Makilala Institute Of Science And Technology

Makilala , North Cotabato

Entrepreneurship Department

Social Science and Philosophy

Course Number: SSP1
Instructor: Myrachelle Joyce C. Estrada,
RPm
Course Title or Description:
Social Science and Philosophy
09630700097
Credit Units: 3 LEC
[email protected]

Myrachelle Joyce Estrada

Module No. 1
Duration: 1 week/ February
15-19,2021

I. LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
: identify and differentiate rationalism and empiricism;
: define Ontology;
: distinguish the concepts of the four main traditions of ontology; and
: make logical conclusion.

II. TOPICS/SUBJECT MATTER

• Introduction to Social Science and Philosophy
• Theory of knowledge
• Ontology and its 4 main tradition
• Logic
III. REFERENCE
Benton, T., & Craib, I. (2011). Philosophy of Social Science. London: Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby
Street, London EC1N 8TS.

IV. COURSE CONTENT

It is in this sense that, as the Italian Marxist philosopher, Antonio Gramsci (Gramsci
1971) said, ‘Everyone is a philosopher.’ But if we are philosophers at these times of
crisis, it is also true that in the way we interact with each other in our everyday lives,
in the way we choose to spend our free time, in the jobs we choose (if we are lucky
enough to have that choice) and so on, we are still implicitly philosophers. Our lives
display or represent, whether we are generally self-conscious about it or not, a
philosophical orientation to the world. We can think of this as a tacit or practical
philosophy of life.

Theory of knowledge
The technical term for this is ‘epistemology’. In the seventeenth-century disputes
about philosophy and science there were two main alternative views, in opposition to
each other.
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Makilala , North Cotabato
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 ‘rationalist’ view
They were very impressed by mathematics, which seemed to arrive at absolutely
certain conclusions by formal reasoning. The seventeenth century French philosopher
Descartes (1641, 1931) is perhaps the best known of the rationalists. His method of
systematically doubting everything that could be doubted led him to the conclusion
that even as he doubted he must at least be thinking. So what could not be doubted
was his own existence as a thinking being. This provided the certain foundation from
which he was able (at least to his own satisfaction!) to begin the task of reconstructing
the whole edifice of knowledge.
• Knowledge is innate
• Conclusions are derived through logic and reasoning.
• I think, therefore I am – Rene Descartes

 ‘empiricism’.
the sole source of knowledge about the world was the evidence of our senses. At birth,
they held, the human mind is a blank sheet, as it were, and our knowledge is acquired
subsequently, through learning to recognize recurrent patterns in our experience, and
attaching general ideas to them. Genuine knowledge (as distinct from mere belief, or
prejudice) is limited to the statement of these patterns in experience, and what can be
inferred from them. The apparent certainty of the conclusions of mathematical and
logical arguments, which the rationalists were so impressed by, is due to the fact that
they are true by definition. So, the certainty of such statements as ‘All bachelors are
male’, or ‘2 + 2 = 4’, tells us nothing we didn’t already know about the world. They are
statements in which we make explicit the implications of the way we define certain
words, or mathematical operations.
For example : “seeing is believing”
• Knowledge derived from experiences.
• Either experienced with the 5 senses or processed with the brain.

Ontology
This is a technical term in philosophy, In the sense we use the term here, an ‘ontology’
is the answer one would give to the question: ‘What kinds of things are there in the
world?’ In the history of philosophy the many different ways of answering this question
can be loosely divided into four main traditions.
‘Materialists’ have argued that the world is made up entirely of matter (or ‘matter in
motion’), and the different characteristics of material objects, living things, people,
societies and so on can in principle be explained in terms of the greater or lesser
complexity of the organization of matter.
‘idealists’ have argued that the ultimate reality is mental, or spiritual. This may be
because they, like Descartes, think that their experience of their own inner, conscious
life is the thing they can be most certain of. If one begins with this, then it can seem
reasonable to think of the material objects and other bodies one encounters as
constructs of one’s own inner thought processes.
‘dualism’. Again, Descartes is a convenient and well-known example. Having
convinced himself of his own existence as a thinking being, it seemed to him that there
was a further question as to whether he existed as an embodied, material being.
Eventually, he was able to be certain of that, but in the process came to see body and
mind as two quite different kinds of thing, or ‘substance’. So human individuals were,
for him, a rather mysterious and contingent combination of a mechanical body with a
ghostly mind, or soul (see Ryle 1976).

For some philosophers, the apparent difficulty of being sure about the nature of
anything beyond the limits of our own conscious experience leads them to
‘agnosticism’. This is not just the don’t-know option in the philosophers’ public
opinion poll. Rather, it is the positive doctrine that the nature of the world as it
exists independently of our subjective experience just cannot be known.
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Makilala , North Cotabato
Entrepreneurship Department

Logic
The discipline of logic is an attempt to set down in a systematic way what makes the
difference between a good and a bad argument. When we construct an argument we
are usually attempting to show why a particular statement (our ‘conclusion’) should be
accepted as true. In order to do this, we bring together other statements, which give
an account of the relevant evidence, or other considerations, which provide the
grounds for believing the truth of the conclusions. These statements are the
‘premisses’ of the argument. A ‘valid argument’ is one in which the conclusion follows
from the premisses. It is one in which anyone who accepts the premisses must accept
the conclusion. This does not mean that the conclusion itself must be true, only that it
is as reliable or as well established as the premisses from which it is derived.

For example:
If there is a peace settlement in Ireland, this government has at least one great
achievement to its credit.
There is a peace settlement in Ireland.
Therefore: This government has at least one great achievement to its credit.

V. ACTIVITY/EXERCISES
Activity 1:

Instruction: Below are two boxes that has two labels ( rationalism and empericism).
Identify one characteristic/ belief / situation that follows or supports the view of
rationalism/empiricism. Fill in all the boxes.

Rationalism Empericism
 Makilala Institute Of Science And Technology
Makilala , North Cotabato
Entrepreneurship Department

VI. ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION

Instructions:
OFFLINE SUBMISSION: Write your name legibly and answer the following items. Write your answers in
the answer sheet provided after the quiz. Submit your papers at the office after completion.
ONLINE SUBMISSION: A link will be provided on the Facebook page given by the instructor. You may
answer via GOOGLE FORMS.
Identification: Identify the term described in each item below. Write your answers in the answer sheet.
1. What view believes that we are born without any knowledge but are filled with it
through experience?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
2. What view believes that our knowledge is attained from what our senses receives?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
3. What view supports science that our knowledge is passed on through heredity?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
4. What view believed that because we think therefore, we are thinking beings?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
5. What view believes that the source of our knowledge is innately embedded in us?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
6. What is the technical term for philosophy?
a. Empiricism b. Rationalism c. Ontology d. Philosophy
7. What perspective believes that we are composed of two parts the body and the
mind/soul?
a. Dualism b. Idealist c. Materialist d. Agnosticism
8. What perspective believes that our reality is based on the ideas on our thought process?
a. Dualism b. Idealist c. Materialist d. Agnosticism
9. What perspective believes that everything in the world is composed of matter?
a. Dualism b. Idealist c. Materialist d. Agnosticism
10. What do you call the perspective that depends on the persons own
experience/perspective?
a. Dualism b. Idealist c. Materialist d. Agnosticism

II.

Make a conclusion from the premises given using logic. (5 points each)

1.

a. Mr. Con got a grade of 82% in his “Understanding the self” course.
b. To pass the “Understanding the self” course, you must have a grade above 75%

Therefore,______________________________________________________________________

2.

a. Gordon Ramsey established a restaurant.

b. Restaurant owners are considered businessmen.

Therefore,______________________________________________________________________
 Makilala Institute Of Science And Technology
Makilala , North Cotabato
Entrepreneurship Department

Answer Sheet for SSP

Name:________________________________________Sec:__________________________

Score:_____________ Module No:___________________

Rationalism Empericism

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