sources of disagreement
Title 5: Given access to the same facts, how is it possible that there can be disagreement between experts in a discipline? Develop your answer with reference to two areas of knowledge.
Thoughts to consider with essay 5 include:
The difference between rational and non-rational disagreement the relationship between facts and theories the difference between common access and common perception of facts with Reason, Emotion and Language as AOK/WOK.
sources of disagreement
Paragraph 1
-Give your KQ. For example, “To what extent is math more reliable than other areas of knowledge?”
-State your thesis. What is your short answer to the KQ (your question of knowledge). “While looking at mathematics, natural science and ethics, we will see that mathematics isn’t necessarily more reliable; however, we will see that knowledge is different in different fields.”
-Give us a roadmap, a sentence that gives us a preview, showing us what you’re going to do in your body paragraphs. Make it clear how you are going to explore the KQ, which Ways of Knowing and/or Areas of Knowledge you’re going to use. This will make it easy for the marker to know what to look for. An example: “Mathematics can be seen as more reliable because it uses reason. Natural science can be less reliable because it relies on observation. And ethics can be less reliable because it is related to the norms of a person’s society. ”
Section 2: Two paragraphs totaling 600 words
sources of disagreement
Paragraph 2
-Claim. A claim a topic sentence that outlines your argument about the KQ. For example you could claim that, “Mathematics can be relied on because it is a purely logical system.”
-Explain. Elaborate and clarify your claim. “Mathematics is axiomatic and independent of subjective experience.“
-Example. A real life example, to clarify and support the claim from your own experience. Examples should be personal, specific, precise and real. Did something happen in your Science class? Did you have a conversation with your or hear a story from your grandfather? These are evidence from your own life rather than examples from Darwin or Lincoln. So you could talk about how, “In mathematics we learned that the inside angles of a triangle, in Euclidian space, sum up to 180 degrees.”
Paragraph 3
-Counter-claim. Argue against your claim above. “However, it is possible to come to different conclusions using different systems of mathematics.”
-Example. An example that supports your counter claim. “There are different It is not possible to demonstrate that the interior angles of a triangle equal 180 degrees in Euclidian space, this cannot be proven within other systems, such as spherical geometry or hyperbolic geometry.”
-Link to KQ. Quickly sum up the (complicated) insights of this section. “It is therefore clear that mathematics is reliable to an extent, but often it can only show something to be true within one fixed system or approach.”
Section 3: Another two body paragraphs, looking at your second AoK or WoK. Write these using the same approach you saw in paragraphs 2 and 3. 600 words
Paragraph 4
-Claim.
-Explain.
-Example.
Paragraph 5
-Counter-claim.
-Example.
-Link to KQ.
Section 4: Conclusion with two paragraphs totaling 200-250 words
Paragraph 6
-Implications and significance. Why is it important that we know about this?
-Perspective. Explain another view that someone may have (i.e. an older person, someone who’s had different life experiences than you)
Paragraph 7
-Sum up the argument. The thesis again, in short. What have we learned?
sources of disagreement
sample solution
A disagreement between two or more parties can be caused due to various factors such as conflicting personal beliefs and miscommunication . This is due to a mismatch of information , wherein each party has access to information he or she would have gathered due to personal experiences or shared knowledge . In this manner , the information between people is hence unequal which is the primary cause of disagreements .
However , when one puts in significant amount of time and effort into a certain subject matter – provided society recognizes his work – one can be deemed an expert in that specific subject matter . Becoming an expert requires vast knowledge of the subject itself along with knowledge of its history , present and future . Although , our knowledge about ‘ things ‘ in general is limited to the knowledge gathering tools of that particular time period ; one can’t possibly know all there is . And so , it is safe to say that after one becomes an expert in his chosen field , he is exposed to only the information accessible through current technological and societal means .
So even though experts have access to the same universal facts , there are countless occasions of disputes and disagreements between them . Hence what are the mechanisms of knowledge which give rise to such situations ? Throughout the course of history there have been various instances of disagreements between experts in these fields , which I would like to further look into to deduce how disagreements can arise between experts.
