ISPD (2018): Knowledge

The Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD) is an annual event which the philosophy programs of Raffles Institution and Raffles Girls’ School take turns to organize and host, with the sponsorship of the Department of Philosophy at NUS. Throughout the years, an increasing number of schools have participated in the event. This year, the 15th anniversary of the event, was held at Raffles Institution with 12 schools represented and some 171 secondary level students participating. They were joined by 25 facilitators, many of whom are alumni of the Department of Philosophy at NUS. Our own A/P Loy Hui Chieh gave the keynote address on Plato’s the Ring of Gyges (Republic II).

The theme this year is “Knowledge”, a theme that expresses the aims and ideals of the ISPD – to encourage students from schools all over Singapore to think more deeply about real and current issues we face in Singapore society as well as universal concepts such as fairness and truth. While participants may come away with more questions than answers to the scenarios posed to them, sparking an interest in the issues as well as introducing better ways to navigate difficult topics are definite take-aways that students bring back with them. At the end of the day’s event, 15 students—chosen for the maturity of thought, creativity, metacognitive awareness, and conversational virtues they exhibited during the discussions—were presented with the Gadfly Awards (named in honor of Socrates).

Photos from the event can be seen here.

Calling for Facilitators for Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD) 2018

(From the organizers)

Hello everyone,

The Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD) turns 15 this year!

It will be held on 13th July (Friday), from 1500h to 1900h, in Raffles Institution.

The success of ISPD depends on our very helpful facilitators who are able to engage our participants in collaborative rational inquiry. NUS Philosophy students who are interested to be facilitators, email organisers, Ng Chong Jin / Ong Shu Juin at: philosophyraffles@gmail.com

More information will be sent closer to the date of the event.

Lastly, if you know of anyone who is Philosophy-trained and is an experienced facilitator, and would like to join us for ISPD, please feel free to forward the above link to them.

We look forward to meeting all of you at our annual gathering and hope to see everyone at ISPD.

 

ISPD (2016): Philosophy and Science

4899e4ab-598b-4de9-813c-d50de61a165cFrom data privacy to artificial intelligence, to the ethics of experimentation–today’s scientific and technological advancement confronts core issues about our human identity and values. Against this background, philosophy promises to empower us with clear and critical thinking to make sense of our scientific present and future. That’s why “there’s no better way to spend a Saturday morning!” than to enable teenagers in philosophical discussion about science at the Inter-school Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD), said keynote speaker Assistant Professor Voo Teck Chuan of the Centre for Biomedical Ethics (CBmE), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.

039eb102-dbc2-4711-a208-158b7b8a92b7This year’s ISPD was held at Raffles Girls School (RGS) on July 9. It saw the participation of some 147 students from fourteen secondary schools from across Singapore, joining with scores of facilitators to discuss various topics on philosophy and science. This is the 13th ISPD, and for the first time, the event was jointly organised by the Philosophy Departments of Raffles Girls School and Raffles Institution, with the sponsorship of the Department of Philosophy at NUS.

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Calling for Facilitators for Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD) 2016

Hello everyone!
This year, ISPD will be held on 9th July (Saturday), from 0800h to 1300h, in Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary).

The theme for this year’s ISPD is Philosophy and Science, an exciting theme which allows us to explore philosophical issues related to science as a discipline, scientific discoveries, technological advancements and breakthroughs.

​The success of ISPD depends on our very helpful facilitators who are able to engage our participants in collaborative rational inquiry. To kick-start our prep for ISPD 2016, please take a minute register yourselves at this link by 8th April to let us know that you will be joining us:
http://tinyurl.com/2016ISPDfacilitatorregform
More information will be sent closer to the date of the event.

Lastly, if you know of anyone who is Philosophy-trained and is an experienced facilitator, and would like to join us for ISPD 2016, please feel free to forward the above link to them

Looking forward to meeting all of you at our annual gathering at ISPD 2016.

 

Internship Opening(s) at Raffles Institution

The Raffles Institution Philosophy Department runs a Philosophy Teaching Internship Programme for 12 weeks from mid January to mid April. The Internship Programme includes classroom team teaching experiences, as well as lesson design and lesson observation opportunities. Part of the internship also includes resource crafting for our annual Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue. This will be done in close consultation with Department mentors.

Interested applicants should have the following characteristics:

  • A good, collaborative team-player
  • An interest in teaching Philosophy to Secondary School pupils
  • A keen interest in learning how to craft Philosophy teaching and learning resources that are accessible to young teenage learners
  • Flexibility in applying Philosophical content knowledge to teaching resources

Applicants must be approved by FASS, NUS, Philosophy Department and also clear an interview with Raffles Institution management.

Note: This internship is designed to be pursued together with PH4550 Internship: Philosophy for Teaching (see the IVLE page for requirements and other details). Eligible students who are interested to contact A/P Loy Hui Chieh.

ISPD:SG50 Edition

ISPD Poster_with NUS110 SG50 Gadfly logos_11 JulyOn Saturday 11 July, 2015, students from 19 different secondary schools gathered in Raffles Institution for the 12th annual Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue (ISPD). The ISPD is a yearly event organized by the RI Philosophy Department where secondary students meet to engage each other in interesting discussions. The aim of the event is to provide students with a platform from which to practice their critical thinking, analysis and presentation skills—and for them to experience how fun and engaging philosophical discussion can be.

After a keynote address, participating students were organized into small groups according to their allocated discussion topics. Guided by their facilitators, participants of the dialogue were given a valuable opportunity to engage with difficult philosophical issues. The most outstanding student in each group—the one that displays the virtues of a probing and charitable inquirer—was awarded the “Gadfly Award”.

ISPD 2015 is especially interesting and noteworthy because it coincides with SG50. In keeping with the spirit of 2015-07-11 08.59.44SG50, Mr Sudhir Thomas Vadaketh, co-author of Hard Choices: Challenging the Singapore Consensus, was invited to be its keynote speaker. Mr Sudhir Thomas Vadaketh gave an engaging and thought-provoking keynote address on the topic of “Challenging the Singapore Consensus”. Furthermore, the thought experiments provided as discussion topics—all of which suggests questions in the area of ethics and politics—were also crafted for their relevance to ideas about nationhood, citizenship, governance and other societal issues.

ISPD 2015: SG50 Edition was extremely well-received by participants, facilitators and organizers alike. While many of the secondary schools represented have been attending ISPD in previous years, five schools joined for the very first time. The overwhelming consensus by the facilitators was that the level of discussion and the maturity of thought displayed by the participants were impressive and went beyond their expectations.

IMG_2175This year, as part of SG50 and NUS 110 celebrations, National University of Singapore is the main sponsor of the event through the Department of Philosophy. The Deputy Head of Department, Associate Professor Loy Hui-Chieh worked tirelessly with the event organizers, Ms Kristie Chen and Mr Ng Chong Jin to ensure the smooth running and success of the event, both of whom are alumni members of the NUS Philosophy Department. Further representing the start of a collaborative relationship between the Philosophy Departments of NUS and RI, Mr Huang Yuhuai, a graduating student of the Department, was also responsible for crafting the thought experiments used in the discussion as part of his internship with Raffles Institution. As with previous years, the vast majority of the facilitators who led the small group discussions are also current undergraduates, graduate students, as well as alumni members of the NUS Philosophy Department, making the event a veritable alumni gathering of the Philosophy Department.

2015-07-11 08.55.332015-07-11 10.52.402015-07-11 10.56.082015-07-11 11.11.542015-07-11 11.44.03IMG_2154

(Prepared by Mr. Wilson Lee and Mr. Jeremy Huang, with additional input from A/P Loy and Mr. Ng Chong Jin)

RI Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue: SG50 Edition (July 11*)

The Philosophy Department of Raffles Institution has been organising an annual inter-school philosophy dialogue for secondary school students for the past 11 years. The dialogue session have students engaging one another in small group discussions based on a variety of stimuli revolving around a number of philosophical themes. These discussion sessions are facilitated by teachers who are teaching philosophy in schools across Singapore, many of them alumni of NUS Philosophy. This year, in the spirit of SG50 and NUS 110, the Department of Philosophy, NUS, is sponsoring the event, with the aim of nurturing the art of philosophical discussion, as well as connecting with our alumni members at the event.

Event: Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue: SG50 Edition
Date: 11 July 2015 (Sat)*
Time: 8.00 am – 12.30 pm*
Venue: Raffles Institution (Year 1 – 4 campus)

*Edited: please note amended date and time of above event

Raffles Institution Inter-school Philosophy Dialogue 2015: Call for Facilitators

The Philosophy Department of Raffles Institution has been organising an annual inter-school philosophy dialogue for secondary school students for the past 11 years. The dialogue session have students engaging one another in small group discussions based on a variety of stimuli revolving around a number of philosophical themes.These discussion sessions are facilitated by teachers who are teaching philosophy in schools across Singapore, many of them alumni of NUS Philosophy. This year, in the spirit of SG50 and NUS 110, the Department of Philosophy, NUS, is sponsoring the event, with the aim of nurturing the art of philosophical discussion, as well as connecting with our alumni members at the event.

Event: Inter-School Philosophy Dialogue: SG50 Edition
Date: 30 May 2015 (Sat)
Time: 8.00 am – 12.30 pm
Venue: Raffles Institution (Year 1 – 4 campus)

The organisers have also extended an invitation for faculty members, graduate students and advance undergraduate students to join them as facilitators. If you are keen to join in this celebration of Philosophy, do sign up at: http://goo.gl/forms/AlJukGjplo and the organisers will get in touch with you with more detailed info at a later date.