Upon completion of this Topic, you should be able to:

1. define what is philosophy

2. identify the branches of philosophy
3. explain the importance of studying philosophy
4. explain what is philosophy of education
5. relate the Malaysian Philosophy of Education to educational practice

o What is philosophy?
o Branches of philosophy
o Why study philosophy?
o What is the philosophy of education?
o Malaysian Philosophy of Education

References
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Preamble

This Topic discusses what is philosophy and the branches of philosophy such as metaphys ics,
epistemology, ethics and logic. In each of these branches of philosophy, philosophers ask
different questions; but on many issues there is overlap in the branches of philosophy. Also
discussed are the benefits of studying philosophy and its relationship to many different job
types and careers and the philosophy of education. The final part of the chapter discusses
briefly the Malaysian philosophy of education

What is Philosophy?

Most people find it difficult to define it what is philosophy as there is no single definition that
can be readily accepted without some controversy. Perhaps that is why it is called philosophy!
The word “philosophy” means “love of wisdom” which comes from the Greek word philos
meaning friendship or love) and sophia meaning wisdom. Some people say philosophy is too
abstract and even controversial. Philosophers themselves can't agree on any answer. Sure, the
name "philosophy" means "love of wisdom", but what's that? There has been a long and
glorious history of people called philosophers, but they talk about all kinds of topics in all
kinds of ways. It is not clear what, if anything, they have in common that makes them all
philosophers. The following are some dictionary definitions”

• Dictionary.com defines philosophy as the rational

investigation of the truths and principles of being,
knowledge, or conduct.
• American Heritage Dictionary defines philosophy as
the investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of
reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical
reasoning rather than empirical methods.
• Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines philosophy as
the analysis of the grounds of and concepts expressing
fundamental beliefs such as reality and values.

According to Professor Walter Sinnott-Armstrong (2008) philosophy asks the question “How
it all fits together”?. For example, if you want to learn about the human body, take a course in
physics or biology. If you want to learn about the human mind, take a course in psychology.
But if you want to learn about how the mind and body are related, or how biology is related to
psychology, then philosophy is for you!

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It has been remarked that you can study anything under the Philosophic study means
name of philosophy. Philosophy encompasses many the habit of always
subfields such as philosophy of law, of economics, of seeing an alternative.
biology, of physics, of mathematics, of psychology, of art, -William James
of music, of literature, and so on. Any and all of these
topics can be studied in a philosophical way when one asks
how they are related to each other in an overall world view.

Generally, philosophers deal with speculative issues

All men by nature desire to know...
It is owing to their wonder that men
both now begin and at first began to
philosophize.
-Aristotle
that are not subject to investigation through
experimental tests. Hence, philosophy is more
conceptual than science. However, like scientis ts,
philosophers formulate hypotheses which they
attempt to answer though reasoning and evidence.
This differentiates philosophy from poetry and
mysticism, despite it not being a science.

There is an attempt to divide philosophy according to geographical region. The broadest

classification is dividing philosophy into the Western tradition and Eastern tradition. In this
course, we will examine both these traditions though the division may be relatively arbitrary.
Regardless of tradition, philosophers are always engaged in asking questions, finding answers
to these question on many basic issues involving life.

Branches of Philosophy

The four main branches of philosophy are logic, epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics:

1. Metaphysics is the study of the nature of things focusing on what exists in the world,
what it is like and how it is ordered. Among the questions asked are”
o What is a person?
o What makes a person the same through time?
o Do people have minds? How do brains generate minds?
o How is the mind related to the body?
o Do people have free will?
o What is truth?
o What is beauty?

2. Epistemology is the study of knowledge itself and its origin. It is primarily

concerned with what we can know about the world and how we come to know it.
Typical questions of concern in epistemology are:

o What is knowledge?
o Do we know anything at all?
o How do we know what we know?
o Can we be justified in claiming to know certain things?

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3. Ethics is the study of the nature of right and wrong, and good and evil, forming the
foundations of morality, and the fine details of moral conduct. For example, a moral
philosopher may ask whether or not a rape victim should have the right to get an
abortion. Ethics is concerned with what we ought to do and what it would be best to
do. The questions asked are:

o What is good? What makes actions or people good?

o What is right? What makes actions right?
o Is morality objective or subjective?
o How should I treat others?

4. Logic is the exploration of the structure of argument and the extraction of knowledge
from evidence. Logic is one of the primary tools philosophers use in their inquiries; the
precision of logic helps them to cope with the subtlety of philosophical problems
and the often misleading nature of conversational language. Logicians ask such
questions as:

o What constitutes "good" or "bad" reasoning?

o How do we determine whether a given piece of reasoning is good or bad?

Some philosophers may be involved in a 5t h branch of philosophy which is researching the

works of other philosophers. These philosophers see great value in the texts of thinkers as far
back as the ancient Greeks, and study these texts both for their philosophical insight and
enjoyment. The aim is to understand the way in which people have answered such questions
in the past. In studying the history of philosophy one explores the ideas of such Plato,
Aristotle, Confucius, Kant, Rousseau, al-Farabi, Tagore and others.

As you can already tell, the different branches of philosophy overlap one another. For example,
a philosopher who is trying to figure out whether people ought to give everything they can spare
to the poor is asking an ethical question. In asking this question, he might wonder whether or
not standards of right and wrong are built into the fabric of the universe, which is a metaphysical
question. If he claims that people are justified in answering that question either way, he is
making an epistemological claim. At all steps of his reasoning, he will want to employ logic to
ensure that he is minimising the chance of making an error in reasoning. He may very well
look to some of the ethical writings of past philosophers to see how the most powerful
thinkers who came before him reasoned about the issue; i.e. giving to the poor.

Aspects of each branch of philosophy can be studied in isolation, but philosophical questions
have a way of leading to other philosophical questions, to the point that a full investigation of
any particular problem is likely eventually to involve almost the whole of the philosophica l
enterprise.

Philosophical questions arise in almost every disciplines. For example, the issue of ethics is of
concern in disciplines such as economics, science, law, business and so forth. This is why
philosophy also encompassed such areas as:

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• Philosophy of Law • Philosophy of History

• Philosophy of Economics • Philosophy of Language
• Philosophy of Science • Philosophy of Feminism
• Philosophy of Education • Philosophy of Politics

LEARNING ACTIVITY
a) What is philosophy?
b) Discuss the difference between metaphysics,
ethics, epistemology and logic?
c) “The different branches of philosophy overlap”. Discuss
d) “Most disciplines are involved in philosophical issues”
Explain.

Why Study Philosophy?

Since studying philosophy will not directly result in an ability to programme a computer,
manage a company, or diagnose and treat a disease, perhaps one might wonder why it is worth
studying at all? The answer is simple. While the study of philosophy does not provide one
with a particular set of "skills for a trade," the lifelong benefits it inculcates are virtually
limitless. Here are just a few. The study of philosophy enhances one’s ability in the following
areas (Thomas, 2008):

• Problem Solving Skills:

Philosophy is about asking difficult questions and developing answers which can be
reasonably and rationally defended against hard, sceptical questioning. You need to
learn how to analyse concepts, definitions and arguments in a way that is conducive
towards developing solutions for particular problems. You will be more sure about
your beliefs that are reasonable, consistent and well-founded because they have been
examined systematically and carefully.

• Communication Skills:
A person who excels at communicating in the field of philosophy can also excel at
communication in other areas. When debating on an issue, you need to express your
ideas clearly and precisely, both in speaking and in writing. Far too many problems in
debates about many issues can be traced to imprecise terminology, unclear concepts,
and other issues that would be overcome if people were better at communicating what
they are thinking.

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• Self-Knowledge:
It isn't just a matter of better communication with others that is helped by the study of
philosophy — understanding yourself is improved. The very nature of philosophy is
such that you get a better picture of what your beliefs simply by working through your
beliefs in a careful and systematic fashion.

• Persuasive Skills:
The reason for developing problem solving and communication skills is not simply to
gain a better understanding of the world, but also to get others to agree with that
understanding. Good persuasive skills are thus important in the field of philosophy
because a person needs to defend her own views and to offer insightful critiques of the
views of others. It is obvious that it would be difficult to persuade others on an issue if
one lacks the skill for communicating and explaining their positions.

These skills are essential in most jobs or careers. These skills can be readily transferred to a
wide variety of fields, not to mention things we do every day. Anything which requires
careful thinking, systematic reasoning, and an ability to ask and address difficult questions
will benefit from a background in philosophy.

Philosophy is not something for ‘eggheads’ in universities. In fact philosophy is for everyone.
All of us engage in philosophy in one form or another because we are ‘philosophising
creatures’ (Vuletic, 2006). Philosophy is about gaining a better understanding of ourselves
and our world. Since that is what humans naturally desire, humans quite readily engage in
philosophica l speculation and questioning. Each of us has some sort of philosophy and
already "does" philosophy when we think about and address issues which are fundamental to
questions about life, meaning, society and morality. We may never arrive at any final
answers, but in many ways it is the journey which is most important, not the destination.

Philosophy enables us to understand. Can one be happy if one goes through life without
questioning anything?. Philosophical inquiry, on the other hand, can be disquieting, offering no
guarantee that your hard work will yield the conclusions you hope for. Even worse, philosophy
gives you no guarantee that your investigations will yield any conclusion at all: at the end of the
day, you may find yourself not only minus the certainties with which you began, but also with
nothing else to put in their place. If you do philosophy, you may well have to learn to live with
perpetual uncertainty, while others, in their ignorance, happily profess perfect knowledge of things
they do not understand at all. But it is clear who has the better life: far better to understand, even if
the main thing you understand is the limit of your own knowledge.

LEARNING ACTIVITY
a) What are the benefits of studying philosophy?
b) “Can one be happy if one goes through life without
questioning anything? What do you think?

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What is Philosophy of Education?

Throughout the ages, various thinkers have been preoccupied with the most important
question in education; “What should humans learn to live successfully in society?”. Many
philosophers directly and indirectly dwelled on education. Hence, philosophy of education has
been described as the application of philosophical methods to the theory and practice of
education. Among the topics investigated in the philosophy of education are the nature of
learning, especially in children; the purpose of education, particularly the question of whether
the chief goal of educators should be imparting knowledge, developing intellectual
independence, or instilling moral or political values (Britannica.com. 2006).

The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy (2005) describes philosophy of education as the inquir y
into the ideas that dominate educational theory and policy. The central questions are what it is
worthwhile or necessary to teach, and what are the best ways of doing it. The answers to these
questions have differed depending on different views about human nature. For example, some
philosophers viewed the human mind as an empty pot that needs filling up while others
disagree with his view of the human mind, suggesting that humans have prior knowledge.

Philosophy of education is the study of the purpose, process, nature and ideals of education.
This can be within the context of education as a societal institution or more broadly as the
process of human existential growth, i.e. how it is that our understanding of the world is
continually transformed (be it from facts, social customs, experiences, or even our own
emotions).

Philosophy of Education deals with how children should be The education of the
educated, what they should be educated in, and what the individual, in addition to
ultimate purpose of education should be for society. This is promoting his own innate
an often neglected field of philosophy and, when it is abilities, would attempt to
addressed, it tends to only be in educational programmes develop in him a sense of
designed to train teachers In this context, it is a part of responsibility for his
pedagogy, which is learning how to teach. For some fellow-men in place of the
philosopher, the philosophy of education can often be glorification of power and
success in our present
tightly integrated with theology and religious indoctrina tio
society. (Albert Einstein,
n in order to instill religious values, doctrines, and
1949, On Education)
commitment at a young age.

Philosophy of education is concerned with the following questions: Do we want our children
to be educated for democracy or consumerism? Should children learn by rote memorization or
through creative problem solving? Does school exist to teach values or skills for use in the job
market? Because these decisions will affect the course of society for decades to come, the
questions asked are as important as those found in any other branch.

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MALAYSIAN PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

The National Philosophy of Education (NPE) formulate in 1987 is the most important
statement guiding the goal of education in Malaysia.

“Education in Malaysia is an on-going effort towards further developing the

potential of individuals in a holistic and integrated manner so as to produce
individuals intellectually, spiritually emotionally and physically balanced
and harmonious, based on a firm belief in and devotion to God. Such as
effort is designed to produce Malaysian citizens who are knowledgeable,
competent, who possess high moral standards, and who are responsible and
capable of achieving a high level of personal well-being, as well as being
able to contribute to the betterment of the family, society and the nation
at large”.
- Ministry of Education Malaysia, 1987

• “Education is an on-going effort”

A well-planned education system is able to equip students with the knowledge and skills
that will prepare them to adapt to changing situations throughout their lives.

• “Developing the potential of individuals”

Learners are endowed with different capabilities, talent and potential and it is the role
of education to develop these potentials. Education should seek to provide
opportunities that will nurture these talents and capabilities.

• “Balanced and harmonious”

Balanced means individuals who not only possess knowledge and skills but also have
high moral values, emotionally and physically well-balanced and have a firm belief in
God.

• “Firm belief in and devotion to God”

Belief in God translates to the universal core values of gratitude, compassion/empathy,
cooperation, courage, moderation, diligence, freedom, honesty/integrity, justice,
rationality, self-reliance, love, self-respect, public-
spiritedness, humility and modesty.

• “Possess high moral standards”

Citizens who know good from bad and understand the consequences of bad behaviour.
Citizens who are spiritual, believe and practice the universal values in daily lives.

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“Contribute to the betterment of the family, society and the nation”

Citizens who subscribe to the Rukun Negara and willing to defend the constitution, are
patriotic, tolerant and love their country.

REFERENCES

Philosophy Dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005
by Oxford University Press

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. (2006) Chicago. Illinois.

http://corporate.britannica.com/about/index.html

Sinnott-Armstrong, W. (2008). What is Philosophy? Department of Philosophy.

Dartmouth College. http://www.dartmouth.edu/~phil/whatis/wsa.html

Thomas, W. (2008). Why Does Anyone Need a Philosophy? The Atlas Society. Washington.
DC.

Vuletic, M. (2006). The Nature of Philosophy. What is Philosophy?

http://www.vuletic.com/hume/ph/philosophy.html#f6