Module PHLM010 for 2019/0
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
PHLM010: Introduction to Philosophical Methods
This module descriptor refers to the 2019/0 academic year.
Module Aims
The module aims to introduce you to a range of different philosophical methods. It also aims to encourage you to engage critically with those methods and learn how to apply these methods in your own research.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
---|---|
Module-Specific Skills | 1. Understand a range of different methods for approaching philosophical problems 2. Analyse and evaluate those methods in a rigorous, informed and critical way 3. Learn to employ a range of different methods in your own philosophical work |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 4. Appreciate the diversity of different methods used in philosophical research 5. Critically and rigorously evaluate a range of different philosophical styles and approaches 6. Reflect critically upon the relationship between philosophy and other disciplines |
Personal and Key Skills | 7. Engage in complex arguments verbally and in small groups 8. Critically engage with written texts in a clear and rigorous way 9. Present complex ideas to peers and respond to questions in a clear and respectful manner |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Conceptual analysis
- Naturalism
- Phenomenology
- Genealogy
- Experimental philosophy
- Historical, sociological and ethnographic approaches
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
---|---|---|
22 | 278 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
Category | Hours of study time | Description |
---|---|---|
Scheduled learning and teaching activities | 22 | The module will be taught as a series of 11 x two-hour seminars, organised around open-ended discussion of pre-assigned readings. |
Guided independent study | 66 | 11 x 6 hours for seminar readings |
Guided independent study | 8 | Preparation of seminar presentation |
Guided Independent Study | 4 | Preparation of formative essay |
Guided Independent study | 100 | Reading for and writing of essay 1 |
Guided Independent Study | 100 | Reading for and writing of essay 1 |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://www.rep.routledge.com/
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: http://plato.stanford.edu
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|
Seminar Presentation | 10 minutes | 1-9 | Verbal Feedback |
Formative essay | 500 words | 1-9 | Written feedback |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
---|---|---|
100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|---|
Essay 1 | 50 | 3,750 words | 1-6,8 | Written Feedback |
Essay 2 | 50 | 3,750 words | 1-6,8 | Written Feedback |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
---|---|---|---|
Essay 1 | Essay 1 (3,750 words) | 1-6,8 | August/September reassessment period |
Essay 2 | Essay 2 (3,750 words) | 1-6,8 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Cappelen, H., Gendler, T. S., & Hawthorne, J. (eds.) (2016). The Oxford Handbook of Philosophical Methodology. Oxford University Press.
Daly, C. (2010). An Introduction to Philosophical Methods. Broadview Press.
Haug, M. (2014). Philosophical Methodology: The Armchair or the Laboratory? Routledge.
Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962). The Phenomenology of Perception. Routledge. (1st published 1945)
Knobe, J. & Nicholds, S. (2008). Experimental Philosophy. Oxford University Press.
Kuhn, T. S. (1970). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Chicago University Press. (1st edition 1962)
Ryle, G. (1949). The Concept of Mind. Penguin.