Conceptualize Environmental Ethics with Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1) Peer Tutor Khadeeja Arastu
- SASS
- Sep 19, 2020
- 3 min read
In this article, the Board of SASS interviews Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1) peer tutor Khadeeja Arastu. We hope that this article will help current and future Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1) students in their academic journey!
When did you take Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1), and who was your instructor?
I took JLCD1 in the 2019-20 school year with Dr. Heather Walker-Dale.
What did you enjoy about Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1)?
I enjoyed the lively, thought-provoking discussions during class sessions, as well as the opportunity to express my own ideas in essays.
What challenged you the most in Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1)? How did you overcome those challenges?
Writing philosophy papers was the most challenging part of my JLCD1 experience because the format was so unfamiliar. However, Dr. Walker-Dale provided amazing resources in Canvas for brainstorming and essay-writing, such as the step-by-step thesis development activity and the essay review checklist. By taking advantage of those resources, using the Writing and Tutoring Center to get feedback from instructors and peer tutors, and reaching out to my instructor for content-related questions, I was able to get accustomed to (and by the end of the year, even enjoy!) writing philosophy papers.
What tips do you have that could be useful to students taking Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1)?
If you ever find yourself lost in the ether of abstract ideas that readings often present, don’t worry; after discussing them in class, they will make much more sense.
Participate in class discussions! Usually, if you’re confused about a topic, the best way to understand it better is to discuss it with others.
Reach out to your instructor/peer tutors about any questions! The WTC instructors are also helpful for writing assignments, but be aware that they will likely only be able to help you structure-wise.
Use resources provided on Canvas for writing midterm and final essays.
Pay attention to your instructor’s feedback on written assignments!
About how much time did you spend a week working on assignments and preparing for discussion sessions in Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1)?
The amount of time spent on readings for discussion sections varied based on the material; some readings were a breeze, but for some others I would have to read each paragraph twice to understand it. I would say I spent an average of 2 hours a week reading and digesting the readings. The writing assignments (usually only every other week) were much easier because we discussed all the topics on them in class, so those would take 1-2 hours. The midterm and final papers took about 8 hours in total (5-6 hours on the draft and 2-3 on the final copy), although I may be overestimating because it generally took me a while to brainstorm ideas and organize them. On average, I spent about 3-4 hours outside of class time on JLCD1 coursework.
What did the typical week in Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1) look like?
The day before or day of each discussion section of the week, I would go through the reading and make notes of questions or comments to bring up in class. During and/or after discussion sections, I would take notes on just the main ideas of the reading, now that I would have fully understood them. We usually had a writing assignment every other week, on either a Wednesday or a Friday, with 3-5 questions on the main ideas covered in the previous two weeks. Each question took a short paragraph to answer. I would write my responses to the question for each topic once we finished that topic, so by the time the due date came around, I would have most of my responses already written and would only need to edit before submitting.
What was your favorite topic covered in Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt (JLCD1)?
My two favorite topics in the course were environmental ethics and the little bit of psychology that we touched on near the end of the year.
Do you have any resources (i.e. study tips, useful websites) to share with students who want to take the course?
For writing assignments, I highly recommend the resources Dr. Walker-Dale has in Canvas that I mentioned earlier: the step-by-step thesis development activity and the essay review checklist. I believe there is also a “How to Write a Philosophy Paper” lecture by Dr. Walker-Dale, where she goes through a sample philosophy paper and breaks down what was good and what needed improvement. I found those Canvas resources to be more than sufficient.
As for study tips, I would recommend taking notes on at least the main ideas from each discussion section. It is much easier to study for the in-class midterm or brainstorm for essays if you have all of the central ideas to consider in one spot.
Khadeeja Arastu is a peer tutor for Logos, Cosmos, and Doubt and can be found on the Writing and Tutoring Center.
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