Introduction to Philosophy

Since time immemorial, man has always been pre-occupied with questions concerning his origin, whether he is….

 Product of nature’s evolution

 Supreme Being
 Being equipped with a soul & spirit that is designed for a special purpose in the cosmos
 An entity composed of atoms that will soon disappear at a predetermined time
 Living independently in the universe
 Co-existing with other beings in the vastness of the cosmos
 Which until now he cannot answer categorically
 Thus, he embarked in an unending quest for the definite answers to his questions.
 He postulated theories to satisfy his doubts.
 Never contented, he indulges himself in a process of constant thinking, re-thinking, and revising whatever
thoughts he has advanced and believed in the past.
 Because of this, man has institutionalized a branch of knowledge that is concerned with the unending
search for the ultimate reality using man’s logical reasoning….PHILOSOPHY!

OBJECTIVES
 Define Philosophy and identify its branches
 Compare and contrast the different branches of Philosophy
 State the importance of Philosophy to education

WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?
 Science which deals with general facts of human nature, behavior and conduct
 Search for meaning
 Investigating essence of things
 A never-ending “why questions”
 Science of beings by their ultimate principles and causes as known by natural reason alone (St. Thomas
Aquinas)
 Etymologically speaking, has been derived from the Greek words philo meaning love and sophos or
sophia meaning wise or wisdom
 Quest for truth based on logical reasoning aside from the factual observation of nature’s multifarious
phenomena.
 To seek and prove the ultimate and absolute truth.
 Mother of all sciences

SCIENCE- systematized body of knowledge based on facts and principles

Put order to body of knowledge

Based on facts, careful observations,

evidences/proofs, reasons and experimentation

BASIS OF JUDGMENT
Branches of Philosophy

A. METAPHYSICS- consider as 1st Philosophy

 Deals with the nature of being and reality

 Focus in ultimate principles and causes
 It attempts to explain man’s most fundamental concepts such as substance, existence, essence, truth,
space, time, causation and the nature of God as well as the purpose of man’s existence.

METAPHYSICS covers the following:

 COSMOLOGY- tries to explain the theories of the nature of the cosmos (universe) as well as its
origin and development.
GEOCENTRIC VS. HELIOCENTRIC

GEOCENTRIC THEORY

 Medieval thinkers see the EARTH as the center of the universe.

 According to Ptolemy, around the earth revolved the planets and other heavenly bodies and beyond that
is the dwelling place of God.
 It reflected the Christian view that God had designed the universe especially for human beings.

HELIOCENTRIC THEORY

 Nicolaus Copernicus convinced that the SUN was the center of the universe and that the earth was one of
the planets moving around it.
 It was the movement of the earth that made the sun seem to move.
 He spent more than 30 years working on the theory but widely not accepted.

GALILEO’S INVENTION

 An Italian scientist and mathematician made observations of the skies through his telescope that
convinced him of the truth of Copernicus’s theory.
 Galileo was brought to trial before the Inquisition and was accused in these words:
….you, Galileo..aged 70 years, denounced to this Holy office for holding as true the false doctrine taught by some
that the sun is the center of the universe and immovable and that the earth moves…and following the position of
Copernicus.
 ONTOLOGY- deals with the meaning of existence

 Answer the questions, What does it mean to BE something? What does it means to be HUMAN?
 Man is composed of body and soul.
 Soul (intellect and will
 Man is a rational being, he can think and reason out.
 TELEOLOGY- it tackles the philosophies like “blind mechanism” which holds that the world is
what it is because of accident.

 It also hold that the world and the universe have been there from the beginning for a certain
purpose.

B. EPISTEMOLOGY- originates fro two Greek words episteme meaning knowledge or science and logos,
the study.
 Deals with knowledge and the criteria of truth
  Acquire knowledge of reality
 Answers the following questions:
 Where does knowledge come from?
 How do we acquire knowledge of right and wrong?
 Can we acquire knowledge about reality?
 Building the bridge between THINKING and REALITY.

 AGNOSTICISM- it further claims that it is impossible for a man to prove either the existence or non-
existence of God. It is also applied generally to any theory of knowledge which claims that it is
impossible for man to attain full knowledge of something.

 Deals with the theory and validity

e.g Do angels exist?
Is there heaven, hell and purgatory
 SKEPTICISM- it refers to the philosophical approach based on the idea that everything is open to
doubt.
 According to Rene Descartes, “doubt everything” because it is impossible to arrive to an absolute
truth.

Criteria in Establishing the Truth

 Correspondence Theory
e.g (Pacquiao is in the Deans Office.)
 Coherence Theory
e.g ( How would you know if the person is
telling the truth or not?)
 Pragmatic Theory- asserts that anything workable or feasible must be true.
e.g ( What is true to you might not true to others)
 Customs and traditions
e.g (herbal medicines- tried and tested handed down from generation to generation
 Divine Revelation
 Feelings and emotions
 What expert say…
 What majority says…
 Other people’s experiences
 Test of Time- passed the time such as result of research handed down from generation to other
generation)
 Research Studies
 Intuition
 Instinct
 Records (historical facts, footages, artifacts, interviews..etc.)

 POSTERIORI- we can know things based on experience (Empiricism)

 It postulates that experience comes first and the knowledge afterwards. (from behind-hand)
 PRIORI- it can be acquired through pure reason alone, independently and perhaps, before experience.
 We can’t depend on senses because it could deceive us (Rationalism)

If you cannot be certain on what the truth is based on experience, can you know anything at all?

Definition of Terms
 Certain- A clear state of mind that has no doubts.
 Experience- observation and participation in event as basis of knowledge, skill, conscious events that
make up an individual, encountered, undergone, lived through.
  Truth- is a given reality that is based on unbiased facts and evidences that are supported by careful
observations and experiments.
 However, based on noema and noesis, the truth is always subjective. (Why subjective? The truth varies
from person to person) But not all truth are absolute to a certain extent the truth evolves.
 Know/Knowledge: Knowledge is a person’s awareness on another person or on variety things such as
information, technology, history, geography, warfare, skills, trivia, facts and the like that may be acquired
through careful observations, education and experiences.
 Yes, because there is a natural instinct in a man to know even without experience
 Yes, we can have knowledge on anything based on our experiences as long as we experience the absolute
truth, the evolved and un-evolved absolute truth. But then again, how would we know if a truth is
absolute? Therefore, we must always do research and study.
 By the foregoing premise you are able to know the following:
 that a particular truth cannot be ascertained based on experience; and,
 that a particular truth can be ascertained by other means other than experience.
 EXAMPLE: Drug addiction
Even though you didn’t experience being addicted to drugs, you can tell that there are bad effects of
taking drugs through readings, information or experience from the others.
 No. Though we may be certain on what the truth is based on experience, what if the truth was made out
of a lie or the truth has been altered? What if, the truth has been thoroughly hidden in history? More
often than not, history is written by the victorious. (Supported by the quote by George Orwell: Who
controls the present controls the past, who controls the past controls the future)
 Hence for us to learn and know anything that will be solely based on experience, it is advisable to
complement our experiences with proper awareness and research for us to know if our lesson from the
experience(s) is correct. We must always have the insatiable thirst for the proper knowledge.
C. AXIOLOGY- deals with problem of human values
 ETHICS- concerns human conduct/behavior, character and value.
 Define as the practical science that deals with the morality of human acts or conduct.
 It is the determiner of whether one’s action is good or evil.
 Answer the question, How should we behave towards other people?
 Judgment should be based on ethical theories and principles.

CASE: INDECENT EMPLOYEE

Trixie is a beautiful 22 year old young professional. She has a very pleasant personality that shecan blend
well with almost all the employees at their office. She has also been a consistent outstanding employee in the
company because she has turned in a lot at the sales office resulting to increase in clients, prestige and income for
the company. You happen to be the newly-hired manager of the company she works with. After 6 months as
manager, your attention was called that Trixie has a sex video. You were skeptic at first because some people may
just be out to pull her down, however, when you saw the said sex video, you shockingly confirmed that it was
indeed Trixie. When you confronted her, she did not deny that it was, in fact, her and even defended herself by
saying that “It is my personal life; it is between me and my boyfriend – having our most intimate moment. It has
nothing to do with my performance in the company!”Questions: What is your moral evaluation? What are the
ethical dilemmas? What is the most cogent and prudent way to solve the moral dilemma? Justify your answer.

Stand /Position & Answer to the Questions

• Moral Evaluation
Morally, it is wrong to display/exhibit and expose any sex videos with or without the consent of persons
involved.

• Ethical Dilemma
If Trixie will be out of the company... If Trixie will remain in the company...
• There is a decrease of clients, prestige and • The company will be a good competitor to
income for the company. Trixie might be a other companies because of continuing
 liability to the company. increase of clients, prestige and income for
  the company.
• Assuming that Trixie is meeting her clients
and actively representing the company,
maybe the company will be drag down to
its bad image.( What if she’s not meeting
her clients and actively representing the
company?)
There are four questions we need to ask first whether Trixie will be out of the company or not;
1. Does she meet her clients personally and actively represent the company?
2. Is her work affected because of the spread of the sex video?
3. Is the work of her officemates affected?
4. Is the company involved in advocacies of proper conduct? (e.g. Code of Ethics)
 
If the answer is YES, then this matter is a major concern to the company.
If the answer is NO, then Trixie may have a second chance.

Moral Disposition
First, Trixie and her boyfriend should be responsible for their actions. They should have made sure that
the sex video will not be exposed to the public. Second, It depends on what type of company she is affiliated. If she
were a teacher, she will be fired on the spot because some companies have policies that require employees to
display a higher degree of public image than other companies. If the company has an existing policy about proper
conduct of an employee then Trixie has the right to undergo the due process (Article 282 of the Labor Code). Since
there is unstated policy regarding advocacies of proper conduct of the company on the facts given, I recommend
Trixie to remain in the company. However, a memo will be given to Trixie stating an agreement that if she will
commit any related activities to the previous case she did before, she will be out of the company.

Supporting Principles and Theories

Ethical Principles

Beneficence- guides the ethical theory to do what is good. This priority to do good makes an ethical perspective
and possible solution to an ethical dilemma acceptable.

Ethical Theories

Utilitarianism- This theory instructs adherents to work for those outcomes that will give the most advantage to the
majority of those affected in the most impartial way possible. Advocates achieving the greatest good for the
greatest number of people.

The decision of letting Trixie to remain in the company resulted to win-win solution of both parties. Trixie will
still work for the company provided with a memo and the company can still work with Trixie who can still bring
more clients,prestige and higher income for the company.

D. LOGIC- concerned with the systematic treatment of the relation of ideas.

 A study of method distiguishing valid thinking from fallacious thinking.

 Derived from the Greek work logia which means argument or logike (art of reasoning)
 Considered as the science and art of correct thinking and correct reasoning.
 The aim of logic is to develop a system of methods and principles that we may use as criteria for
evaluating the arguments of others and as guides in constructing arguments of our own.
  Among the benefits to be expected from the study of logic is an increase in confidence that we
are making sense when we criticize the arguments of others and when we advance arguments of
our own.
 Logic allow us to distiguish good arguments from bad arguments.
 An argument is a group of statements, one or more PREMISES are claimed to provide support for,
or reasons to believe, one of the other (CONCLUSION) is the statement that the evidence is
claimed to support or imply.

All film stars are celebrities.

Halle Berry is a film star. Good argument
Therefore, Halle Berry is a celebrity.

Some film stars are men.

Cameron Diaz is a film star. Bad argument
Therefore, Cameron Diaz is a man.
 Arguments can be divided into two groups:

 Deductive argument (Deduction)- in which the arguer claims that it is impossible for the conclusion to be
false given that the premises are true.

 The conclusion is claimed to follow necessarily from the premises.

 A form of reasoning from a general principle to particulars included within the scope of that principle.
All entertainers are extroverts.
David Letterman is an entertainer.
Therefore, David Letterman is an extrovert.
 The conclusion follows with strict necessity from the premises. If we assume that all entertainers are
extroverts and that David Letterman is an entertainer, then it is impossible that David Letterman not be
an extrovert.
 Inductive argument (Induction)- in which the arguer claims that it is improbable that the conclusion be
false given that the premises are true.
 The conclusion is claimed to follow only probably from the premises.
 A form of reasoning that is done through the process of inferring a general law or principle from the
observation of particular instances to a general conclusion.
The vast majority of entertainers are extroverts
David Letterman is an entertainer.
Therefore, David Letterman is an extrovert.
 The conclusion does not follow from the premises with strict necessity, but it does follow with some
degree of probability.
 Syllogism- is an argumentation in which from two prepositions called premises, a conclusion is derived.
All ancient forests are sources of wonder.
Some ancient forests are targets of the timber industry.
Therefore, some sources of wonder are targets of the timber industry
 Dialectic- considered as a means of discovering the truth by proceeding from an assertion or thesis to a
denial or antithesis. The synthesis then forms a new thesis and the process is repeated until an ultimate
universal synthesis is reached. ( Communism)

METAPHYSICS
EPISTEMOLOGY EDUCATION
AXIOLOGY-ETHICS
LOGIC
 Metaphysics deals with reality and being as well as man’s existence. Education would be deemed
incomplete unless it is founded with the ultimate end of catering to the development of individual’s
natural and innate capacities.
  It is believed that human being must remain free from external restraints in order to decide for
themselves.
 Each individual must be given freedom to choose what course to take and that all decisions whether good
or evil have their corresponding consequences- rewards or punishments.
(Epistemology)
 Subscribe to the idea that all curricula from grade schools to the colleges and universities must be
designed to liberate the mind of man and must offer subjects that will give provisions for values (moral) as
well as intellectual development.
 They must enjoy academic freedom which is very vital to the freedom of individuals towards self-
development.
 Develop within the students the capacity to think rationally, reason out logically and act prudently.
 An educated man is a cultured man. A person who has acquired knowledge through the education
process is expected to conform to the moral standards of his society and is expected to act with fitness
and adhere to the elementary rule of morality- to do good and abhor evil.
 Technological advancements where the long-cherished values of yesteryears are gradually sinking in
exchange for materialism, violence, and self- motives, it is a must that education should concentrate not
only on academics but also on values development. (Axiology/Ethics)
 Education is expected to develop young minds to think and reason out logically based on concrete facts
and not on mere speculations or hearsay, which are common among less educated or uneducated people.
 K-12 Program must address the needs of students in acquiring knowledge and how those knowledge will
materialize in reality (present needs of society). In addition to that, values are essential in producing 21 st
century learners.

Philosophy of Education
 It is the union of two distinct yet interwoven and equally important disciplines, which supplement and
complement each other.
 Philosophy- is the way to analyze life’s unending phenomena, both natural and man-made gives man a
critical and contemplative view of his life.
 Education- is considered a means which provides man a way to develop his own perspective or point of
view with matters pertaining to his daily life.
 Education- trains him to formulate his own philosophy or belief distinct from other humans and applies it
in order to attain his ultimate goals—happiness and satisfaction.
 Philosophy of Education- therefore, refers to the aims and objectives towards which the educational
system and practices are directed.
 It is concerned with the means to arrive at concrete solutions to the various dilemmas besetting not only
the educational system but the entire society as well.
 It is the guiding spirit or principle which serves as the very foundation of the educational system.
 Is a systematic attempt to apply the findings of philosophy to the ultimate questions of education.
 It is like a clearing house where relative values in education and the relative validity of different claims on
the schools are weighed. (Gregorio, 1979)

PREPARED BY: SUBMITTED TO:

MR. DILLON GONZALES DR. CABANERO

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
SATURDAY, 8:30-11:30