“Teaching the Virtues and Vices”
Summer Seminar
Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan USA
25 June - 20 July, 2012
Summary
A four-week seminar for mainland Chinese professors and graduate students. The seminar is restricted to professors and graduate students who agree to add a course on virtue ethics to their curriculum (or to improve an existing course). The program covers travel and seminar expenses, and provide books for participants.
Course Description
The main focus of this seminar will be to help Chinese professors develop courses on virtue ethics. The seminar will also help participants gain a deeper understanding of some basic historical and philosophical issues in the virtue ethics tradition. We will begin with a historical overview of some of the virtue ethics tradition in the west and then alternate between discussions of key philosophical issues and pedagogical discussions. Particular attention will be given to points of contact between virtue ethics and other issues in philosophy and cognate disciplines (e.g., psychology and theology). At the end of the seminar, each participant will be expected to have developed a syllabus that would be suitable for a virtue ethics course in China. Instruction will be in English.
Course Topics
The topics to be covered fall into two major categories: virtue theory in general, and specific virtues with their corresponding vices. Both categories will be approached with an eye toward their historical development. The following is a preliminary list of anticipated topics:
General topics in virtue theory:
1. different approaches to the nature of the virtues
2. human nature
3. historical development of virtue theory
4. recent challenges to virtue theory
Specific topics on the virtues:
1. the cardinal virtues
2. the capital vices and their corresponding virtues
3. epistemic virtues
Summer Seminar
Directed by Christina Van Dyke (Calvin College) and
Kevin Timpe (Northwest Nazarene University)
25 June - 20 July, 2012
Summary
A four-week seminar for mainland Chinese professors and graduate students. The seminar is restricted to professors and graduate students who agree to add a course on virtue ethics to their curriculum (or to improve an existing course). The program covers travel and seminar expenses, and provide books for participants.
Course Description
The main focus of this seminar will be to help Chinese professors develop courses on virtue ethics. The seminar will also help participants gain a deeper understanding of some basic historical and philosophical issues in the virtue ethics tradition. We will begin with a historical overview of some of the virtue ethics tradition in the west and then alternate between discussions of key philosophical issues and pedagogical discussions. Particular attention will be given to points of contact between virtue ethics and other issues in philosophy and cognate disciplines (e.g., psychology and theology). At the end of the seminar, each participant will be expected to have developed a syllabus that would be suitable for a virtue ethics course in China. Instruction will be in English.
Course Topics
The topics to be covered fall into two major categories: virtue theory in general, and specific virtues with their corresponding vices. Both categories will be approached with an eye toward their historical development. The following is a preliminary list of anticipated topics:
General topics in virtue theory:
1. different approaches to the nature of the virtues
2. human nature
3. historical development of virtue theory
4. recent challenges to virtue theory
Specific topics on the virtues:
1. the cardinal virtues
2. the capital vices and their corresponding virtues
3. epistemic virtues