This course is part of the UBC Future Global Leaders On-Campus program for high school students ages 15–18.
Philosophy has studied the art of making good arguments and avoiding bad ones since Plato and Aristotle in Ancient Greece. In fact, the very word "argument," as well as many of our standard terms for evaluating arguments ("valid", "sound", etc.), come from philosophy. In this course we offer an overview of the history and theory of arguments, with many concrete examples of good and bad arguments. You also have ample opportunity to develop the skill of making and recognizing good arguments and exposing bad ones.
This is a great course for all students, regardless of areas of interest. Overall, argumentation develops skills that are critical to success at university and needed to solve problems in real-world situations, from personal disagreements to peace negotiations between warring nations.
Dr. ANDERS KRAAL, PhD, is a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at UBC. He has published papers in various areas of philosophy, including logic, philosophy of religion, and the history of philosophy. He is also the author of the recent monograph, The Problem of God in David Hume (Cambridge University Press, 2023).
Course Format
This course is held on the UBC Vancouver campus. You attend class in-person 9am–12pm, Monday through Friday. After lunch, you attend university preparation workshops and participate in group activities on campus from 1:30–3pm.
You can also join the Virtual Student Lounge, hosted by our UBC Student Ambassadors. Meet other Future Global Leaders from across Canada and around the world.
To Register
After you add the course to your cart, you’re asked to complete your registration by creating a new account or logging in. If you are a parent, guardian or other adult registering for the first time on behalf of your student, please create the account in the name of the high school student attending UBC Future Global Leaders, not in your name.
To register, click “Open all” under Available Sessions, select the applicable Type under Fees / Tuition. You can pay a CAD$500 now or pay in full. Select “Scheduled Payment” if you wish to pay a CAD$500 deposit now and the balance later. We will automatically process the balance owing 30 days before the course start date for the Residence option and seven days before the course start date for the Commuter option. Do not select Scheduled Payment if you wish to pay in full now.
Click ADD TO CART. Once you have successfully added the items to your shopcart, click COMPLETE REGISTRATION to be directed to our online payment portal.