Teaching
Teaching is a passion of mine. As an undergraduate, I fell in love with philosophy, and I instill this same passion for philosophy into my students. My simple, twofold goal for my students is to make philosophy interesting and clear. I simulate student interest by creating interfaces between the philosophical arguments and what students already care about, such as social, political, and pop cultural issues. I promote clarity by emphasizing simple deductive arguments in classroom discussions and assignments. As a teacher of philosophy, I continually self-assess and strive to improve my pedagogical methods.
Current Courses
- Critical Thinking: Toronto Metropolitan University, Spring 2024 (1 section, in person), Fall 2023 (1 section, online), Spring 2021 (2 sections, hybrid), Spring 2022 (2 sections, online) (100-level)
DESCRIPTION: Have you ever wanted to be more rational in your beliefs and reasoning? Or how to find the truth, especially in light of human biases and flawed reasoning? If you answered “yes” to either of these questions, this class is for you! This course is mostly about two things: arguments and rationality. We’ll cover what an argument is, what makes an argument a good one, and how to determine what argument someone is making. We’ll also talk about rationality, including what makes a belief rational, some common errors in human reasoning, and how to avoid making them. This class will have three parts. Here are examples of the questions we will cover. (Unit 1: Introduction to Critical Thinking) What is an argument? What’s the relationship between language and truth? What makes a belief rational? (Unit 2: Argument Evaluation) What are the different ways we evaluate an argument? What makes an argument a good one? (Unit 3: Argument Identification and Reconstruction) How do we determine when an argument is being made, and what argument is being made?
- Syllabus
- Link to Playlist of Lectures
Past Courses
- Upper Level Undergraduate Seminar on the Rationality of Religious Commitment: Toronto Metropolitan University, Fall 2022 (900-level)
DESCRIPTION: This seminar in philosophy of religion is focused on the rationality of religious commitment. The course will have three units. The first explores religious belief. We’ll discuss what belief is, what might be distinctive about religious belief, and theories of when religious belief is rational/irrational. The second unit is about religious faith. We’ll look at the nature of faith, how faith is different than belief, and whether faith can be rational but in some sense “go beyond the evidence.” The final unit will explore the rationality of religious practice. We’ll explore different forms religious practice can take, and whether religious practice could be rational even if religious belief and faith are not.
- Syllabus
- Graduate Seminar on Evidence: Toronto Metropolitan University, Fall 2021 (800-level, online)
DESCRIPTION: This seminar in epistemology is focused on evidence. The course will have three units. The first explores the nature of evidence. We’ll look at different conceptions of evidence and different sources of evidence. The second unit is about evidentialism, the idea that rational belief is determined only by the evidence. We’ll explore both arguments for evidentialism and challenges to evidentialism, including topics like moral and pragmatic encroachment, practical reasons for belief, and self-justifying beliefs. The final unit will explore whether evidence can be permissive, and we’ll discuss arguments for and against permissivism and applications of permissivism.
- Syllabus
- Knowledge, Truth, and Belief: Toronto Metropolitan University, Fall 2020, Fall 2021 (500-level, online)
DESCRIPTION: Epistemology is the study of knowledge. Belief and truth are parts of knowledge. But what are the other components of knowledge? How much can we know? Could someone know that God exists? How do other people affect what we can (and can’t) know? This class will have four parts. Here are examples of the questions we will cover. (Unit 1: Knowledge) What is knowledge? What is truth? When is a belief justified? Are there other components of knowledge? Should we even analyze knowledge at all? (Unit 2: Skepticism) Can we know anything? If so, what can we know? Is our knowledge non-existent, very limited, or widespread? (Unit 3: Social Epistemology) When should we believe someone else’s testimony? How does social media affect what we can know? Is it ever okay to believe beyond—or even against—the evidence? (Unit 4: Religious Epistemology) Can faith be rational but go beyond the evidence? What is Pascal’s wager? Does it provide us a good reason to believe in God?
- Syllabus
- Link to Playlist of Lectures
- Graduate Seminar on Permissivism and Disagreement: Australian National University, Spring 2020 (Foundations Seminar, online)
- Social Philosophy: Notre Dame, Fall 2017 (200-level, in-person)
DESCRIPTION: Humans are social creatures. Social phenomena, such as gender, race, sports teams, music groups, faith, testimony, charity, refugees, pornography are all around us and are a large part of how we understand the world and each other. Social philosophy is the systematic study of philosophical questions that bear on social phenomena, such as the above. While these social phenomena are a significant part of our lives and the world around us, philosophers have devoted less attention to them than to other domains that describe the world. But we cannot know what the world is like without also diving into questions about what the social world is like. The aim of this class is to help students do just that.
- Syllabus
- Introduction to Philosophy: Notre Dame, Fall 2016 (100-level; TA for Jeff Speaks)
Prospective Courses
Service
Michael Rota (UST) and I have received a grant, The Psychology of Faith: Academic Cross-Training, which goes from 2023–2025.
With the generous support of the John Templeton Foundation, the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota announces a sub-granting competition to fund academic cross-training in the psychological sciences for scholars of Christian theology or philosophy of religion with research interests relating to religious belief or religious commitment. Six applicants—Mark Boespflug, Rebecca Chan, Stephen Bullivant, Victoria Lorrimar, Bethany Sollereder, and Michael Waddelleach received a $70,000 award providing the opportunity to engage in a 2-year intensive study in the psychological sciences, to apply and leverage insights from the psychological sciences in their work as theologians and philosophers.
- See here for more information.
I help organize the Toronto philosophy of religion works-in-progress group (with Klaas Kraay and Daniel Rubio). For more information about the group, see here.
- Klaas Kraay, Daniel Rubio, and I are hosting an online philosophy of religion workshop on December 14-15, 2023. Meghan Page and Matthew Benton are our keynotes. See here for a tentative draft schedule (Zoom link to join us will be added there as well).
- Klaas Kraay and I hosted an online workshop on the Gratuitous Evil and Theism on May 9-10, 2022. See here for more info and a schedule.
- Klaas Kraay and I hosted an online half-day philosophy of religion workshop on December 8, 2021. Our speakers were Asha Lancaster-Thomas (University of Birmingham), Michael Rea (Notre Dame), and Laura Ekstrom (William and Mary). See here for more info and a schedule.
I am the Vice President of the Canadian Society of Christian Philosophers. We host an annual meeting at the Canadian Philosophical Association.
- Our next meeting is at the CPA at McGill University in Montreal in June 2024.