Author Archives: Kreg Hulings

TOK: October 24, 2019

Good Morning!

  1. Warm-up:
    1. Think of a place at least three miles from here. Don’t say it out loud to anyone around you. It should not be a place that you regularly go (home, Dutch Bros., etc.). Write directions to that place, using no names of streets, landmarks or the destination. You may use distances. You must describe any turns or movements in space using only the cardinal directions (North, South, East and West). For example: You cannot say, when you arrive at the destination, “the destination is right in front of you.” You should say something like, “The destination is about 50 feet directly to the north of where you stand.”
    2. Switch directions with someone. You will both try to figure out what and where the destination is. No guessing. You get only 2 tries. How close did you get?
  2. Read “Does Your Language Shape How You Think?” When you have finished, discus and record responses to the following questions with a partner.
    1. What habits of mind may develop based on YOUR language?
    2. How does language constrain our perception?
    3. How would your conversations change if you had to give justification for everything you say?

Homework: LISTEN TO THE RADIOLAB EPISODE: WORDS (Here is the transcript.)

HOTA: October 9, 2019

Today we will continue to examine the Constitution and the powers it grants to the branches of our government.

1. Is It Constitutional? Discuss scenarios from last class.

2. How a bill becomes a law: “I’m Just a Bill”

3.  What do you know or have heard about the impeachment inquiry into President Trump.  What events led up to the impeachment inquiry? Why is impeachment controversial?

Controversial political issues are often discussed in the media. Do you think journalists and other producers of media can be objective when dealing with an issue about which people have such strong and differing opinions? Should writers always strive to be objective? Why or why not? We will be looking at sources that express conflicting opinions about impeachment.

Homework: Finish reading, “The Constitution, the Impeachment Process, and Historical Examples”

HOTA: October 8, 2019

1. Finish Checks and Balances illustrations

2. Is it Constitutional? Using the constitution, decide whether the scenarios are COnstitutional or not. Indicate the Article and sections where you find each answer.

Homework: Finish ‘Is It Constitutional’

Churchill Open House: October 3, 2019

Hello!

Welcome to IB History of the Americas!

  • This is the first year of a 2 year course of study and is designed to successfully  prepare students for paper 3 of the HL (higher level) IB History exam.
  • Regardless of whether students  pursue the full IB diploma, Certificate test or choose not to take any IB tests, all students participate in the IB curriculum.
  • As the title indicates, we are concerned with the major events that shaped the history of the Western Hemisphere.
  • Units of study:
    • Introduction/Contact
    • Independence Movements in the Americas
    • Nation Building in the Americas
    • U.S. Civil War (Causes, Conflict, Reconstruction) (IB Unit)
    • Native American Struggles For Equality
    • U.S. Foreign Policy in the Americas 1890-1935
    • Mexican Revolution (IB Unit)
    • Great Depression in the Americas and New Deal (IB Unit)
    • Cuban Revolution
    • Civil/Human Rights in the Americas 1950’s to present, w/ heavy focus on 1954-1965
  • Useful information (I hope)

I keep a daily blog, as you can see, that details what was done in class and has homework assignments. You can link to my blog from the Eugene IHS webpage at http://schools.4j.lane.edu/ihs/

Grades: I post grades as often as I can on Synergy. Sometimes this is very up-to-date, other times not.

Office Hours: By appointment before school, after school, 3rd Period

My email: hulings_k@4j.lane.edu

 

Welcome Senior Parents: 

  • What is TOK?

This year, as IB learners your student will have an opportunity to step back from the subjects and materials of your courses to think critically about knowledge itself.  In addition to critically examining the knowledge obtained through traditional academic pursuits, students (Knowers) in Theory of Knowledge class will seek to make sense of the world and who they are in it.

We will seek to answer questions like:  What counts as knowledge?  How does it grow and what are its limits?  What is the value of knowledge?  Who owns knowledge? What are the implications of having or not having knowledge?

The TOK course is structured around the interplay between the:

Ways of Knowing: language, sense, perception, emotion, reason, imagination, faith, intuition, and memory, within specific branches of knowledge called:

Areas of Knowledge: natural sciences, human sciences, mathematics, ethics, history,the arts, religious knowledge systems, and indigenous knowledge systems.

IB Content: Of course, this is an IB class. Full IB candidates will complete 2 IB assessments in TOK class this year. These are: The TOK Essay and the TOK Presentation. We will begin formally preparing for these after the Winter Break. If your student is not an IB candidate, they will complete a TOK Presentation (possibly 2) and write an essay of similar format to the formal TOK Essay.

Useful information: 

  • I keep a daily blog, as you can see, that details what was done in class and has homework assignments. You can link to my blog from the Eugene IHS webpage at http://schools.4j.lane.edu/ihs/My email: hulings_k@4j.lane.edu
  • Questions?

 

 

TOK: October 3-4, 2019

Hello! Today we will talk about ethics. Yay.

  1. An ethical conundrum: WARNING!! GRAPHIC AUDITORY IMAGERY
    • Radiolab; Morality 
    • What would you do in scenario 1? Explain why.
    • What would you do in scenario 2? Explain why.
    • Are these scenarios different? If so, how are these different? Is there an inconsistency of reasoning?
  2. Discuss homework:
  3. Time to work on homework

Homework: Read from 475 (Moral Relativism) up to but not including “Theories of Ethics” on page 485.

TOK: October 2, 2019

Hello! Today we will discuss the Knowledge Questions you formulated for homework and then turn our attention to our first Area of Knowledge (AOK), Ethics.

1) Ethics as an Area of Knowledge

    • Begin reading and taking notes on the packet the packet I handed out. You should have detailed notes/questions/observations for each section up to, but not including Moral Relativism on page 475. You should also complete Activities 17.1, 17.2, and 17.3