Colonel By Secondary School
HZT4UE – Theory of Knowledge

Teacher: Mr. Vitzthum

Email:

Course Description:

The Theory of Knowledge (ToK) programme is central to the educational philosophy of the International Baccalaureate. It challenges students and their teachers to reflect critically on diverse ways of knowing and areas of knowledge, and to consider the role which knowledge plays in a global society. It encourages students to become aware of themselves as thinkers, to become aware of the complexity of knowledge, and to recognize the need to act responsibly in an increasingly interconnected world.

As a thoughtful and purposeful enquiry into different Ways of Knowing, and into different Areas of Knowledge, the ToK programme is composed almost entirely of questions.

The most central of these questions is: “How do we know that a given assertion is well grounded?” Assertions or judgements of this sort are termed “Knowledge Claims.”

Difficulties that arise within or across subject areas are called “Knowledge Questions.”

Areas of Knowledge Ways of Knowing

The Arts Emotion

Ethics Faith

History Imagination

Human Sciences Intuition

Indigenous Knowledge Systems Language

Mathematics Memory

The Natural Sciences Reason

Religious Knowledge Systems Sense Perception

Aims and Objectives

Aims

The aims of ToK are to engage students in reflection on, and in the questioning of, the bases of knowledge, so that they:

* develop an understanding of why critically examining knowledge claims is important

* develop a critical capacity to evaluate beliefs and knowledge claims.

* Make interdisciplinary connections

* Become aware of the interpretative nature of knowledge including personal and ideological biases

* consider that knowledge may place responsibilities on the knower

* understand the strengths and limitations of individual and cultural perspectives

* develop a concern for rigour in formulating knowledge claims, and intellectual honesty

Objectives

Having followed the TOK course, candidates should be able to:

* demonstrate an understanding of the strengths and limitations of various Ways of Knowing and of the methods used in the different Areas of Knowledge

* demonstrate a capacity to reason critically

* make connections between and across Ways of Knowing and Areas of Knowledge

* demonstrate an understanding of knowledge at work in the world

* identify values underlying judgements and knowledge claims pertinent to local and global issues

* demonstrate an understanding that personal views, judgements and beliefs may influence their own knowledge claims and those of others

* use oral and written language to formulate and communicate ideas clearly

Evaluation

The course has two separate components:

For the Ontario course code HZT 4UE:

Course Work: 70%

Summative Tasks:

IB Presentation 20%

TOK Journal 10%

For the International Baccalaureate:

Part 1 – TOK Presentation 33% (Internal Assessment)

Part 2 – TOK Essay 67% (External Assessment completed in grade 12)

Essay (1200 - 1600 words) on prescribed title chosen from a list provided every year by IBO.