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ToK March 2013. Understanding Knowledge Questions. Knowledge Questions.
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ToKMarch 2013 Understanding Knowledge Questions.
Knowledge Questions • When considering the support and evidence for a specific knowledge claim, e.g., “This painting is by Van Gogh”, we usually consider specific, claim-centered questions, e.g., “Is the color palette like the one Van Gogh used?” or “How is the paint applied to the canvass?” etc. • These specific questions can give rise to more general questions regarding how knowledge is acquired, e.g., “What role do reason and perception play in identifying a work of visual art?”
Knowledge Questions • Knowledge questions begin in real-life situations, e.g., magazine article on science and religion, attending a debate on faith vs. science, a thought one might entertain while studying biology • As individuals reflect on the ideas engendered in this fashion, various ways of framing some of the questionsinvolved come to mind • Knowledge questions emerge as individuals move, in their thinking, from specific, subject-centered questions to more general questions about knowledge itself and how it is acquired
Knowledge Questions • Real-life situation stated • A description of a situation; subject/topic: Not a KQ • Narrow question; implicitly about knowledge: Poor KQ • Open-ended question; is explicitly about knowledge: Intermediate KQ • Open-ended question; explicitly about knowledge; couched in terms of TOK vocabulary / concepts: Good KQ
Knowledge Questions • Newspaper article/book review • Physics and God (specific/concrete) • How do religious people come to their beliefs? (poor) • Are religious beliefs reasonable? (intermediate) • How can reason be used to justify religious beliefs? (good)
Knowledge Questions • TOK concepts can be found throughout the TOK Subject Guide. • Concepts drawn from Areas of Knowledge, Ways of Knowing and Linking Questions centering on knowledge, knowing, acquiring knowledge and problems associated with knowledge are TOK concepts. • Examples include: belief, certainty, truth, culture, evidence, experience, explanation, interpretation, intuition, authority, values, proof
Knowledge Questions • Truman’s decision to use the atomic bomb during WWII • Military Strategy • Was using the bomb the only option available to Truman? • How can we determine if wartime decisions are right? • How, if at all, can truth in history be established?