Report: UNESCO international philosophy day 2003

UNESCO Philosophy Day’s Baltic Sea essay event

On the UNESCO international philosophy day 20th November philosophical cafés and round tables were again organized all around the world. The AIIPh Baltic Sea Net, the Finnish UNESCO ASPnet, The Finnish Association for Teachers of Philosophy and Philosophy of Life and Societas Philosophica Fennica organized for the second time a UNESCO philosophy day’s essay event for pupils and students in the countries around the Baltic Sea. Nearly 100 essays were sent to the essay event, and many of them were philosophically of high quality.

The award committee selected three essay writers to be awarded in the international, upper secondary school category:

Lithuanian Lina Lelyte (Palanga senoji gymnasium). Lina wrote her essay on Kant’s categorical imperative and universal ethical principles in a dialogue form. In her essay she says: “And as a true idealist he [Kant] wanted, that everyone‘s behaviour didn‘t destroy the world‘s order and that it would always be a universal law. “Act as if the maxim of your action were to become through your will a general natural law.” It is a categorical imperative.

-Oh! But what does it mean „to destroy world‘s order“?

-You see, if everyone acted as you, that is to say, made a deceitful promise, it means that you could rely on nobody. Everyone could break one‘s word if only it were useful. A chance to lie would be valid, but it is immoral.”

Finnish Olli-Pekka Valtonen (Tikkurilan lukio). Olli-Pekka wrote about Descartes’ method of doubt and the relation of doubt to philosophy and science: ”In the passage Descartes seems to assume that his way of perceiving things was the most logical one and thus the only correct one: "'I think therefore I am' was so certain and so assured that all the most extravagant suppositions brought forward by the sceptics were incapable of shaking it". The goal of rationalists was not to provide information of the environment or "real" world, but logical arguments so certain that they held in all conditions.”

Finnish Sari Järvinen (Tapiolan aikuislukio). Sari considered the scientificity (or the lack therof) of creationism: “Descartes intentionally and willingly placed his argument under the observing eyes of the sceptics and only accepted his idea to be seen as valid if it survived the test. He doubted his own theory. It is hard to see the theories creationists have to be scientifically valid since creationists first of all fail to put their theories under test and second of all generally fail to falsify them. (In their theories can be seen many invalid methods of argumentation. They are being criticised for the excessive usage of ad hoc argumentation, as well as circular reasoning and even equivocation.) A theory that cannot be falsified isn’t a scientific theory.”

The winners of the international category were invited to the Philosophy Day conference in Tallinn, where the prize-giving ceremony took place.

In the national category the following pupils were awarded:

Jesse Heikkilä (8th grade, Laurin koulu, Salo). He writes: ”One should note the difference between good and evil, and between good and bad choices. There is no good or evil as such, only good and bad choices. But one cannot choose between good and bad if both good and bad choices have both good and bad consequences.” (”On syytä huomata ero hyvyyden ja pahuuden, ja pahan ja hyvän välillä. […] Ei ole olemassa pahuutta tai hyvyyttä, vaan ainoastaan hyviä ja pahoja valintoja. Mutta eihän ihminen voi valita hyvän ja pahan väliltä, jos niistä aiheutuu kumpaakin kummastakin.”)

Sara-Maria Heinonen (8th grade, Aleksis Kiven koulu, Helsinki) was awarded as well. She writes: ”Even if nobody admitted committing bad choices or bad things, still (I am writing with the presupposition that there is no such thing as a perfect human being) everybody sometimes does something bad. But there are many kinds of bad things. One can steal a candy from a mate when one is little, or one can kill someone when one is grown up. These exemplify different kinds of bad.” (”Vaikka kukaan ei myöntäisikään tekevänsä pahoja valintoja tai pahoja asioita, niin jokainen (kirjoitan sillä oletuksella, ettei ole olemassa täydellisen hyvää ihmistä) tekee joskus jotain pahaa. Mutta pahaa on olemassa monenlaista. Voi varastaa kaverilta karkin kun on pieni tai voi tappaa jonkun kun on iso. Nämä ovat erilaisia pahoja.”)

Ruut Visti (5th grade, Roihuvuori primary school) was awarded in the primary school category. She writes: “A philosophical question: Is there God and did God create the world? Nobody has an answer to this question. Some believe in God and that God created the world. Some believe that the world became like this by accident. But if God exists, where did God come from? Did somebody create God? Or has God always existed? Was God born sometime, and who were God’s parents? The Greek have many Gods. Why do some people only have one God?” (” Filosofinen kysymys: Onko Jumala olemassa ja loiko hän maailman? Tähän kysymykseen kukaan ei ole saanut vastausta. Jotkut uskovat Jumalaan ja siihen että hän loi maailman. Jotkut taas uskovat että maailmasta on tullut tällainen sattumalta. Mutta jos Jumala onkin olemassa, mistä hän on tullut. Loiko joku Jumalan? Vai onko Jumala vain ollut aina olemassa? Syntyikö Jumala ja jos syntyi ketkä olivat vanhemmat? Kreikkalaisilla oli monta Jumalaa. Heillä oli vaikka kuinka monta, mutta miksi joillain on vain yksi Jumala?”)

The winners of the category of basic education were awarded with Matthew Lippman’s philosophical text books. The prize included text books for the whole class of the winner, and a teacher’s guide.

Other good essays:

·  Barbora Drasutyte, Vilnius Lyceum

·  Jani Eväkallio, Tikkurilan lukio

·  Jussi Lehtinen, Kallion lukio

·  Kaj Sotala, Kupittaan lukio

The best essays can be read in the following internet addresses: http://www.unescokoulu.fi and http://www.feto.fi.

UNESCO Philosophy Day’s conference in Tallinn 21st – 22nd November

Friday

The Finnish participants of the conference met each other at the ferry terminal at 12.00, from which we travelled by ferry to Tallinn. We arrived in Tallinn at the Institute for Religious Studies at about 15.30, and settled in accommodation in the Institute’s guest rooms.

At 16.30 Professor Arne Rannikmäe gave the opening speech of the conference, in which he warmly welcomed the co-operation between philosophy teachers in Finland and in Estonia.

After the opening speech Finnish speakers gave three lectures: first Docent Heikki Saari, the key note speaker, talked about the teaching of aesthetics. Docent Saari told us about the contemporary state of aesthetics research and about the definition of aesthetics, which according to the speaker is the starting point for aesthetics teaching.

After Docent Saari philosophy teacher Juha Savolainen talked about the development of judgement. He compared different kinds of judgement, such as logical thinking and reasoning which traces the influence relations between the phenomena of the reality. He used as an example the term coined by Professor Jaakko Hintikka: “Sherlock Holmes –logic”.

Then Mr Miika Kabata from Helsinki Business College talked about the possibilities of philosophy teaching in vocational education. According to him there could be need for philosophy teaching in vocational education. However, philosophy teaching in vocational institutions should to be geared for the specific needs of the vocational education institution in question, and philosophical know-how should be emphasised in philosophy teaching instead of the figures in the history of philosophy; argumentative skills, critical thinking and critical assessment of received information are the key words.

After the lectures there was a coffee break and discussion about the themes of the lectures until 20.00 and the dinner.

Saturday

Saturday’s seminar program started at 10.00, when the winners of the Estonian essay contest presented their competition essays to the audience in Estonian, after which there was an English summary of the contents of the essays, and of the competition.

Philosphy teacher Ukri Pulliainen organised a game in which the task was to come up with philosophical interpretations of the film Matrix. In the game teachers had their own team, and students their own. The students’ team’s proposition for interpretation was both in terms of elegance and in terms of metaphysics the more convincing of the two, winning the victory in the game.

After 11.00 and a coffee break the Finnish and the Estonian students discussed their competition essays in a group, and teachers discussed the future of philosophy teaching in Finland and in Estonia, and especially the problematic status of philosophy teaching in Estonia. The Estonian specialists in the discussion were Professor Arne Rannikmäe and philosophy teacher Leo Luks.

At 12.30 Ms Kirsi Jääskeläinen talked about the Philosophy Day essay event in the Baltic Sea countries. The winners of the Baltic Sea essay event presented their competition essays to the audience, after which there was the prize-giving ceremony. Senior Adviser Pekka Elo cited the words of the UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura in 2002: ”Philosophy, as the term signifies, is the love of wisdom. Regardless of its specific terminology in various cultures all over the world […] this act of thinking about thinking turns by definition around the fundamental concepts and ideas that lie at the heart of existence, both individual and collective. It is this act of philosophising that is the lifeblood of philosophy. And it is precisely this act of reflection, of analysis, of questioning – whether of concepts that are taken for granted, ideas dulled by time, or long-established paradigms – that I wish to support and promote through the launching of this [first] Philosophy Day at UNESCO, which is being celebrated by over 50 countries, through conferences, debates and related activities.”

The Secretary General of the Estonian national commission for UNESCO Ms Doris Kareva handed the prizes to the winners of the Estonian essay contest. The chairperson of The Finnish Association for Teachers of Philosophy and Philosophy of Life Ms Satu Honkala handed the prizes to the winners of the Baltic Sea essay event.

At 14.00 there was a lunch, after which the participants had free time in Tallinn until the departure of the ferry at 19.30.

Ask a Philosopher!

On the international UNESCO Philosophy Day the public had a chance to ask a philosophical question that has been puzzling them to a group of the most prominent philosophers in Finland. People were asked to send philosophical essays by e-mail or by phone to the National Board of Education, where they were redirected to an appropriate philosopher.

The questions and the answers given to them will be published in the internet in the home pages of The Finnish Association for Teachers of Philosophy and Philosophy of Life in the address http://www.feto.fi. The answers will also be sent back to the enquirers as soon as the answers have been written.

The philosophers who answer the questions are Jussi Kotkavirta (The University of Jyväskylä), Ilkka Niiniluoto (The University of Helsinki, department of philosophy, Rector of the University of Helsinki), Sami Pihlström (The University of Helsinki, department of philosophy), Toivo Salonen (The University of Lapland), Arto Siitonen (The University of Helsinki, department of social philosophy), Tuukka Tomperi (The University of Tampere)

The Ask a Philosopher! –event was organised this year for the second time. This year the amount of questions more than doubled from last year. There were exactly 100 questions sent to the event.

Immanuel Kant billiards tournament

On the Philosophy Day’s evening there was the traditional Immanuel Kant billiards tournament. The tournament was organised for the tenth time this year. The winner of the tournament was Ms Kirsi Jääskeläinen, who was awarded with a jar of Kant mustard. The mustard was produced according to the recipe which Kant himself used.

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