Truth and Deception

• Describe a specific example from any area of knowledge (AOK, eg, the arts, history, economics, psychology, mathematics, business), where you feel that deception may be necessary to knowing. The example may or may not relate to your direct personal experience, but make your views as a knower clear; it may be the case that person(s) involved in the example you relate have a different perspective on truth and deception than you do.

There are many different times when deception is necessary in order to know the truth. In mathematics the teacher often deceives the students in order that they learn something and understand it completely. In math a teacher will often teach the students a rule and tell them that this rule is always true and to learn it and live by it. But then later on the teacher will tell the students that that rule is not necessarily always true and that really there are a lot of exceptions to the rule. There is a very good reason for this deception. If the teacher did not deceive the students and told them that there are tons of exceptions to the rule, then the students may get lost or discouraged and in the end not learn anything. The teacher deceive the students for their own benefits, and so that they actually learn something. Another example of deception where it is necessary is when talking to little kids. One time where you would lie and deceive a little kid is with Santa Clause, the Easter Bunny, etc. During Christmas time a parent will tell little kids that Santa is coming, and the lies become their truths and they fully believe that Santa Clause is real. In reality, there is no Santa Clause and it is all just for fun and makes things seem magical for the kids. But eventually the lie must come to an end and some one tells the children that Santa is not real. Everyone finds it out differently, some children figure it out for themselves, some people have someone slip it to them, and others have their parents break it to them in a calming manner. Without the deception of Santa Clause children would never know what it is like to believe in something as magical as Santa Clause, and during the time where children believe in Santa they do not know that they are being deceived because from their knowledge it is the truth that Santa is real. 

Evaluating Knowledge Claims

Tongue Personality Article

CAS-TOK Connections Reflection

4. Recently, we've discussed knowing and believing and having good reasons. What are good reasons for claiming learining outcomes for a CAS proposal? Refer to one or more specific CAS learning outcomes. [TOK critical thinking]

The reason that we can claim learning outcomes for CAS is because we do not know if they will be achieved but we believe that we will achieve them. The reason that we believe that we will acquire these learning outcomes is because we have faith that we will learn certain things from the CAS activity. For example, commitment is one of the learning outcomes for CAS and it is one of my learning outcomes that I believe I can achieve from going to yoga every week. I believe that I can be committed to going to yoga because I am motivated to do it and have the mindset that I will try to achieve this goal, but it is highly possible that I just stop going to yoga class every week and therefore I will not be committed to the activity. I will not know that I have learned to be committed to an activity such as yoga till the future where I have evidence of being committed to the class. The CAS reflections are a wonderful to make sure that I stay committed and follow through with something I can believe I can do, because when doing CAS reflections it forces you to write down your thoughts about the activity. I know as of right now I am struggling to stay committed to my yoga class because I feel that I do not have time to go to yoga with all of the homework I have to do, and by the time I get home I am too tired and have to drag myself to class. If it wasn't for the CAS reflections I would not go every week and I would probably eventually stop going and I would not think anything of it, but because of the CAS reflections and having a learning outcome that I want to achieve being commitment I know that I have to go and follow through with the class.