Innovations in Teaching Philosophy: A Toolkit for the 21st-Century Classroom

What am I doing here, and what do I want this class to be? What kind of class am I designing, and why? What does a meaningfully inclusive classroom look like?Innovations in Teaching Philosophy tackles the current challenges in higher education with bite-size chapters offering practical advice on a variety of issues.

Here you will find guidance from award-winning teachers about what they have tried in the classroom, how it worked, and why they did it. Motivated by a recognition of the ever-changing landscape philosophy teachers face, the conversational tone of the short chapters emphasize accessibility and practicality. Standalone chapters allow you to gravitate toward what worries or inspires you the most.

The focus throughout is on the most pressing features of the current teaching environment: the role of technology and the desire to make classrooms more inclusive. Contributors encourage and make space for building a community, rethinking who teachers and students are and what a philosophy class can and should look like. A final section written exclusively by students considers the wonders and woes of the various styles of teaching they have encountered.

This essential companion is packed with tried and tested tools ready to be modified and adopted to suit your goals as an instructor. Here is a chance to better understand what you want for your course, for the students and for the immensely rewarding experience of teaching philosophy.

Brynn F. Welch is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA. She received the Excellence in Teaching Award from Emory & Henry in 2016, the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching at UAB in 2021, and the UAB Disability Support Services Outstanding Faculty Award in 2022. She is the editor of The Art of Teaching Philosophy (2023).