PPE Weekend
4th/5th February and repeated 10th/11th March 2012 – University of London Union
IS PPE FOR ME?
The Debate Chamber PPE Weekend offers students aged 15-18 the chance to take part in lectures, seminars, activities and debates led by Oxford University graduates and tutors. Topics for discussion this year include ‘Can we owe moral duties to our future selves?’, ‘How can game theory help us to understand the behaviour of financial markets?’ and ‘When do terrorists have human rights?’. Tutors will introduce you to some of the theories and techniques they use to explore these topics at university. The course is a chance to get a taste of undergraduate learning, improve your analytical skills, and decide whether PPE might just be for you.
Teaching will run from 10.30 – 4.30 on each day.
You can download a poster to display in your school here.
WEEKEND PROGRAMME:
Philosophy: personal identity
What are the essential features of our personal identity, and to what extend does that identity persist over time? We will be examining the work of classic thinkers such as John Locke and David Hume, as well as contemporary philosopher Derek Parfit, and looking in particular at the moral implications of different answers to questions of personal identity.
Politics: constitution-building
Can you stitch a broken nation back together? How do you build stable political insitutions in a country divided by religious or ethnic civil war? This seminar will introduce the methods of modern political science. Students will evaluate different approaches to managing conflict in divided societies using examples from the USA and UK to Rwanda and South Africa, and then work together to decide the best constitutional arrangements for countries emerging from civil conflict or economic crisis.
Economics: game theory
Many of our decisions are made under conditions of partial rationality – when the outcomes of our choices depend on the choices made by others. Game theory is the study of different strategies and tactics in these situations. In this workshop, we will be analysing a range of possible games, from the classic prisoners dilemma to Akerlof’s account of the second hand car sector in terms of a market for ‘peaches’ and ‘lemons’.
Interdisciplinary Workshop: EU-Africa Relations
In the final session of the PPE Weekend, we will explore EU-Africa Relations, and study how the politics and economics of trade and aid affect relationships between some of the world’s richest and some of the world’s poorest countries. This afternoon will also take an in-depth look at the issue of poverty in Africa – studying the contending explanations for its causes and solution and how it affects Africa’s relationships with the West.
What students have said:
“Very good! I learnt much more than I expected and I achieved more confidence. Amazing people.”
“Very intellectually stimulating and an eye-opening introduction to reading PPE.”
“I am now convinced that I want to do PPE at Oxford. The lecturers were excellent.”
“Interesting to debate issues above curriculum level that we would not otherwise be able to discuss. The lessons were conducted well in an atmosphere so as to encourage participation.”
“I thought it was brilliant. I was nervous before I came that everybody would be different to me but everyone was really friendly and the events were really fascinating.”
“Absolutely brilliant and very inspiring. I loved the fact that our personal opinions were taken into account.”
“It didn’t just teach me a lot about the course and its approach, but also about me and what I am interested in – philosophy all the way!”
“Extremely interesting – it opened my mind to lots of different ways of thinking.”
“I found it incredibly useful. Tutors were REALLY nice and made the courses interesting. Spoke about the course on a ‘real’ level rather than a practised official one.”
“It was an extremely good opportunity to meet intellectual students who have inspired me.”
Book a place
The fee for the PPE Masterclass is £175 per student. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. To book a place please use the form below. If you have any questions, or you wish to place a group booking, please email info@debatechamber.com or call 0845 519 4827.
If you are applying for a fees bursary please do not fill in the form below, instead please complete the Bursary Application – Student Form.
If you are a teacher interested in holding a PPE event at your school please click here.