find language gone? Or
how, on the other hand, might it turn out to be heaven on earth, or a dream come true, to
wake up and be forever unencumbered by language?
How accurate is the contention at the close of the poem that the absence of language
amounts to annihilation?
If languages are systems of symbols, how can we be sure that the symbol represents the
thing for which it stands?
If language rests on symbols, how can it be the thing itself, that is our identity, our
consciousness, our life?
If one takes the symbol away, does not the thing itself remain?
If we lose the symbol, what is it that we have lost if not the thing for which the symbol
stands?
What is it in human life that having the symbol seems to supply us with?
To what extent is every kind of human knowledge dependent upon having a symbol system
through and within which it can be formulated?
How does language resemble other things or people to whom we grant power?
Can it be said that language is one of the several instances in human life in which we create
something, forget we have made it, and yield to it maximum authority? What other instances,
if any, are there in which we do this?
Identify several different kinds of language. Are any more effective than others in changing
nothing to something?
One definition of a miracle is the bringing of something out of nothing. Considering the title
of the poem, can language be considered a miracle? Are there any instances or stories that
depict language not as a miracle but as a curse? Which position seems to be the stronger?
How can we be sure that something we coax out of nothing through language is anything at
all?
Are there any advantages to entering the nothingness and forfeiting the language that seems
to anchor us in something?
Having once acquired a language, is it ever possible for us really to stop talking? Once we
take on a language, can we ever really lose it?
Rather than language, what would you prefer as the basis for knowledge, reality, personal
identity?
If you were to write a poem about the absence of language, would fear be the dominant
emotion you would emphasize or would you stress some other emotion?
The poem implies that we are dead the minute we lose language. In what way(s) is this claim
true? How could it be justified? How valid would it be to claim that we are dead the minute
we begin to speak?
How might nothingness, especially linguistic nothingness, be among the most substantial
states on earth?
The lesson centres on language, with links to perception and emotion in the TOK guide and, in
group session II, to areas of knowledge. It is also relevant to the linking questions about
interpretation and truth.
Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity each have traditions which encourage the loss of
speech. Studying these pursuits of silence and the practitioners of such pursuits offers
counter-arguments to the ideas of this poem.
Biblical and mythological stories also both affirm and deny the central importance of
language in human life.
The life of Helen Keller provides a wonderful, specific case of language as miracle.
The account of Samuel Johnson as he describes waking in the night unable to speak because
of a stroke is a wonderful case of facing linguistic impairment without fear.
Qu o t a t i o n s
We live not on things, but on the meaning of things. Antoine de Saint-Exupry
Words form the thread on which we string our experiences. Aldous Huxley
All human thought comes into existence by grasping the meaning and mastering the use of
language.
Polanyi
Lesson 9: The Map is not the Territory
Co n t e x t
This lesson is effective following discussions of the capacity of language to map the world
symbolically. When Alfred Korzybski declared that the map is not the territory he was referring
to language, whose representation of the world is not to be confused with reality itself.
Aim s
To consider the nature of symbolism and conventions for representing the world.
To recognize assumptions that may arise from past structures of power.
Two hours are required. First allow the class to take a good look at wall maps of the world.
Raise questions of projections and centring. The following should emerge.
A flat map is a distortion of a sphere, and a wall map is inevitably a simplification of the
worlds detail.
Particular representations carry hidden assumptions and values.
Maps, like languages and theoretical models, are conceptual tools.
The teacher should take on primarily a questioning role, with students doing their own analysis.
However, the teacher may wish to introduce passages for reading, or give historical background.
1 Display a minimum of three wall maps of the world that differ in their projections and their
placement of particular regions in their centre. Ideal maps are a Mercator projection centred
on Europe, a Peters equal-area projection, and a map which appears to be upside-down,
with south at the top. Also valuable are maps which centre on the United States, with India
repeated at both sides of the maps to allow the symmetry, any Asian or Middle Eastern
maps with their own areas at the centre, and satellite pictures of the earth from space.
2 Have ready, on handouts or overheads, a few examples of conceptual maps, in which the
size or shape of the countries is determined not by geographical size, but by other criteria
such as population, trade balance, or incidence of a disease.
3 Have ready, on handouts or overheads, maps which are supplemented with graphics
pictures of nature or recreation (from tourist brochures), bold concentric circles for indication
of ripple impact, arrows for movement of armies (from a history text or newspaper).
Use these visual examples to raise questions about conceptual schemes which influence
representation. Each category raises slightly different questions.
Having established that maps are not simply perceptual records, move to overt conceptual maps
to raise questions of statistics, and then to maps embellished with graphics, to consider the fine
distinction between clarification and persuasion.
Pa r t 1 : Ge o g r a p h i c a l a n d Po l i t i c a l Wo r l d M a p s
Which wall map looks to you most natural? Why? As you look at all three of them, do they
suggest different things to you?
Which region is in the centre? Why?
Which region appears largest? How much is Scandinavia or Australia affected by the
projection? Which map takes as its goal the showing of regions according to their relative
size?
Is it necessary for north to be at the top? What distinguishes north from south when there is
no up or down in space? If the poles are determined by the earths rotation, what then
divides east from west?
Is the prime meridian placed by geographical necessityor by a decision that could be
otherwise? Do we have associations other than geographical designations with west, east,
north and south?
Are borders part of nature? Are they visible if the world is viewed from space? What do
borders and naming represent on a world map?
Pa r t 2 : Co n c e p t u a l M a p s
When the size and shape of countries on the map represent not their geography, but another
concept, what is the difference between a map and a pictorial graph? Why use a world map?
How do we know that the statistics behind the representation are accurate? What is the
source of the statistics? How are the terms defined? What is the significance of sampling
techniques representative samples, adequate samples?
Pa r t 3 : Gr a p h i c En h a n c e m e n t o f M a p s
To what extent do symbols drawn from elsewhere combine with maps solely for purposes
of clarification? How do arrows or concentric circles help us to visualize movement across
space? Can those graphics be drawn differently to imply benefit or menace?
Can colour on a map create an emotional impact? What do you associate with countries
coloured red? If a country coloured white is surrounded by countries coloured black, does
the colour distinction carry any emotional impact?
Why include pictures on a map? What non-geographical ideas are being conveyed?
Apart from obvious connections with symbolism, this lesson can raise discussions of value
judgments, contrasting conceptual schemes around the world, the legacy of history in our
knowledge of today, and the association of knowledge with power.
An examination of our maps of the world is an examination of our conceptions of the world
and our place in it; this lesson should bring out shifting perspectives. In considering the way
maps can be conceptual toolsor tools of powerit is fruitful to bring in whatever history
seems relevant to the particular group of students. For example, you could consider association
of the Mercator projection with European imperialism, ways in which European powers
influenced reality by drawing from afar borders in Africa, why the Kenya / Tanzania border is
diverted around Kilimanjaro, map-based land claims which exclude aboriginal concepts of land
as something which cannot be owned, maps which play for sympathy for an encircled country
(for example, Israel in the Arab world), or the use of maps in combination with technology to
fix a wartime target without face-to-face contact with the enemy.
Qu o t a t i o n
The map is not the territory. Alfred Korzybski
Re f e r e n c e s
Harley, JB, Maps, Knowledge, and Power, The Iconography of Landscape: Essays on the Symbolic
Representation, Design and Use of Past Environments (Cambridge Studies in Historical Geography), ed.
Denis Cosgrove and Stephen Daniels, (1994) Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0521389151
Monmonier, M, How to Lie with Maps, (1996) University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0226534219
Introduction only.
Shohat, E & Stam, R, Unthinking Eurocentrism, (1994) Routledge, ISBN 0415063256
Wood, D, The Power of Maps, (1992) The Guildford Press, ISBN 0898624932
Kidron, M & Segal, R, The State of the World A tlas, fifth edition, (1995) Penguin, ISBN
0140252045. Recommended for conceptual maps.
Peters equal-area projection wall map available from the Friendship Press, P.O. Box 37844,
Cincinnati, Ohio 45222, USA
St udent Handout
Map Knowledge Maps made it easy for Euro-

pean states to carve up Africa and
So how do we know the earth is round? We know the earth is round because
other heathen lands, to lay claim
(almost) everybody says its round, because in geography class our teachers to land and resources, and to
tell us it is round, because it is round on map after map Ultimately, the map ignore existing social and political
presents us with the reality we know as differentiated from the reality we see and structures That maps drawn up
hear and feel. The map doesnt let us see anything, but it does let us know what by diplomats and generals
others have seen or found out or discovered, others often living but more often became a political reality lends an
dead, the things they learned piled up layer on top of layer so that to study even unintended irony to the aphorism
the simplest-looking map is to peer back through ages of cultural acquisition. that the pen is mightier than the
sword.
Denis Wood, The Power of Maps, Guildford Press, 1992.
Monmonier, How to Lie with
Maps, Univ. of Chigago 1991.
CARTOGRAPHY: KNOWLEDGE & POWER
Map Knowledge:
Cartography, whatever other cultural significance may have been attached
A Pragmatic Approach
to it, was always a science of princes. In the Islamic world, it was the caliphs
in the period of classical Arab geography, the Sultans in the Ottoman Empire, Aboriginal maps can only be
and the Mogul emperors in India who are known to have patronised properly read or understood by the
map-making and to have used maps for military, political, religious, and initiated, since some of the
propaganda purposes. In ancient China, detailed terrestrial maps were information they contain is secret.
likewise made expressly in accordance with the policies of the rulers of This secrecy concerns the ways in
successive dynasties and served as bureaucratic and military tools and as which the map is linked to the whole
spatial emblems of imperial destiny. In early modern Europe, from Italy to the body of knowledge that constitutes
Netherlands and from Scandinavia to Portugal, absolute monarchs and Aboriginal culture. For Aborigines, the
statesmen were everywhere aware of the value of maps in defence and acquisition of knowledge is a slow
warfare, in internal administration linked to the growth of centralised ritualized process of becoming initiated
government, and as territorial propaganda in the legitimation of national in the power-knowledge network,
identities With national topographic surveys in Europe from the eighteenth essentially a process open only to
century onwards, cartographys role in the transaction of power relation usually those who have passed through the
favoured social elites. earlier stages. By contrast, the Western
knowledge system has the appearance
JB Harley, Maps, Knowledge, and Power,
of being open to all, in that nothing is
The Iconography of Landscape, Cambridge 1994.
secret In the Western tradition the
way to imbue a claim with authority is to
attempt to eradicate all signs of its local,
Eurocentrism, like Renaissance perspectives in painting, envisions the
contingent, social and individual
world from a single privileged point. It maps the world in a cartography that
production.
centralizes and augments Europe while literally belittling Africa. The
In the light of these considerations we
East is divided into near, Middle, and Far, making Europe the arbiter
should perhaps recognize that all maps,
of spatial evaluation, just as the establishment of Greenwich Mean Time
and indeed all representations, can be
produces England as the regulating center of temporal measurement.
related to experience and instead of
Eurocentrism bifurcates the world into the West and the Rest and
rating them in terms of accuracy or
organizes everyday language into binaristic hierarchies implicitly flattering
scienticity we should consider only their
to Europe: our nations, their tribes; our religions, their superstitions;
workabilityhow successful they are
our culture, their folklore; our art, their artifacts; our demonstrations,
in achieving the aims for which they
their riots; our defense, their terrorism.
were drawn.
Ella Shohat and Robert Stam,
David Turnbull in Wood, The Power of
Unthinking Eurocentrism, Routledge 1994.
Maps, Guildford Press, 1992.
Lesson 10: Thinking Logically?
Co n t e x t
This lesson can be done after a consideration of the nature of reasoning, or before looking at
fallacies. It links into work on scientific methodology.
Aim
To investigate the extent to which logical thinking is influenced by the subject matter.
This lesson can be completed in 40 minutes, or longer if necessary.
In advance of the lesson, photocopy the two Logic Tests overleaf. You will need one copy of
the two tests for each student. Students may be given the two problems at the same time (on the
same sheet of paper), or one following the other.
Ask the students to work out and write down their answers without collaborating, and then to
report them back to the whole class. Compile a list of votes for each card on the blackboard.
Overwhelmingly, students fail to identify the 7 as one of the correct responses in Logic Test 1.
Explain to the class why 7 is correct (this card is capable of falsifying the rule) and why 2 is
wrong (this card is irrelevant to the rule).
Students normally identify the correct answers for Logic Test 2.
Discussion can then proceed as to why, given that the two problems are formally identical, one is
so much easier to solve correctly than the other. Reference can be made to the importance of
form and content in logical reasoning, and how this may affect the building of knowledge.
Lesson 10: Thinking Logically
St udent Handout
Logic Test 1
You are presented with the following rule:

Every card with a vowel on one side has an even number on the reverse side.
These are the cards.
U G 7 2
Logic Test 2
You are a barperson in a night-club. The club has the following rule:
Every person drinking alcohol must be over 20 years of age.
These are the four situations.
Person
Person Person aged Person aged
drinking
drinking beer 19 years 21 years
lemonade
Compare your answers for the two examples given. Justify your choices.
The two examples are formally identical (that is, their underlying structure is the same), yet
many people do not choose the same answers. Why not?
Might this difference reflect something about human thinking in general? Why is it easier to
spot the correct answers in the second example?
One view of the nature of science is that scientific activity is primarily about generating
hypotheses and then trying to falsify them. What might these examples have to do with this?
What is fallacious reasoning? Why are fallacies so often persuasive and plausible?
Why is mathematics, as a school subject, so difficult for many students at the advanced
levels?
In what way, if any, might good reasons vary across cultures?
Is there knowledge beyond the categories of logic? If so, what are its foundations?
If arguments in ordinary life are not formally set out so as to exhibit clearly their formal
structure of premises and conclusions, how can this structure be identified?
Qu o t a t i o n s
The paradox is now fully established that the utmost abstractions are the true weapon with
which to control our thought of concrete fact.
A N Whitehead
If a man can play the true logician, and have as well judgement as invention, he may do great
matters.
Francis Bacon
It is not therefore the object of logic to determine whether conclusions be true or false; but
whether what are asserted to be conclusions are conclusions.
A de Morgan
Re f e r e n c e s
The examples given here are adapted from tests devised by Peter Wason of University College,
London. Most authors refer to them as Wason Tests. The following four books all refer to them
in somewhat differing contexts.
Plotkin, H, Darwin Machines and the N ature of Knowledge, (1997) Harvard University Press, ISBN
0674192818
Wolpert, L, The Unnatural N ature of Science, (1994) Harvard University Press, ISBN 0674929810
Ridley, M, The Red Queen, (1995) Penguin, ISBN 0140245480
Gardner, H, The Minds N ew Science A History of the Cognitive Revolution, (1987) Basic Books, ISBN
0465046355
Note: Plotkins book includes a rsum of the research of L Cosmides in taking this work
further, into what Cosmides calls the logic of social exchange. The TOK teacher could perhaps
investigate the relevance of this statement.
Lesson 11: Routes of Mathematical
Knowledge
Co n t e x t
There is a tendency in many TOK discussions to perceive the rational as Western and the
non-rational as belonging to the non-Western.
Most students tend to think of knowledge systems as being fully formed and sprung upon them.
This lesson allows the student to explore the development of a system of knowledge.
Students also assume that knowledge systems are pure, and that they have a life of their own. As
assessment questions sometimes ask students if knowledge can be affected by culture or other
influences, this lesson reveals that knowledge systems like mathematics and logic can respond to
political, economic and cultural influences, by offering the dual perspectives of Asian and
European politics.
Aim s
To follow the development of both Asian and European frameworks for mathematical
knowledge, and to explore the possibility of a common heritage.
To reveal the stages of formation in a system of knowledge.
To challenge the assumption that rationalism is a Western product.
This activity might involve a visit to the library, followed by the return to the classroom. About
half an hour could be spent creating a timeline and making a web of exchanges of knowledge.
The rest of the lesson or part of the next can be spent in discussion of the questions.
St ep One
Give each student an index card with one of the following research topics on it. Send the
students to the library to research (date and place) their topic for about 20 minutes. An
encyclopaedia will be the best source of reference as there is insufficient time for extensive
research.
Teacher Support MaterialTheory of Knowledge Lessons from Around the World IBO, November 2000 Lesson 11page 1
Lesson 11: Routes of Mathematical Knowledge
Su g g e s t e d Re s e a r c h I t e m s
Abacus Pythagoras Theorem Algebra

Decimal system Omar Khayyam Euclid
Ramanujan Chaos Theory Algorithm
Probability Geometry Trigonometry
Calculus Zero Infinity
St e p T w o
Each student should describe his/ her findings and place the topic on a timeline on the
boardso creating the periods of knowledge development and points of transference.
St e p T h r e e
Examine the completed timeline. Discuss the origins of each topic and any interdevelopment.
Conventional division of the mathematical history timeline separates into periods: earliest times to
ancient Babylonia and Egypt, the Greek contribution, the Far-Eastern and Semitic, and the
European from the Renaissance onwards.
1 Can mathematical knowledge be called the most international of all systems of knowledge?
2 Does Western mathematical theory diverge from Eastern mathematical theory? Explain your
answer.
3 The development of mathematical knowledge is often illustrated by a tree diagram (that is,
roots labelled as arithmetic, the trunk labelled as calculus). Mathematical scholars often select
the banyan tree as the best tree for such an illustration. Why might this be so?
4 Why is the vast Asian learning in mathematics so little known in the rest of the world?
5 Asian students are expected to do well in mathematics. What is the basis of this expectation?
6 What assumptions are challenged by the brief research the students did?
7 Is mathematics invented or discovered?
What is the role of inductive and deductive reasoning in mathematical knowledge?
What is the connection between mathematics and logic?
How do you explain the impact of culture or politics on mathematical knowledge?
What is mathematical truth?
Are the conclusions of mathematics concerned with truth or validity?
Lesson 11: Routes of Mathematical Knowledge
Pythagoras (or his school) is recognized for the theorem relating the lengths of the sides of a
right-angled triangle (that the square on the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle is equal to
the sum of the squares on the other two sides). It should be noted, however, that this was
known in China some 400 years before Pythagoras. It is thought that Pythagoras discovery
was independent of the claim of the Chinese. This example, along with others (Newton and
Leibnitz are given credit for their independent discoveries of calculus during the nineteenth
century) supports the argument that mathematics more or less exists in nature and is waiting
to be discovered.
Enrichment was provided unexpectedly in this class when a Ghanaian student researched
oracle bones as a means of mathematical measure and told us their purpose. Students from
other culturessuch as Korean and Japanese and Latin Americanmight wish to investigate
their own cultures contribution to mathematical knowledge.
Qu o t a t i o n
When a flower brings forth a blossom with six-fold symmetry, is it doing mathematics?
from A Physicist Looks at Mathematics, Philip J Davis & Reuben Hersh
Re f e r e n c e s
Davis, PJ & Hersh, R, The Mathematical Experience, (1999) Mariner Books, ISBN 0395929687
McLeish, J, Number, (1992) Flamingo, ISBN 0006544843
Joseph, GG, The Crest of the Peacock, (1991) Penguin, ISBN 0140125299
Lesson 12: Is Math for Real?
(a TOK Quiz for Mathematical Knowledge)
Co n t e x t
This lesson serves as an introduction to a unit on mathematical knowledge. It could be presented
at any time during the TOK course, but is best given after a unit on reasoning.
Aim s
To reflect on the nature and formation of mathematical knowledge.
To develop arguments for and against various issues surrounding the formation of
mathematical knowledge.
The lesson requires one 4060 minute period for a class of 12 to 20 students, divided into
groups of three. Each member of the group should receive a copy of the quiz and be allowed
1520 minutes to complete it and discuss the how and why of their answers within the group.
Members of each group are encouraged to compare and contrast their answers with those of
other members in the group.
At least 20 minutes should be allowed for class discussion. One can normally expect a fair
amount of class interaction with arguments and counter-arguments being presented. Because
some questions tend to result in rather predictable answers, the teacher, as the discussion leader,
must be prepared with supporting examples in mind.
The following two pages comprise the quiz. A copy should be given to each student.
Lesson 12: Is Math for Real? (a TOK Quiz for Mathematical Knowledge)
St udent Handout
A TOK Quiz for Mathematical Knowledge

Circle the letter(s) of the appropriate answer(s) for each of the following. Discuss these answers
with the people in your group and prepare to give supporting arguments for your selections.
1 Mathematics is a subject about:

A logical thinking
B illogical thinking
C things that exist in nature
D things that do not really exist at all
E things that are certain
F things that are not certain.
2 Problems in mathematics can best be solved by using:

A clever tricks
B experiments
C computers
D graphic calculators
E trial and error
F investigations
G discussion
H the answers in the back of the textbook.
3 Mathematics is a subject that should be studied by:

A people who are interested in it
B engineers and other people who want to apply it
C people who are challenged by it
D people who want to become better thinkers
E people who are intrigued by its aesthetic qualities
F people who want to become better artists
G people who want to improve their overall academic performance
H people who want to improve their college entrance exams
I all Diploma Programme candidates
4 Which of the following best describes mathematics?

A a body of knowledge
B a practical tool
C a cornerstone of philosophy
D the perfection of the logical method
E the key to understanding nature
F an intellectual game
G an aesthetic experience.
5 One plus one is:

A always equal to two
B sometimes equal to two
C never equal to two
D too philosophical to think about.
6 Parallel lines:
6 never intersect
7 always intersect
8 do not exist.
7 Which of the following quotations best captures the essence of mathematics?

A A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isnt
there.
Charles Darwin
B Pure math is a game. Its fun to play. We play it for its own sake. Its more fun than
applying it. Most of the math that I teach is never used by anyone. Ever.
Ted Williams, Prep School Mathematics Teacher
C If you ask your mother for one fried egg for breakfast and she gives you two fried eggs and
you eat both of them, who is better in arithmetic, you or your mother?
Carl Sandburg
D Mathematics is a game played according to certain simple rules with meaningless marks on
Comments for the teachers use:
1 Do any mathematical statements seem illogical at first glance? Why, for example, do we say
+ = % 2?
It will be difficult to associate all aspects of mathematics with natural phenomena. Try
finding - 1 = i in a natural setting.
Mathematics is not the total solution that some people claim it to be. It has been found
(Gdels Incompleteness Theorem) that any system of logic (mathematics included) will by
its very nature be incomplete. That is to say, certain questions will be unanswerable. Consider
the following paradox:
If the Barber of Seville shaves all men in Seville who do not shave themselves, then who
shaves the Barber?
Can we apply this question to the formation of mathematical knowledge? For example, is
mathematical knowledge formed in some experimental manner?
2 What is the basis of the formation of mathematical knowledge?
34Who is interested in mathematical knowledge and why?
May mathematicians consider theorems like Euclids or other mathematical proofs to be
works of art?
Why must all Diploma Programme candidates take mathematics? Perhaps justification
comes with the choice of answers for question 4, most of which come from a description
of mathematics by Morris Kline.
5 Is A the obvious answer here?
After all, Bertrand Russell took 362 pages in Principia Mathematica to prove that 1 + 1 = 2.
And we can certainly think of examples of nature from the very simple to the complex
where the meaning of to add does not function in the usual mathematical sense. Consider,
for example: What is the sum of one drop of water with another drop of water? This
example may seem trivial, but it must not be quickly dismissed. The branch of mathematics
known as Chaos Theory was developed only when mathematicians were able to see that
1 + 1 does not always equal 2 in the natural world (see The Meaning of To A dd: The
Mathematical Experience, by Davis and Hersh).
6 Students are often surprised to learn that all three answers may be correct, as they tend to
live in some sort of Euclidean world. See notes in From Other Times and Places.
7 The real issue in this question is one of truth. What kind of truth are we talking about?
How does the formation of mathematical knowledge differ from that of scientific
knowledge and historical knowledge?
What role does logic play in the formation of mathematical knowledge?
How does mathematical proof compare to proofs in other forms of knowledge?
What is the value of acquiring mathematical knowledge?
Most of the geometry taught in schools is based upon the work Euclid undertook over 2000
years ago. However, in the early nineteenth century brilliant mathematicians altered the work of
Euclid and formed geometries that gave rise to mathematical knowledge seemingly contrary to
that of Euclid. The two mathematicians who formed these non-Euclidean geometries were
Riemann and Lobachevsky. Examples of different conclusions reached by the three geometries
include:
Euclidean Lobachevskian Riemannian
Parallel lines do not intersect always intersect do not exist
The sum of the angles of equal to 180 less than 180 more than 180
a triangle are
Riemann and Lobachevsky came to these different conclusions by falsifying Euclids 5th
postulate (through any point on a plane there is one and only one line parallel to a given line).
When this postulate was replaced with other postulates, the entire system of axioms remained
consistent, and eventually gave rise to different conclusions. This example shows that how we
describe the world mathematically is not necessarily dictated by nature.
Qu o t a t i o n s
Mathematics may be defined as the subject in which we never know what we are talking
about, nor whether what we are saying is true.
Bertrand Russell
The most distinct and beautiful statements of any truth must take at last the mathematical form.
Henry David Thoreau
How can it be that mathematics, being after all a product of human thought independent of
experience, is so admirably adapted to the objects of reality?
Albert Einstein
Re f e r e n c e s
Davis, PJ & Hersh, R, The Mathematical Experience, (1999) Mariner Books, ISBN 0395929687
Eves, HW, A n Introduction to the History of Mathematics, 6th edition, (1990) College Pub, ISBN
0030295580
Kline, M, Mathematics in Western Culture, (1965) Oxford University Press, ISBN 019500714X
Russell, B, Principia Mathematica, (1997) Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0521626064
Lesson 13: Numbers and Numerals
Co n t e x t
Most of us are so familiar with the system of numerals we use that it is hard for us to appreciate
certain features of that very system. In order to highlight these features, this lesson asks students
to design their own system of numerals. In this way, shortcomings and ambiguities in what they
create can demonstrate more clearly the necessary characteristics of an effective system for
representation and manipulation of numbers.
As numbers are so fundamental to mathematics, this lesson could serve as an introduction to that
area of knowledge in the Theory of Knowledge guide.
Aim s
To distinguish between numbers and the symbols which represent them.
To make evident some of the assumptions embedded in our use of numerals.
To recreate and highlight some of the great leaps forward in number representation
throughout the history of mathematics.
Divide the class into small groups. Hand out some paper for rough work. Provide a
transparency and markers so that each group can present its scheme to the class.
It is important to allow sufficient time for sharing of students work across groups since it is here
that the lessons aims can largely be fulfilled. Suggested time allocations are:
30 minutes for devising a system
30 minutes for presenting the systems to the other groups
20 minutes for summing up.
One copy of the following focus activity and discussion questions should be given to each
group.
The student handout Numeral Systems from Different Parts of the World provided with this
lesson plan could serve as a follow-up homework assignment to be discussed in the next session.
Give the students the following task:
1 To invent a series of symbols to represent numbers.
These symbols should not be the same as any numeral system known to them.
The number of different symbols and how they may be combined with one another (if
at all) is entirely their choice.
2 To explain their numeral system to another group of students.
To show their audience how to represent:
Three
Forty-five
Twenty
One hundred and seventeen
3 Devise a series of problems for other students to solve, using their system of symbols.
What is the advantage of employing place value?
Why does the number system which we generally use have base 10?
What is the advantage of having a numeral for zero?
Is there a difference between zero and nothing?
Teac her Not es

A set of assumptions will probably manifest itself. These assumptions generally involve the
following concepts.
Place Value: the meaning of a given symbol changes according to its position in the
numeral sequence representing the number.
Base 10: the value of a given symbol increases tenfold for every single shift of position to
the left.
Zero: students often omit a symbol for zero in their initial scheme, but invent one when its
desirability becomes clear.
Can we think of mathematics as a language? Which features of language does it possess?
Look closely at the following quotation. Do you agree with it?
N umbers constitute the only universal language.

Nathaniel West
Many words refer to objects or classes of objects in the world (that is, they have a
denotation). What do numerals denote or refer to?
Hom ew ork Assignm ent
Consider the information supplied on the handout Numeral Systems from Different Parts of the
World.
Prepare responses to these questions.
How many symbols are needed in each system?
Does the system use a base? If so, what is it?
Does it employ place value?
Does it use a zero?
Where exactly did each of these civilizations exist?
What do the dates associated with the development of each number system suggest?
Qu o t a t i o n s
One, two, buckle my shoe; three, four, knock at the door. Nursery Rhyme
Philosophy is written in this grand book, the universe, which stands continually open to our
gaze. But the book cannot be understood unless one first learns to comprehend the language
and read the letters in which it is composed. It is written in the language of mathematics.
Galileo
Re f e r e n c e s
McLeish, J, Number, (1991) Flamingo, ISBN 0006544843
Joseph, GG, The Crest of the Peacock, (1991) Penguin, ISBN 0140125299
St udent Handout
N u m e r a l Sy s t e m s f r o m Di f f e r e n t Pa r t s o f t h e Wo r l d
Lesson 14: A Show of Hands
Co n t e x t
This lesson can be used as an introduction to TOK work on perception, since it addresses the
following questions.
How far do we trust and rely on our sensory perceptions?
How does our knowledge change when our perceptions are shown to be wrong?
Aim s
To examine the nature and reliability of knowledge gained by perception.
To examine the relationship between perception, knowledge and belief.
Students should not be forewarned of this activity. Total time should involve no more than
3040 minutes including 510 minutes to photocopy hands and retrieve the copy. The remaining
2530 minutes should be used for class discussion.
Take the class to an available photocopier. Have the students remove all rings and bracelets.
Photocopy the right hand of every student. Work out some method of identifying (only for the
teacher) which copy belongs to which student.
Move back to the classroom. Lay out the copies on desks in a random order and allow the
students five minutes to identify and retrieve their hand.
Lead the class in a discussion of what led them to think that they had identified the correct hand
as their own. Reserve the correct identification until after students have had some time to explain
why they feel they have identified their own hand. Reveal the correct and incorrect choices, then
discuss how their perception was correct or faulty.
How did you form your hypothesis about which copy was yours and which ones were not?
What factors influenced your final decision?
Was your final choice a matter of picking what was left after eliminating all the obviously
incorrect, or was a different process at work?
What different types of perception were involved in your choice?
What types of evidence were involved in your choice?
If you picked incorrectly, how and why was your knowledge false? Is there such a thing as
false knowledge?
What does this exercise suggest about the knowledge gained from perception? How reliable
is it? Is something more than perception necessary for knowledge to be gained?
Pe r c e p t i o n
In which areas of knowledge is perception essential for the acquisition of that knowledge?
Is there such a thing as knowledge which is independent of perception? If so, what sort of
knowledge would it be?
K now ers and K now ing

What, if anything, is the difference between believing and knowing?
The Art s
What kinds of accurate and informative statements do images convey?
Platos Cave (c350BCE) examines the question of image and realitywhat is real and what is
merely a shadow of what is real. Well-known visually ambiguous illustrations, by Escher, for
example, could be used to reinforce the aims of the lesson.
As technology and multimedia become more prevalent in education and in students lives, will
there be a parallel increase in relying on graphical information to make judgments?
Qu o t a t i o n s
To know and yet think we do not know is the highest attainment. Not to know and yet think
we do know is a disease.
Lao-Tzu
All human knowledge is uncertain, inexact and partial. Bertrand Russell
He walked toward the sheets of flame. They did not bite his flesh, they caressed him and
flooded him without heat or combustion. With relief, with humiliation, with terror, he
understood that he also was an illusion, that someone else was dreaming him.
Jorge Luis Borges
Re f e r e n c e s
Abel, R, Man is the Measure (Chapter 3 and 4), (1997) Free Press, ISBN 068483636X
Discovering Psychology Series, Film 7, Sensation and Perception
National Geographic Video, The Invisible World
Gaarder, J, Sophies World, (1996) Boulevard (Mass Market), ISBN 0425152251
Lesson 15: Myths and Fairy Tales
Co n t e x t
Many students regard myths and fairy tales as sources of purely fictional entertainment. Yet they
have been and still are an important source of knowledge and understanding.
Students should consider the ways in which myths and fairy tales might be understood as part of
history, psychology, religion and, of course, the use of myth as a pejorative term to indicate
falsehood. What sort of understanding is provided by myths? What truths, if any, do they contain
and if they contain truths, how can they be verified? How much of what we think to be
knowledge or reasonable belief today might, on closer analysis, turn out to have been myth (in
the pejorative sense)?
When we realize and reflect upon the universal importance and presence of myths in human
civilization, we can be brought to realize the deep human need for qualitative maps of reality to
complement the purely quantitative maps of reality provided by the physical sciences. We might
also realize the equally dangerous consequences of neglecting the quantitative maps of reality.
Students may be brought to realize that our knowledge and understanding requires a sensitive
balance between the powers of imagination and those of reasonthat upsetting the balance can
lead either on the one hand to impersonal, inhuman forms of understanding and knowledge or,
on the other, to the equally oppressive tyranny of fiction and fantasy.
Aim s
To analyse the nature of myths and fairy tales as sources of knowledge and understanding
about ourselves and our environment.
To compare the knowledge and understanding which can be gained from these sources with
scientific knowledge and understanding.
Teachers need only familiarize themselves with a few myths and fairy tales and bring examples in
to their class. If further research is required they could turn to writings by Bruno Bettleheim, Carl
Jung and Joseph Campbell.
Ask the students to collect together as many myths and/ or fairy tales as they can and bring them
to the next lesson. Try to resist requests for further clarification of the task, because it is to be
hoped that there will be a variety of interpretations as to what a myth and what a fairy tale is,
which will be reflected when the material is presented. This can form a starting point for a
discussion of their nature and epistemological status.
Ensure that you bring your own selection of myths and fairy tales from your own and other
cultures. You may wish to bring some writings on myths and fairy tales to stimulate some more
discussion.
1 What is a myth?
You may wish to point out the etymological origin of the English word myth, namely
from the Greek mythos meaning a speech/ utterance/ word in the sense of a story. This
contrasts with logos, meaning word in the sense of rational discourse, discussion,
argument. Myths, in one sense, are concerned with storytelling, giving meaning, purpose,
value and direction to our lives (that is, qualitative forms of understanding and knowledge).
This contrasts with the sciences, which are not normally concerned with questions of human
or divine purpose or value judgement, but are rather seen as providing only quantitative
maps of reality. These assumptions can, of course, be challenged.
2 Can myths provide a way of understanding (ourselves and our world) that is complementary
to that provided by logic, science, social science and religion (with which myths are so
intimately connected)?
Myths are often concerned with explaining the origins of features of our landscape. The
explanation might give an account of how, for example, a mountain, rock or river acquired
the features it now possesses. Or myths might relate to features of animals, such as the claws
of a lion, the stripes of a tiger, or the spots of a leopard. Or they might relate to human
characteristicssuch as the origin of a race, nation or tribe. Or they might relate to
metaphysical and ontological concerns such as why humans are so powerful and destructive.
What explains the origin of our propensity for good and evil? What is the origin of moral
principles? Why is there suffering? Why is happiness so fleeting?
Myths and fairy tales have provided answers which are characteristically anthropomorphic.
They provide answers that are stories. Can they be regarded as true or valid in any sense,
now that the sciences (both physical and social) have come to dominate all our accepted
means of understanding and explaining?
3 To what degree is it possible and desirable to arrive at explanations and knowledge of our
world that are free of all human value judgements and perspectives? Can science ever be
value-free and totally objective?
4 What are the comparative roles of reason and imagination in science and in myths and fairy
tales?
Myths and fairy tales can be linked to many elements of TOK. Do myths, for example, contain
their own logic? How can we define a mythological use of language; and how are mythological
and religious forms of language related?
Myths and fairy tales provide potential sources of understanding and knowledge of our
environment which may or may not be compatible with those provided by the sciences. The
same could be said of our understanding of ourselves.
In some human sciences, such as psychology, myths and fairy tales have assumed great
importance: for example, in Freudian and Jungian psychoanalysis as the archetypes of the
unconscious. In the study of history, myths and mythological language play a major role.
Modern Myths: what myths (in the sense of stories that are assumed to be true, but have little or
no evidence or reasonable justification to support them) are there today in society? Possible
examples may include the popularity of the supernatural, phenomena such as fortune telling and
psychic powers, also the fascination with UFOs and crop circles, and modern mythologies such
as the Star Wars trilogy and Star Trek in many Western countries. This fascination could be
related to a human reaction against the cold, impersonal, rational picture of reality presented by
the physical sciences, with UFOs replacing visitations by gods to compensate for our loneliness in
a meaningless universe devoid of purpose.
Another example of modern mythology might be the rise in popularity of New Age religions
and the revival of talk of Mother Earth (a delicate, creative, female life force) in response to
environmental concerns and the destructive effects of understanding the earth in purely
mechanical, materialistic, scientific terms. Again, this concerns the difference between qualitative
and quantitative forms of knowledge and understanding.
There are many possibilities for classroom activities, from discussions to debates to dramatic
representations of myths. Could one say that myth and the arts are closely intertwined, where one
is re-enacting a story or a drama, weaving together meaning and purpose, in contrast to science,
which appears unable to articulate understanding into drama and appears unable to give
direction and purpose to human knowledge?
Qu o t a t i o n
Fairy tales or fairy land is nothing but the sunny country of common sense . . . the world is
a wild, startling and delightful place which could have been otherwise . . . fairy tales provide
a certain way of looking at life: certain things are necessary (in the sense that it cannot be
imagined otherwise) in nature. There is no necessary law saying that eggs must turn into
birds or that fruit falls in Autumn. The explanation of such events is magic, just like the
answer to the question why do mice turn into horses in Cinderella.
Nature is best explained by fairy book terms: charm, spell, enchantment (rather than
laws, necessity, tendency et cetera), for they express the arbitrariness of the facts of nature
and their mystery. A tree grows fruit because it is a magic tree; water runs downhill because
it is bewitched, et cetera.
This elementary wonder, however, is not mere fancy derived from the fairy tales; on the
contrary, all the fire of the fairy tales is derived from this . . . This is proved by the fact that
when we are very young children we do not need fairy tales. Mere life is interesting enough.
Nursery tales only echo an almost pre-natal leap of interest and amazement. These tales
say that apples were golden only to refresh the forgotten moment when we found that they
were green. They make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild
moment, that they run with water.
Orthodoxy, GK Chesterton
Re f e r e n c e
Bettelheim, B, The Uses of Enchantment, (1989) Vintage Books, ISBN 0679723935
Lesson 16: Why was Thales Wrong?
Co n t e x t
This lesson can be used as an introduction to the problems of knowledge in the natural sciences.
Thales (c624c545BCE) was a Greek philosopher, mathematician and astronomer. He was one
of the Seven Sages named by Plato, and according to Aristotle was the founder of physical
science.
Aim
To exemplify the test of a scientific hypothesis.
One week in advance of the lesson students should be asked to spend some time observing the
night sky. In particular, they should note the pattern of the stars on two occasions on the same
evening, making the second observation about two hours after the first.
The lesson will take 40 to 60 minutes, including the initial 15 minute presentation by the teacher.
An OHP and screen will be required, and the transparencies (Thales OHPs 1, 2 and 3), included
with this lesson.
Begin the lesson by discussing how the pattern of the stars appears to move in great circles
(OHP 1). Continue by describing Thaless explanation of this phenomenon (OHP 2). The key
features are as follows.
The bowl of the sky which holds in the waters which surround the land.
The eternal fires which burn outside the sphere.
The windows through which the fires are glimpsed. The little fires are the stars.
The God who turns the bowl carrying the stars and so causes the nightly rotation of the
pattern of the stars.
Most of the discussion will be directed by student answers to the question Why was Thales
wrong? The discussion might proceed as follows.
The little windows will let in water as the sphere turns below the horizon. Be unfair and
point out that portholes do not leak.
A God turning a handle is not science. What other mechanism could there be? Does it
matter?
What about the sun or moon? Point out that Thales is attempting to explain the movement
of the stars, not objects very different in appearance.
What about the little fires in the sky? Do they all move in the same way?
Why do the planets not follow this pattern? The Greeks called them planetes, or wanderers
(OHP 3).
Was Thales wrong because his explanation did not fit the facts?
Are you sure he was wrong?
Are disciplines other than cosmology equally susceptible to extraordinary knowledge claims?
Thaless explanation is an example of a hypothesis which was a product of its time. How
does this compare with other explanations offered in the past?
Can you identify historical examples of seemingly wild claims later being substantiated?
Can you think of contemporary explanations of natural phenomena which might be
ridiculed in the distant future?
Qu o t a t i o n
It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data.

Arthur Conan Doyle, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
Re f e r e n c e s
Koestler, A The Sleepwalkers (1959) Penguin Books
Th a l e s : OH P 1
Why does the night sky do what it does?
A first observation
Pole Star
The pattern of stars appears to rotate to the right. The pattern remains the
same with all of the individual stars appearing to make a circular movement
around the pole star.
Th a l e s : OH P 2
BOWL IS
TURNED NIGHTLY
ETERNAL FIRES
E
BURNING OUTSIDE
THE BOWL
The bowl is turned nightly, carrying the pattern of little fires in great circles
around the axis. The stars are glimpses of the eternal fire seen through little
windows in the bowl of night and day.
Th a l e s : OH P 3
Not all of the little fires move in great circles. A small number loop back on
themselves. The Greeks called them planetes, or wanderers.
Lesson 17: One Persons Hypothesis is
Another Persons Dogma
Co n t e x t
Many students think of hypotheses as belonging only to science, but the idea of educated
guessing and testing belongs to nearly all ways of knowing. Students should consider the number
of ways in which belief might be understood. Check to see if the term initially carries only
religious connotations. This lesson can be helpful almost anywhere in the course.
Aim
To examine how hypotheses, and the beliefs that underlie them, are formed.
The lesson could be managed in one class period of 50 minutes, but two would be preferable.
Prepare multiple copies of the student handout.
Divide the class into groups of no more than four students. Distribute the handout and allow the
class time to read it. Depending on the total number of students, discussion can be a whole class
debate, or as parallel debates.
Refer to the student handout.
How is t he Ac t ivit y Int roduc ed?

Simply say that students will discuss and debate a position they may find difficult or unusual, and
that they should defend their hypothesis until such time as another group gives them irrefutable
proof that they are wrong.
Assign each group a hypothesis (A or B or C). Instruct them to imagine all the possible reasons
they could give in defence of their hypothesis.
Teac her Not es

Students may need some advice as to possible strategies to defend their position. For instance,
group A could add to their hypothesis the theory that there are nocturnal and diurnal properties
that explain why night and day have this effect, but that also explain the behaviour when
anomalies occur, such as fire making it rise at night, and cold water making it drop in the day
time. This makes their position almost impregnable. C should be asked to remember that their
spirits are capricious, which destroys any attempt to subvert their hypothesis with the systematic
behaviour of the thermometer And so on
Lesson 17: One Persons Hypothesis is Another Persons Dogma
St udent Handout
The Three Martians

Three Martians, A, B and C, were crossing the Great Victoria Desert when they came upon an
object (a thermometer) which had possibly been lost by an explorer.
Having observed it for a few days, they realize that there is something inside it (the column of
mercury) which at different times can be seen to be in different positions.
They discuss the possible reasons for such strange behaviour.
A proposes the hypothesis that the behaviour is related to the time of day. This would explain
why at night the column drops, and why it rises during the day.
B suggests that the reason must be heat and cold, which also would explain why it drops at night
and rises during the day.
C says that both A and B are wrong. The real reason for the movement lies in the nature of the
enclosed substance that is animated by invisible spirits who adopt a capricious behaviour when
imprisoned. These spirits make the substance rise or fall whenever they feel like it. This would
explain what both the other hypotheses have explained; moreover, it would explain any
variation, at any time and under any circumstances.
How is each hypothesis formed? How do they differ? Why do they differ if all three are
Martians?
What are the roles of intuition, prejudice, inductive and deductive thinking in forming the
hypotheses?
What assumptions or beliefs are behind each hypothesis? How do these beliefs affect the
questions the Martians will ask?
What are the virtues of each hypothesis?
How would you test each hypothesis? How would the Martians test the hypotheses?
What would count as evidence against each hypothesis? Of what, in fact, would you have to
convince each person?
Suppose you agree with B. Could you help her convince A and C that their hypotheses are
false? Of what, in fact, would you have to convince C?
What are the requirements of any hypothesis in science?
What is the demarcation, if any, between scientific and pseudo-scientific knowledge claims?
A d d i t i o n a l Qu e s t i o n s
Depending on the level of the students, the following more sophisticated questions can be raised.
Do you experience the learning of scientific knowledge in school as resting on foundational
beliefs about the natural world?
Can we think of any knowledge claim that does not make a foundational or basic
assumption even though it may not be apparent?
If all our claims to knowledge are built upon basic beliefs about reality, how can we ever
change our point of view? Does innovation come about from those who are aware that
behind all our interpretations are assumptions that both allow knowledge and hinder it?
Platos student Aristotle explained gravity (the phenomenon of falling objects, if you like) by
saying that things sought their natural place in the universe. This was also the reason for flames
rising as they aspired to be with the sun. What a beautiful idea compared to our present views on
this. What view of the world allows for this notion of things that seek or aspire to be
somewhere else? Are there no beliefs lying behind the notion of the force of gravity, or of
curved space?
That previously held beliefs are the basis of our claims about the world can already be found in
Humes Critique of Induction. It might be worth a teacher exploring questions in relation to the
Principle of Uniformity, or the Principle of Causality.
Teachers might want to explore further the work of Kwasi Winedu, University of Ghana, for
differences and similarities between traditional and scientific societies in forming and testing
hypotheses.
Nearly all areas of TOK are touched by this exercise.
In language, the various meanings of belief should be noted. For instance, the phrase I
believe does not carry an identical meaning in the context of I believe in God to its use in
the context of I believe in honesty.
In reason, could we have argument at all without premises? If we did not have basic beliefs,
would we not be caught in an infinite regression?
In the human sciences, do different cultural beliefs lead to different values and hypotheses
for explaining behaviour?
In history, students might try to find areas where hypotheses are formed and tested in ways
similar to or different from those identified for the focus lesson. How do beliefs about the
past influence enquiry in ways perhaps not realized by the scholar?
The arts do not make claims in quite the same way, but do schools of painting or literature
have basic tenets that guide their activity?
In ethics, there is fertile ground for discussion of beliefs underlying moral action. For
instance, are beliefs about what is of value central to forming a code of morality?
Qu o t a t i o n s
The great tragedy of Sciencethe slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact.

TH Huxley
Man is a credulous animal and must believe in something; in the absence of good grounds
for belief, he will be satisfied with bad ones.
Bertrand Russell
Re f e r e n c e s
Olen, J, Persons and Their World, (1983) McGraw Hill College Div, ISBN 0075543117
Miller, M, Introduction to Logic, Living Logic, (1978)
Anderson, WT, Reality Isnt What It Used To Be, (1992) Harper Collins, ISBN 0062500171
Lesson 18: Scientific Claims: an African
Perspective
Co n t e x t
Certain knowledge claims are reliably supported by scientific activity. On the other hand, certain
traditional beliefs are justified in a less rigorous manner, although there are similarities in the ways
in which each claim might have come into existence: repeated observation, generalization,
inspired ideas, or prediction and explanation.
Given these similarities between the origin of scientific claims and these other traditional beliefs,
how do we know what counts as science?
By the subject matter?
By the nature of the explanation? By the theory or law involved?
By the proofs?
Or just by belief?
Aim
To investigate what constitutes a scientific knowledge claim and whether such claims can be
differentiated from other sorts of claims.
The activity could be completed in about one and a half hours.
This activity lends itself well to work in small groups. It might be advisable to mix the
membership of each group so as to spread the science-inclined students and any particular
national or cultural groups. On the other hand, concentrating such differences in particular
groups may enrich a subsequent discussion between groups.
Encourage students beforehand to bring examples of taboos or superstitions to the class.
Which of the following can be regarded as scientific claims?
1 During the first seven days after birth, it is dangerous to expose a child to the outdoors or to
strangers.
2 When a man and a woman both have sickle-cell anaemia, it is dangerous for them to have
children.
3 Singing while bathing is dangerous.
4 Bringing bundles of firewood from the farm into the village is dangerous.
Lesson 18: Scientific Claims: an African Perspective
5 Smoking cigarettes is dangerous.

6 Cutting a tree in the forest without performing certain rites is dangerous.
7 Fishing on Tuesdays is dangerous.
8 A live, non-insulated electric wire is dangerous to touch.
9 Pounding fufu after dark is dangerous.
10 Driving after drinking alcohol is dangerous.
Teac her Not es

1 In Ghana, infants are not displayed to the public or indeed officially named until
(traditionally) eight days after birth. This takes place at an outdooring ceremony. Various
explanations are concerned with high infant mortality rates in the past, or with the infants
susceptibility to infection. Thus there may be a social or a biological basis, or both, or
something elsesymbolic?
2 Sickle-cell anaemia is a genetically transmitted blood disorder particularly prevalent in
sub-Saharan Africa. When two carriers (that is, having sickle-cell anaemia), each possessing
only one copy of the faulty gene (and thus not seriously affected) have children, the chances
of any one child having full sickle cell anaemia is 25%. The carrier condition confers extra
resistance to malaria, and this is the reason for the high incidence of the gene in this part of
the world.
3 This is an old Akan taboo from Ghana, possibly related to the toxicity of the soap used in
the past.
4 Tied bundles of firewood could conceal weapons, or could provide a route for snakes to
enter the village undetected.
5 No note required.
6 There may possibly be some connection with the conservation of forests, especially given the
importance of a stock of plant species for herbal medicinal purposes.
7 The Ga of southern Ghana do not fish on Tuesdaysorigins in conservation or social
cohesion . . .?
8 As 5.
9 Fufu is a Ghanaian food preparation consisting of ground cassava, yam, cocoyam or
plantain which is pounded into a starchy paste, shaped into gelatinous balls and served with a
spicy soup containing fish or meat. Pounding after dark would require artificial lighting
which might attract insects into the mixture. Alternatively, a lack of light would prevent the
people involved from seeing what was happening to the dough. Also, pounding fufu is a
noisy activity
10 As 5 and 8.
Consider each of the claims given. Suggest how each of them could have come into
existence. In each case, what sorts of thinking processes and types of reasoning might have
been involved? Observation, generalization, application of generalizations, inspiration
Compare your answers for the different claims. Are there aspects of the thinking processes
involved which are common to most or all of them? If so, what are they?
Is it possible to construct very different, but equally believable, routes by which these claims
could come into existence? Compare different claims here. What problems are there in
suggesting their possible origins?
Which of the claims do you regard as being scientific? Justify your answers. Do you have a
single criterion for distinguishing the scientific from the non-scientific? Or is it necessary to
use several criteria? Has the distinction more to do with method or content or result, or
something else?
If a claim works in everyday life, is there any need for further explanation? Does it matter
what kind of explanation is provided?
To what extent is each of us as an individual justified in believing each of these claims?
Why do non-scientific beliefs persist in groups of people familiar with scientific explanation?
Explanations for taboos are often given in supernatural terms. Is it possible to reconcile
natural and supernatural explanations?
If science and taboos are both about laws, then how, if at all, do these types of laws differ?
Is this attempt to rationalize beliefs always justified? Are there beliefs which arose in quite
non-rational ways? If so, how?
Does knowledge always require that good reasons be provided?
In what way, if any, might the phrase good reasons vary across cultures?
What is meant by the scientific method? How is this method traditionally described in science
textbooks? Is this depiction an accurate model of scientific activity or could it be a
distortion?
How does the social context affect the questions and results of the scientific enterprise?
What is the demarcation between scientific and pseudo-scientific knowledge claims?
In the context of attempting to explain and predict human behaviour, what sort of approach
would be most effective? A scientific approach? An approach based on cultural beliefs?
To what extent is it necessary that a persons beliefs are consistent?
List some superstitions or other beliefs from your own background. What sort of claims are
these? How do they compare with the examples here?
Traditional beliefs are sometimes criticized on the basis that they do not explain things.
Consider Newtons Law of Universal Gravitation. What is and what is not explained here?
Is there a difference between science and medicine in terms of the explanations they aim at
or provide?
Qu o t a t i o n s
Science is facts; just as houses are made of stones, so is science made of facts; but a pile of
stones is not a house and a collection of facts is not necessarily science.
Henri Poincar
Science is nothing but trained and organized common sense. TH Huxley
Re f e r e n c e s
Chalmers, AF, What Is This Thing Called Science?, (1999) Hackett Pub Co, ISBN 0872204529
Wolpert, L, The Unnatural N ature of Science, (1994) Harvard University Press, ISBN 0674929810
Feynman, RP, The Character of Physical Law, (1994) Modern Library, ISBN 0679601279
Appleyard, B, Understanding the Present Science and the Soul of Modern Man, (1992) Picador, ISBN
0330320130
Wiredu, K, Gyekye, K, et al, Person and Community Ghanaian Philosophical Studies I, (1992) The
Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, ISBN 1565180046
Gyekye, K, A n Essay on A frican Philosophical Thought The A kan Conceptual Scheme, (1995) Temple
University Press, ISBN 1566393809
Lesson 19: The Growth of Scientific
Knowledge
Co n t e x t
This lesson is best used when the class has already devoted some time to the topic of scientific
knowledge, during which several examples of scientific claims, drawn especially from
experimental science studies, are established.
Aim s
To consider the nature of the growth of knowledge in the natural sciences.
To develop argument(s) for a particular growth explanation (either presented or created) as
well as arguments against other explanations (either presented or created).
To compare the growth of scientific knowledge with the growth of knowledge in other
areas of the TOK programme.
To consider the several ways in which the term growth might be used, and how these, in
turn, might influence the conclusions we reach about knowledge.
The lesson usually requires 4060 minutes. The class is best divided into groups of three or four
students. Each member of the group should receive a copy of the student handout, containing
the instructions and The Growth of Scientific Knowledge: A n A nalysis by Six Scientists.
Each group should be allowed 1520 minutes to discuss the various interpretations given with
the graphs or to create a graph that better represents the growth of knowledge. Each group
must give reasons in support of their selection as well as reasons why other interpretations were
not selected.
An open discussion should then follow, in which each groups findings and conclusions are
considered. An abundance of arguments and counter arguments is a good sign.
The following three pages (one page of instructions and two pages of graphs) should be copied
for each student.
Lesson 19: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge
St udent Handout
The Growth of Scientific Knowledge

Instructions
Each of you has been given a set of graphic interpretations put forward by six different scientists
concerning the growth of scientific knowledge.
1 Carefully study each of the interpretations given by the scientists.
2 Discuss these different interpretations with your group and select the one that you find
appropriate. If you find that none of the six ideas is appropriate, and you would like to
present another idea, then clearly illustrate or define your interpretation.
3 Make a brief note of the argument in support of your selection. List at least one reason for
each of the other interpretations as to why it has been rejected. Do not hesitate to use support
examples from your own experience of science or from your study of science in the Diploma
Programme.
4 Select a group leader who can communicate your selection and rationale to the rest of the
class.
In approximately 20 minutes we will reassemble to discuss results from each of the different
groups.
T h e Gr o w t h o f Sc i e n t i f i c K n o w l e d g e : A n A n a l y s i s b y Si x Sc i e n t i s t s
Six distinguished scientists have met to discuss to what extent scientific knowledge can be said to grow.
When asked to produce graphs representing the accumulation of knowledge (K) versus time (T), the
scientists replied as follows.
Scientist A demonstrated that the growth of scientific knowledge has occurred simply in a linear way as
shown below.
Scientist B showed that knowledge claims have not grown in straight linear fashion but curvilinearly.
Note that the curve represents a rapid growth of knowledge claims in the earlier days, while more
modern claims appear to occur less and less frequently.
Scientist C stated that she agreed with Scientist Bs curvilinear interpretation but that she disagreed with
the way the curve had been drawn. Scientist C stated that the most rapid growth has occurred not at the
beginning of recorded knowledge but rather at the end, as shown below.
Scientist D stated that the growth of scientific knowledge claims has come not in a strictly linear fashion
nor in a curvilinear way but rather in a piece-wise linear manner. He argued that the steps or break
points in the curve represent major discoveries (eg electricity, laws of motion, atomic energy).
Scientist E agreed with the spurt growth of knowledge described by Scientist D, but added yet another
point to consider. She stated that once a major claim of knowledge has come to light, other prior claims
may be falsified. Therefore we see that after a major stair-step jump, we have a slight drop off in total
claims still considered to be true.
Scientist F had to disagree with all others. He stated that the growth of scientific knowledge is all
relative to what we know at a particular time. He asserted that science has actually raised more questions
than it has answered. Indeed his curved graph shows a decrease in knowledge (that is, relative to the
amount of knowledge that humans actually thought they knew at a particular time).
What are the different meanings of the phrase to grow, and how do the implications
change with its changing meanings?
What are the different causes of the growth of scientific knowledge?
What are the factors that limit or contribute to the stagnation or decline of knowledge in the
natural sciences?
What are some of the factors that influence the problems or questions that scientists decide
to work on?
Does the element of chance play a role in the accumulation of scientific knowledge?
Does and/ or should a scientists gender or culture or personal beliefs influence his/ her
judgements as to what is or is not scientific knowledge or worthy of scientific investigation?
What role do different kinds of logic play in the growth of scientific knowledge?
Do notions of science appear to be becoming more complex as time goes by, or do ideas
appear to be reducing to a simpler form? How would one assess such an issue?
What is the notion of a paradigm shift, particularly as it is presented by Thomas Kuhn in his
Structures of Scientific Revolution?
Does the word growth predispose us to certain conclusions about knowledge?
How do other forms of knowledge such as mathematics, ethics, history, and the arts,
compare to science on this issue of growth?
Compare the accumulation of knowledge in an individual with the accumulation of
knowledge in a knowledge system. What can be said about each individuals accumulation of
knowledge? What are the factors that contribute to the differences in the accumulated
knowledge among individuals? Have these factors been identified in this lesson as
components of growth in scientific knowledge?
In terms of political judgements, how do political issues, such as government subsidies or
defence needs, contribute to activities in science?
In terms of ethical judgements, how does the urgency of a problem or the moral worth of a
problem contribute to or detract from scientific endeavours?
To what extent are scientific activities driven by economic considerations?
What do the efforts to achieve cold fusion imply about the way science grows?
What does Flemings discovery of penicillin imply about the nature of scientific growth?
What does the debate surrounding Darwins Theory of Evolution contribute to the growth of
scientific knowledge?
What do the experiences of Copernicus and Galileo suggest about the nature of scientific
change?
Qu o t a t i o n s
Science is not a system of certain, or well-established, statements; nor is it a system which

steadily advances towards a state of finality.
Karl Popper
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cosy indoor warmth of
traditional humanising myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigour, and the great spaces have
a splendour of their own.
Bertrand Russell
Re f e r e n c e s
Barrow, JD, Theories of Everything, (1991) Clarendon Press, ISBN 0198539282
Collins, H & Pinch, T, The Golem: what you should know about science, (1998) Cambridge University
Press, ISBN 0521645506
Chalmers, AF, What Is This Thing Called Science? (1999) Hackett Publishing Co, ISBN 0872204529
Abel, R, Man is the Measure, (1997) Free Press, ISBN 068483636X
Lesson 20: Webs of Explanation
Co n t e x t
Explanations in various disciplines often seem to rely on what is known from other disciplines.
This lesson investigates how different subjects are related in terms of such explanations. In this
way, the extent to which knowledge can be regarded as a continuum can be discussed. The
lesson is best used after the mid-point of the course.
Aim
To investigate the relationships between different forms of knowledge by focusing on
explanations.
Hand out copies of the statements sheet (in the focus activity) to the entire class. Ask the students
to classify the statements according to the two questions at the foot of the sheet.
St udent Handout
Statements
1 Organic remains turn into oil because high pressure and heat prevent organisms from utilizing
these remains.
2 The behaviour of subatomic particles can be described by mathematical functions.
3 Human qualities such as aggression and charisma are the result of the way that the human brain
works.
4 Ions behave as they do largely because of an imbalance of protons and electrons (that is, they
are charged particles).
5 Country X invaded country Y because Xs leader is aggressive and charismatic.
6 There are oil deposits under country Y because abundant plant and animal remains in that area
were crushed under pressure at high temperatures for millions of years.
7 Country X invaded country Y because country Y has large reserves of oil.
8 The brain works largely because of the movements of sodium and potassium ions through
brain cell membranes.
Question A To what extent does each of these statements belong in a particular subject
discipline?
Question B How can these statements be ordered in a sensible sequence?
Are the boundaries of disciplines fixed or changeable? Could we create a different set of
disciplines which would partition knowledge in a different way?
Do you think the traditional boundaries between disciplines are natural? Are they helpful to us?
Are there disciplines which rely largely on explanations from another discipline?
To what extent is it possible to seal off a discipline from other disciplines?
Is it possible to string together a number of statements so that one statement can be
explained by another statement far removed from it?
Is everything ultimately explicable in terms of subatomic particles? If not, why not? If so,
what would this mean?
Is there a distinct border between the human sciences and the natural sciences? Or is there
simply a continuum?
Is it possible to produce an ordered hierarchy of disciplines? If so, on what basis?
Teac her Not es

One diagram often constructed by students is illustrated below. Clearly, this is not the only
option. The main three issues highlighted by this scheme are:
1 alternative frameworks of explanation for history
2 a reductive sequence for the natural sciences which may or may not include psychology
3 the relationship of mathematics to the other subject disciplines.
Areas of
Knowledge
HISTORY HISTORY
PSYCHOLOGY GEOGRAPHY HUMAN

SCIENCES
BIOLOGY
CHEMISTRY NATURAL
SCIENCES
PHYSICS
MATHEMATICS MATHEMATICS
In what way, if any, should the methods of the natural sciences be exemplars for the social
sciences?
Can human knowledge be confined to what the natural sciences discover? What other
important enquiries are not covered by the natural sciences?
Are causes and reasons both required for full historical understanding?
Why is mathematics so important to the physical sciences?
It is instructive to examine the ways in which disciplines have been partitioned in the past, for
example, natural history and natural philosophy. Why are these categories no longer favoured?
The English use of the word science is quite different from that in Germanic and Scandinavian
languages, for example, where its meaning is more inclusive.
In modern times, a number of new interdisciplinary subjects have gained prominence, such as
biochemistry, geophysics, art history and economic history. Why?
Qu o t a t i o n s
God may have separated the heavens from the earth. He did not separate Astronomy from
Marine Biology.
Jonathan Levy
The historian makes a distinction between what may be called the outside and the inside of
an event When a scientist says Why did that piece of litmus paper turn pink? he means
on what kinds of occasions do pieces of litmus paper turn pink? ( the outside of the
event). When a historian asks Why did Brutus stab Caesar? he means What did Brutus
think which made him decide to stab Caesar? ( the inside of an event).
RB Collingwood
The human brain craves understanding. It cannot understand without simplifying; that is,
without reducing things to a common element. However, all simplifications are arbitrary and
lead us to drift insensibly away from reality.
Lecomte du Nouy
Re f e r e n c e s
Ryan, A, The Philosophy of the Social Sciences, (1976) Macmillan, ISBN 0333109724
Searle, J, Minds, Brains and Science, (1986) Harvard University Press, ISBN 0674576330
Casti, J, Searching for Certainty, (1991) Abacus, ISBN 0349104557

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DIPLOMA

Teacher Support Material

Lessons from Around

Sue Bastian, former chief assessor, New York

International Baccalaureate Organization 2000

International Baccalaureate Organization

Lesson 1 What Good are Schools? Matthew Thompson

Lesson 2 Does it Matter if what we Believe Eileen Dombrowski

Lesson 4 Exercises on Meaning John Mackenzie

Lesson 5 The Power of Names Julian Kitching

Lesson 6 Language and Symbolism Eileen Dombrowski

Lesson 7 Words and not Words: an Ulf Persson

Lesson 8 Nothingness Sue Bastian

Lesson 9 The Map is not the Territory Eileen Dombrowski

Lesson 10 Thinking Logically Julian Kitching

Lesson 11 Routes of Mathematical Manjula Salomon

Lesson 14 A Show of Hands Bill Frere

Lesson 15 Myths and Fairy Tales Matthew Thompson

Lesson 16 Why was Thales Wrong? David Wilkinson

Lesson 17 One Persons Hypothesis is John Mackenzie

The Indians spokesman replied:

Teac her Not es

Where is the evidence?

Excerpt from Letters from an Indian Judge to an English Gentlewoman

Teac her Not es

Much learning does not teach understanding. Heraclitus

A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence. David Hume

Ours is a Copious Language, and Trying to Strangers.

If names of countries are simply convenient ways of referring to particular geographical

Additional Information Concerning Akan Kinship Terminology

English Twi Relation Meaning

Grandmother Nana baa MoMo

Aunt Enna MoSi mother

Sister Nua baa Si sibling/female

Cousin Enna ba baa MoSiDa mother/child/female

Daughter Ba baa Da child/female

Key: Mo=mother; Fa=father; Si=sister; Br=brother; Wi=wife; Hu=husband; Da=daughter;

Example: MoSiDa indicates a persons mothers sisters daughter, a relation normally

Day (English) Day (Fanti) Male Name Female Name

Sunday Kwesida Kwesi Esi

Monday Dwoda Kodjo/koji Adjoa

Tuesday Benada Kobina Abena/Araba

Wednesday Wulkuda Kweku Akua/Ekua

Thursday Yawoda Kwaw/Yaw Aba/Yaa

Friday Fieda Kofi Afua/Efua

Saturday Memenda Kwame Ama

go to university after your Diploma after your Diploma Programme studies, or

This activity is similar to

I woke up at night and my language was gone

Aharon Amir, translated from the Hebrew by Abraham Birman

We live not on things, but on the meaning of things. Antoine de Saint-Exupry

The map is not the territory. Alfred Korzybski

Map Knowledge Maps made it easy for Euro-

You are presented with the following rule:

These are the cards.

These are the four situations.

Abacus Pythagoras Theorem Algebra

A TOK Quiz for Mathematical Knowledge

1 Mathematics is a subject about:

2 Problems in mathematics can best be solved by using:

3 Mathematics is a subject that should be studied by:

4 Which of the following best describes mathematics?

5 One plus one is: