TAP 2015-16, ‘Approaches to Course Design’

Draft course design assignment: part 1

Rationale for your draft course design [up to 200 words]

I have designed this course based on a constructivist approach to teaching. It will
present a new topic by integrating that topic with content and concepts already
familiar to second year students but what it will also do is form an important basis so
that students will be able to better understand later specialist courses in
mathematical logic, philosophical logic, and history of analytic philosophy. During the
course I have benefitted greatly from an increased awareness of my students needs
because of critical reflection and this has influenced the content and structure of the
course. The first aspect is that I have focused on one central figure in order to give a
historical narrative to the students. In teaching students I found this to be something
the wider course lacked and which they benefitted from. Further I found that it was
better to cover less material but go into more depth which gave the students the
ability to go into greater depth on other topics. I found the best way to teach the
difficulty material was exposure, to repeat and re-examine the parts of the course
until the student saw the light. The course is structured to reinforce students’
knowledge and give them time and means to communicate questions.

[Explain the rationale for your draft and how you have used readings (whether TAP
readings or literature that you have identified yourself) and your own critical
reflections during the programme to inform the approach you have chosen for your
course design.]

Course title: David Hilbert’s Philosophy of Mathematics

Learning outcomes:
-Familiarity with leading figures of philosophy of mathematics and their views
-Familiarity with main areas of early philosophical debate
-Understanding of Hilbert’s late and early philosophy of mathematics
-Ability to discuss and compare the different stages of Hilbert’s views

[Devise three, four or five learning outcomes that will explain to students what those
students who complete the course successfully should know and be able to do.]

Short course description [150-200 words]:

This course introduces Part 1B (2nd year) philosophy students to the philosophy of
mathematics. No prior knowledge of the philosophy of mathematics will be assumed
but the course will assume at least one year of philosophy and basic logic, all of
which is covered in the first year. The course will provide students with a historical
narrative which tracks the philosophical development of one central figure of the
debate, David Hilbert. The course will cover the Frege Hilbert controvery, Hilbert’s
Program, Hilbert’s correspondence with Dedekind, Cantor, Poncaire and other
leading figures, Hilbert’s formalism. In general we will give a sense of Hilbert’s
philosophical views and how they influence and interact with other schools of thought
at the time. The course will provide a familiarity with the basic notions of meta-
mathematics and explain more general debates in philosophical logic and show the
broader philosophical significance of reoccurring notions such as consistency,
independence, proof, models, syntactic, semantic, proof theory, etc.
[Write a description that will capture prospective students’ interest. Explain what
level of student the course is aimed at and how the course fits within the wider
degree programme. Summarise what students will learn, how the course is
structured, and how the course fits within the wider degree programme. Indicate
whether prior knowledge or skills are required. If students with different types or
levels of knowledge or skills are eligible to take the course, explain how these
differences will be accommodated within the course.]

Teaching, learning and assessment activities:

Two supervisions: Students will be given a dedicated supervision on the subject in
which they will be given a question and preparatory readings and asked to write a
2000 essay to hand in before the supervision.
Eight lectures: A lecture course giving weekly lectures in which the students are
guided through the relevant material and asked to contribute to discussion and ask
questions.
Two revision supervisions with smaller groups: After the students have begun their
revision in Easter term there will be two dedicated revision supervisions in which the
students are able to bring what they didn’t understand to the lecturer and have the
lecturer repeat and explain the most important or difficulty parts of the course.
Students will also be able to email their supervisors with questions during this time.

[Describe the main teaching activities (e.g. lectures / classes / supervision / virtual
learning environment or ‘VLE’) and the main learning activities (e.g. assignments,
what students will be doing during teaching activities) and show how these are
aligned to the learning outcomes (i.e. how they will help students develop the
knowledge and skills that are important for this course). Explain these learning
outcomes will be assessed. Explain how students will receive feedback during the
course that will help them to fulfil their potential to progress towards the learning
outcomes.]

Course evaluation:
There will be the standard evaluation sheet at the end of the four lectures and at the
end of each lecture students will be asked to write down something they understand
and something they’d like to know more about. Further there will be an appeal for
students to email the tutor before each revision session. Students will then sit the
relevant exam.

[Describe how the course may be formatively evaluated (i.e. how the course
organiser and / or course teacher may evaluate the course while it is in progress) and
/ or evaluated when it’s complete.]