Welcome
- How to Achieve Your Goal(s) in This Course
- Tips for Reading High School Level and Pre-University Level Texts
- What is a thesis?
- What is theory?
- What is systems thinking?
Course Calendar

Key Dates (Semester 1)
Key Dates for Parents/Guardians
- Informal Meet and Greet (drop-in, no need to RSVP or to schedule)
- Sept. 10th from 3:15-5:00 PM and 7:00-8:30 PM (in room 308)
- Student-Led Conferences (drop-in, no need to RSVP or to schedule)
- Nov. 19th from 3:15-5:00 PM and 7:00-8:30 PM (in room 308)
- Informal Progress Reports (please see the note below for more information)
- #1 – Oct. 2nd
- #2 – Nov. 13th
- #3 – Jan. 15th
- #4 – Jan. 29th
Notes for Parents/Guardians
- To schedule a conference (by phone or in person) please email tomkertes@sd52.bc.ca or call/text 778-884-5343. Conferences may be schedule at a time throughout the semester.
- Please feel free to email or call/text with any questions or concerns. The sooner things are communicated the quicker supports can be provided for your child.
- The informal progress reports are handed out to students on the dates above. If a student is not currently passing, or is at risk of not passing, an emailed version of the report will also be sent to the child’s parent or guardian.
- An informal progress may include a Notice of Insufficient Evidence, to let your child know that they may not pass the course, provide a timeline for catching up, and provide an opportunity for consultation. This will be communicated with parents/guardians as well.
- Student progress reports and learning summaries will also be available at the MyEd portal at the mid-term and end of term. In addition, S/P/T school conferences are scheduled in October. Information on S/P/T conferences is provided by the office for all parents and guardians.
Key Dates for Students
- Seminars: Sept. 9th, Sept. 23rd, Oct. 14th, Oct. 28th, Nov. 18th, Nov. 25th, Dec. 2nd, Dec. 9th, Dec. 16, Jan. 6th, Jan. 13th
- Journals: Sept. 11th, Sept. 25th, Oct. 16th, Oct. 30th, Nov. 27th, Dec. 11th, Dec. 18th, Jan. 8th
- Quizzes: Sept. 14th, Sept. 21st, Oct. 5th, Oct. 19th, Nov. 23rd, Dec. 7th, Dec. 14th, Jan. 11th
- Mid-Term Exam: Nov. 2nd to Nov. 9th
- Presentation: Must be completed by Jan. 14th
- Essays: Due by Jan. 14th
- Final Exam: Jan. 18th to Jan. 29th
Course Overview
PART 1
- Unit I: Introduction: Fundamentals of Philosophy
- Quiz 1 – Fundamentals [special password] | Quiz 1 Study Guide
- Unit II: Overview: Assignments, Marking, and Grading
- Unit III: Metaphysics: Do I exist?
- Quiz 2 – Metaphysics [special password] | Quiz 2 Study Guide
- Unit IV: Cosmology: Does anything exist?
- Quiz 3 – Cosmology [special password] | Quiz 3 Study Guide
- Unit V: Ontology: Does knowledge exist?
- Quiz 4 – Ontology [special password] | Quiz 4 Study Guide
- Midterm Week – Metaphysics Mid-Term Exam
- Part IA Midterm Exam [special password] | Midterm Study Guide
- Units I, II, III, IV, V Glossary
- Part IB Midterm Exam [special password] | Midterm Study Guide
- Part II Midterm Exam | Midterm Study Guide
- Learning Story Midterm
PART 2
- Unit VI: Epistemology: What is the nature of knowledge?
- Unit VII: Polity and Ethics: Do I have rights? What is justice?
- Unit VIII: Axiology: What is a “good life”?
- Optional Assignments – Presentation, Philosophy Essay, Synthesis Essay
- Final Week – Epistemology Final Exam
- Final Exam Study Guide
- Learning Story Study Guide
- Final Exam Part IA Study Guide
- Final Exam Part IB Study Guide
- Final Exam Part II Study Guide
- Final Exam Part III Study Guide
Course Outline
Download the course outline here.
Course Readings
Note on the AI-generated Summaries
(AI-generated content for this course is marked as “AI-generated”. Read the above note for more information.)
Review – How to Learn How to Think
- Introduction to Systems and Systems Thinking (Betley et al.) | AI-generated summary
- The Importance of the Act of Reading (Freire) | AI-generated summary
- Philosophy: The Basics (Warburton) (on theory) | AI-generated summary
- What Is Theory? (Joas Knöbl) | AI-generated summary
- Respectful Dialogue and Debate: Principles and Practices (University of British Columbia)
- Daily Dozen: Fake It Until You Make It (course handout)
- Reading Strategies Self-Assessment (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
- Models and Frameworks (review – if you had Mr. Kertes already)
Supplemental readings:
- How to Read a Book (Adler and Van Doren)
Readings (to do at home, from Sept 8-13) (for Quiz 1 – Fundamentals – on Sept. 14th):
- Reading 1A:
- What Is Philosophy? (Popova) (notes due Sept. 14th) | AI-generated summary
- What Philosophy Is (Payne) (notes due Sept. 14th) | AI-generated summary
- The Value of Philosophy (Russell) (notes due Sept. 14th) | AI-generated summary
- Reading 1B:
- How to Do Philosophy (Payne) (notes due Sept. 14th) | AI-generated summary
Study Guides
- Quiz 1 – Fundamentals [special password] | Quiz 1 Study Guide
- Lesson Notes – Branches of philosophy
- Lesson Notes – What is philosophy & Tools for philosophers | Pedagogy of Listening (Rinaldi)
- Mid-Term Study Guide
Readings (to do at home, from Sept 8-13) (for Quiz 2 – Metaphysics on Sept. 21st):
- Reading 2A:
- Ancient Philosophy (Payne) (notes due Sept. 21st) | AI-generated summary
- Reading 2B:
- Logic for Metaphysics (Ney) (notes due Sept. 21st) | AI-generated summary (part 1 only)
Supplemental readings:
- How Do I Know I Exist? (Brooks) | AI-generated summary
- What Is Metaphysics (Heidegger) | AI-generated summary
- Do I Exist? (Sider)
- Skim through Being and Time (Heidegger) | An Outline and Study Guide to Martin Heidegger’s Being and Time (Tietz)
Study Guides
- Quiz 2 – Metaphysics [special password] | Quiz 2 Study Guide
Readings (to do at home, from Sept 21-Oct 4) (for Quiz 3 – Cosmology on Oct. 5th):
- Reading 3A:
- Cosmology and the Origin of the Universe: Historical and Conceptual Perspectives (Kragh)
- AI-generated summary: Introduction: concepts of origin
- AI-generated summary: Ancient and medieval periods
- AI-generated summary: From Kant to Einstein
- AI-generated summary: The big bang hypothesis
- AI-generated summary: Aspects of modern cosmology
- AI-generated summary: Did the universe have a beginning?
- AI-generated summary: Philosophical and theological perspectives
- Cosmology and the Origin of the Universe: Historical and Conceptual Perspectives (Kragh)
- Reading 3B:
Supplemental readings:
- Skim through a Brief History of Time (Hawking)
- Skim through An Introduction to Metaphysics (Heidegger)
- Skim through Cosmology and philosophy (Parrochia)
- Skim through Brief Answers to Big Questions (Hawking)
Study Guides
- Quiz 3 – Cosmology [special password] | Quiz 3 Study Guide
Readings (to do at home, from Oct 5-Oct 18) (for Quiz 4 – Ontology on Oct. 19th):
- Reading 4A:
- Reading 4B:
- What Are Ontologies, and Why Do We Need Them? (Chandrasekaran et al.) | AI-generated summary
Supplemental readings:
- Ontology, Ontologies, and Science (Merrill) | AI-generated summary
- Skim through The Problems of Philosophy (Russell) | Summary
- Skim through Metaphysics (Taylor)
Study Guides
- Quiz 4 – Ontology [special password] | Quiz 4 Study Guide
Readings (to do at home, from Oct 19-Nov 22) (for Quiz 5 – Epistemology on Nov. 23rd):
- Reading 5A
- The Nature of Philosophy (Trusted) | AI-generated summary
- Reading 5B
- Knowledge and Perception (Trusted)
- Knowledge and Belief (Trusted)
Supplemental readings:
- Skim through Theaetetus (Plato)
- Skim through Mediations on First Philosophy (Descartes)
- Skim through An Essay Concerning Human Understanding Book I: Innate Notions (Locke)
- Skim through Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding (Hume)
Readings (to do at home, from Nov 23-Dec 6) (for Quiz 6 – Polity on Dec. 7th):
- What Is Political Philosophy? (Strauss)
- Justice as Fairness (Rawl)
Readings (to do at home, from Dec 7-Dec 13) (for Quiz 7 – Ethics on Dec. 13th):
- Political Ethics (Thompson)
- The Continuity of Ehics and Political Theory (Baderin)
Readings (to do at home, from Dec 14-Jan 11) (for Quiz 8 – Axiology on Jan. 12th):
- Enc Standford entry
- Hume on Is and Ought: Logic, Promise, and the Duke of Wellington (Pigden)
Course Glossary – Key Terms
Readings for Presentation and Essays
Ontology, Artificial Intelligence
- Being and Time (Heidegger)
- The Ontological Barrier of Artificial Intelligence (Yacobi)
- Exploring the motifs of death and immortality (Maina)
Metaphysics, Existence
- Metaphysics (Aristotle)
- Thales: The Water Principle of the Universe (Philosophy Institute)
- Is Reality Fundamentally Mathematical? (Christensen)
- Why Is There Something, Rather Than Nothing? (Carroll)
Epistemology, Power, Meaning in Life
- Plato’s Theory of Desire (Kahn)
- Introduction to Systems Thinking (Kim)
- Socrates’ Disavowal of Knowledge (Lesher)
- The Principles of Human Knowledge (Berkeley)
Philosophical Questions, Real World Answers
- Existentialism is a Humanism (Sartre)
- What is Enlightenment? (Kant)
- The Allegory of the Cave (Plato)
- The Nicomachean Ethics (Aristotle)
- Man’s Search for Meaning (Frankl)
- The Myth of Sisyphus (Camus)
- Leviathan (Hobbes)
- Manifesto of the Communist Party (Marx and Engels)
- On Liberty (Mill)
- Civil Disobedience (Arendt)
- Thinking and Moral Considerations (Arendt)
- Evil (introduction) (Chignell)
Reading Packets
- Packet 1
- Packet 2
- Packet 3
- Packet 4
- Packet 5
- Packet 6
Essays, Chapters, and Passages (Course Texts)
- Adler and Van Doren, How to Read a Book
- Annas, An Introduction to Plato’s Republic
- Arendt, Civil Disobedience
- Arendt, Thinking and Moral Considerations
- Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics
- Aristotle, Metaphysics
- Audi, A Sketch of the Sources and Nature of Belief (chapter)
- Baderin, The Continuity of Ethics and Political Theory
- Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café (chapter 1)
- Brooks, How Do I Know I Exist?
- Betley et al., Introduction to Systems and Systems Thinking
- Berkeley, The Principles of Human Knowledge
- Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus
- Carroll, Why Is There Something, Rather Than Nothing?
- Chandrasekaran et al., What Are Ontologies, and Why Do We Need Them?
- Christensen, Is Reality Fundamentally Mathematical?
- Chignell, Evil (introduction)
- Descartes, Mediations on First Philosophy
- Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
- Freire, The Importance of the Act of Reading
- Gentzler, Reading Plato’s Republic
- Hawking, Brief Answers to Big Questions
- Hawking, Brief History of Time
- Heidegger, Being and Time
- Heidegger, What Is Metaphysics
- Heidegger, An Introduction to Metaphysics
- Hobbes, Leviathan
- Hume, Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
- Huemer, Epistemology: Contemporary Readings
- Kant, What is Enlightenment?
- Kahn, Plato’s Theory of Desire
- Kim, Introduction to Systems Thinking
- Knöbl, What Is Theory?
- Kragh, Cosmology and the Origin of the Universe: Historical and Conceptual Perspectives
- Lesher, Socrates’ Disavowal of Knowledge
- Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding Book I: Innate Notions
- Lynds, Why there is something rather than nothing
- Maina, Exploring the motifs of death and immortality
- Marx and Engels, Manifesto of the Communist Party
- Merrill, Ontology, Ontologies, and Science
- Merleau-Ponty, A Guide for the Perplexed (chapter 1)
- Mill, On Liberty
- Moser, Contemporary Readings in Philosophy
- Nagel, The Absurd
- Ney, Logic for Metaphysics
- Payne, Ancient Philosophy
- Payne. How to Do Philosophy
- Payne, What Philosophy Is
- Parrochia, Cosmology and philosophy
- Philosophy Institute, Thales: The Water Principle of the Universe
- Plato, Theaetetus
- Plato, The Republic, Book Seven (The Allegory of the Cave)
- Popova, What Is Philosophy
- Rawl, Justice as Fairness
- Reeves, Thought Imitates Life: The Case of John Stuart Mill
- Rinaldi, Pedagogy of Listening
- Russell, The Value of Philosophy
- Russell, The Problems of Philosophy
- Sartre, Existentialism is a Humanism
- SEP, Albert Camus
- SEP, Mill’s Moral and Political Philosophy
- SEP, Thomas Hobbes
- Sider, Do I Exist?
- Sider, Personal Identity
- Strauss, What Is Political Philosophy?
- Taylor, Metaphysics
- Ten, Mill’s On Liberty: A Critical Guide
- Thompson, Political Ethics
- Trusted, Plato’s View of Knowledge
- Trusted, Aristotle’s View of Knowledge
- Trusted, Descartes – the Quest for Certainty
- Trusted, Descartes – the Cogito
- Trusted, The British Empiricists: Locke and Berkeley
- Trusted, Hume’s Reappraisal and his Problem
- Trusted, Kant’s Attempt to Solve Hume’s Problem
- Trusted, Some Conclusions
- University of British Columbia, Respectful Dialogue and Debate: Principles and Practices
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Reading Strategies Self-Assessment
- Warburton, Philosophy: The Basics
- Yacobi, The Ontological Barrier of Artificial Intelligence






