Expert Tips on History and Philosophy of Science: An Interview with an HSC Teaching Assistant
For the next article in the series of peer tutor interviews, SASS interviewed HSC teaching assistant Gaeun K. We hope that this article will help current and future HSC students in their academic journey!
Q: What did you enjoy about HSC?
Gaeun: HSC was my first actual philosophy course, and it opened my eyes to so many different academic fields, worldviews, and ways of critical thinking. It was fascinating to see how the imaginative potential of philosophy could motivate the exacting nature of science, and the course made me appreciate the rigor and utility of philosophical thought. I loved HSC so much that I’ve come back to take the course for the third year in a row!
Q: What tips do you have that could be useful to students taking HSC?
Gaeun:
WAs: Go to peer tutors and send parts of drafts to instructors, be concise in your writing (see more writing tips below)
Quizzes: Take notes that aren’t necessarily copious, but encapsulate main takeaways from classes and readings. Attend review sessions or at least watch recordings — they will save your life!
Research paper:
-- Think back to the entire semester, and identify a broad subject area that you really love. The research paper should be a chance to talk about what you love most — don’t waste that opportunity, and really try to identify a captivating topic!
-- Reach out to your instructors/tutors for specific literature recommendations or guidance on exciting questions in the field.
-- For research, you can use JSTOR, philpapers.org, the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy (SEP), and the numerous other resources the Stanford library has to offer. Start early on your literature search and repeat it multiple times — the bibliographies of academic papers are goldmines for relevant and important work.
Writing tips:
-- Your thesis is the core of your essay. Make sure your thesis is contentious and is making an argument (i.e. don’t say something like “In this paper I will define inductive reasoning and discuss it”), address the reader in first person, and briefly signpost the steps that you will take to support your argument.
-- Make your essay as structured as possible. The first sentence of each paragraph should give the reader a good sense of what the entire paragraph is going to be about, and don’t be afraid to use first person here as well. Use “first, second, third” numbering (or at least make an effort to distinguish one step of an argument from the next) for greater clarity and organization.
-- Introductions and conclusions can be very short — usually not more 2 sentences. In research papers where the page limit is significantly more generous, this might change.
-- Each sentence should contribute something to your essay. “In the previous paragraph, I have discussed potatoes and now here is a discussion of tomatoes” is not a substantive sentence. Ask yourself whether each sentence is playing a role in supporting your main argument.
-- Always look at the big picture! One of the comments the teachers will always make is “what is the significance of this point?” Make connections between paragraphs, perhaps explain the significance of your claim in modern science, etc.
For all assignments: Start early (even a week in advance makes all the difference), seek out feedback from your abundant available sources, be engaged and interested in the material
For a great list of core paper tips, check out this article.
Q: About how much time did you spend a week on HSC work?
Gaeun: I spent at least 1–1.5 hours for the assigned and optional reading for each class, 3–5 hours for each WA, and significantly longer for research papers and projects.
Q: What was your favorite topic covered in HSC?
Gaeun: Quantum theory, but I won’t go into the how and why because I ramble too much about it already. :)
