It is my belief that teaching forms the basis of what we do as academics. I taught in most semesters of my postgraduate education, and during this time, I undertook to teach a wide variety of courses, ranging from history of philosophy and ethics on the one hand, to metaphysics, epistemology, and logic on the other; a complete list of courses I have taught can be found below. My teaching has also proven popular, and I was awarded the first ever student-chosen award for the best philosophy tutor at St Andrews in the Candlemas (Fall) term of 2011.
See here for a collection of resources for undergraduates studying philosophy.
Recent Teaching
PHIL 009 - Mathematics and Logic for General Education (San José State University)
Topics covered: critical thinking (including informal logic and fallacies), propositional logic (translations from natural language, truth tables, and semantic trees), predicate logic (translations from natural language, semantic trees).
PHIL 057 - Critical Thinking (San José State University) Topics Covered: Deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning, basic (propositional) logic, formal and informal fallacies, implicit bias, basic theories of knowledge, testimony, testimonial injustice
PHIL 157 - Intermediate Logic (San José State University) Topics Covered: Mathematical logic up to full first-order with identity.
PHIL 160 - Philosophy of Science (San José State University) Topics Covered: definitions of science, the demarcation problem, theories of scientific inference, realism and anti-realism in science.
PHIL 186 - Business and Professional Ethics (San José State University) Instructor, Spring Semester 2016, Fall Semester 2016
Topics covered: critical thinking about ethics, ethical theories (consequentialism, deontology), ethical reasoning in the business environment, case studies.
PHIL 293 - Advanced Seminar in Logical Theory (San José State University) Instructor, Fall Semester 2015
Topics covered: theories of truth, logical consequence, theories of conditionals, possible worlds, paradoxes, alternative logics, logical pluralism.
PY1106 - Society, Authority and Freedom (University of St Andrews)
Tutor, Spring Semester 2014
Module Coordinator: Dr James Harris
Topics covered: the nature of political authority, the distribution of goods in society, the social contract, liberalism and conservatism, freedom, justice, liberty, and equality.
PY1006 - Reasoning and Knowledge (University of St Andrews)
Tutor, Spring Semesters 2011, 2012, and 2014
Module Coordinators: Dr Patrick Greenough (2011, 2012), Dr Ephraim Glick (2011, 2012), Dr Katie Harrington (2014)
Topics covered: skepticism, definitions of knowledge, foundationalism, coherentism, and infinitism about knowledge, deductive versus inductive justification, informal logic, formal logic (translations into propositional logic, truth tables, natural deduction for propositional logic, and translations into predicate logic).
PY1005 - Mind and Reality (University of St Andrews)
Tutor, Fall Semesters 2010 and 2011
Module Coordinators: Dr Simon Prosser (2010, 2011), Dr Ephraim Glick (2011) Topics covered: physicalism, dualism, and functionalism about mind, universals, realism, idealism, personal identity, and arguments for the existence of god.
PY2004 - Modern Philosophy from Descartes to Kant (University of St Andrews) Tutor, Spring Semester 2010
Module Coordinators: Dr Jens Timmerman, Dr Lucas Thorpe
Topics covered: Descartes on skepticism and dualism, Spinoza on substance and mind - body relations, Locke on personal identity and the nature of knowledge, Hume on causality, Butler on reason and passions, Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason and Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals.
PY1105 - Ethical Controversies (University of St Andrews)
Tutor, Fall Semester 2009
Module Coordinator: Dr Lisa Jones
Topics covered: deontology, consequentialism, virtue ethics, the moral status of abortion, charity.