1. Theory of Knowledge for the IB Subject Areas
TOK Advisory Introduction
Renton High School
September 22, 2014

2. Today’s Objectives Students should be able to:
Explain what ToK is & its role in the DP
Identify the 8 ways of knowing
Identify the 8 areas of knowledge
Explain what knowledge claims & questions are
Construct an knowledge question
Today’s Objectives

3. What do you know? Write down 5 things you KNOW are true
HOW do you know they are true
Could these truths NOT be true
Testable and consistant over time
What do you know?

4. How do you know it’s true?
Shared knowledge & personal knowledge
Justified true belief
(You have to believe it, it actually must be true and you have to prove it)
How do you know it’s true?

5. Aims of ToK “How do you know?” Explore how we acquire knowledge
Explore how we evaluate knowledge
Explore how culture affects how we know
Self reflection about beliefs & assumptions
Using knowledge to act responsibly
Aims of ToK

6. Language
Sense Perception
Emotion
Reason
Imagination*
Faith*
Intuition*
Memory*
*Added to curriculum for assessment 2015
How do you know those things YOU wrote down are true? Which ways of knowing did you use?
8 Ways of Knowing

7. Areas of Knowledge Mathematics The Natural Sciences The Human Sciences
The Arts
History
Ethics
Religious Knowledge Systems*
Indigenous Knowledge Systems*
*Added to curriculum for assessment 2015
Areas of Knowledge

8. In order to show application of ToK knowledge to real world situations, IB requires*:
Essay on a prescribed title (choose 1/6, 1600 words max, externally assessed)
Presentation on a contemporary issue (self-select, 10 minutes per student, internally assessed but moderated)
*Assessments are independent of the subject area assessments*
You will also keep a journal of your thoughts, connecting the ideas discussed in class with real world examples you come across, either in the media or in your personal experiences.
Class participation is discussion is also a critical, and required, part of assessment for TOK.
Assessments of ToK

9. Assessment Objectives of ToK
Identify how knowledge claims are justified
Answer knowledge questions
Explore relationships between disciplines & knowledge
Explore relationships between ways of knowing & knowledge
Connect the first four items
Acknowledge validity of alternative perspectives
Apply ToK knowledge to real world situations
Assessment Objectives of ToK

10. Knowledge Claims First Order: claims about the world
“There are an infinite number of prime numbers.”
Second Order: claims about knowledge itself
“Mathematical knowledge is certain.”
TOK is concerned about the second order claims. Can you think of a knowledge claim about any content area?
Now put that in the form of a question…
Jeopardy style!
Knowledge Claims

11. Knowledge questions are not questions of knowledge (“What is the square root of 225?”), they are questions about knowledge…
How knowledge is constructed & evaluated
Questions are contestable (numerous plausible answers)
Expressed in general terms (not content specific)
Focus: “How do we know?”
“How do I know?”
Knowledge Questions

12. Which is a knowledge question. “How does the placebo effect work
Which is a knowledge question? “How does the placebo effect work?” (Explain the term) VS “In what ways do other ways of knowing contribute to scientific discoveries? (Multiple ways of thinking about the problem)
Knowledge Questions

13. KNOWLEDGE Knowledge Questions
A knowledge question (KQ) is a question about the…
Search for,
Acquisition of,
Production of,
Verification of,
KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge Questions

14. What ethical responsibilities come with possessing knowledge?
How can memory impact scientific objectivity?
Is faith irrational?
Is all evidence equal?
How do emotions affect our perspectives?
Is aesthetic value universal?
Is there ever knowledge without evidence?
How can we judge whether one model is better than another?
How can it be that scientific knowledge changes over time?
Was mathematics invented or discovered?
Do moral truths exist?
Knowledge Questions

15. Example KQ What are the limits of reason as a way of knowing?
Craft a knowledge question using TOK vocabulary
What are the limits of reason as a way of knowing?
Write an open question about knowledge based in the topic
To what extent is mathematical intelligence inappropriate or insufficient in solving problems?
Write a closed question (one with a correct answer) about the topic
What is mathematical intelligence?
State one specific topic discussed within the RLS
Schools emphasize mathematical intelligence, including the ability to use logic and reasoning to solve problems.
Describe the real life situation (RLS):
In his 2006 TED Talk, Sir Ken Robinson claims that schools are killing creativity by emphasizing certain types of intelligences at the expense of others. In particular, schools value students who can use logic, do math, and learn languages and steer students away from the arts.

16. How do I write a KQ?
Craft a knowledge question using TOK vocabulary
To what extent can we accurately measure knowledge that changes over time?
Write an open question about knowledge based in the topic
How do we know that public opinions on gay marriage are changing?
Write a closed question (one with a correct answer) about the topic
How has public opinion on gay marriage changed in the last 50 years?
State one specific topic discussed within the RLS
Public opinion data may be used to inform policy decisions on gay marriage
Describe the real life situation (RLS):
In the article “How Gay Marriage Won” from Time Magazine, journalist David Von Drehle cites research that the gay rights movement has progressed greatly, as shown by public opinion data and government policy changes.

17. Practice Time! Knowledge Questions
In your small group, create a knowledge question using the article “Allegory of the Cave” as your real-life situation.
Begin by discussing the article as a group to review it. Then go through the “KQ Ladder” to craft a knowledge question together.
When you come up with your KQ, write it on the board.
Knowledge Questions

18. Homework for Thurs., October 9th
Watch The Truman Show
Answer these questions:
1) Truman is “On the air, unaware.” Is ignorance bliss? 2) “We’ve become bored with watching actors give us phony emotions, we’re tired of pyrotechnics and special effects”. How real is Truman's world? How real is Truman within this world?  3) What is real in Seahaven?   4) When does Truman's perception of reality alter? How is Truman eventually able to recognize his predicament?  5) Can Truman ever really know anything?  6) What is Truth to Truman? 
7) How real is “reality TV”?
Homework for Thurs., October 9th

19. Connecting The Truman Show to the Allegory of the Cave:
What parallels do you notice between Truman’s imprisonment in the Seahaven dome and the denizens of Plato’s cave?
Knowledge Questions to think about (and answer):
1. To what extent are we all being duped by product placements and false realities presented to us by the media? What are the essential differences between the Truman predicament and our own?
2. “A robin redbreast in a cage, Puts all heaven in a rage.” What has William Blake’s couplet from Auguries of Innocence (1863) got to do with the Truman show?
3. What specific ethical objections arise from the “forbidden experiment” imposed on Truman since his birth in front of a live audience?
4. If you think you have knowledge / truth then do you? How far is truth linked to our perception?

20. Jeff Heft
Teri Barlow
Shehnaz Wadhwania
Support? Ideas?