Seminars SoSe 26 – Didactics of Philosophy

Lecturer: Dr. Thomas Sukopp

Times: Mon, 13.04.2026 – 20.07.2026, 6–8 p.m., s.t.

Location: AR-K 408

Description: Throughout the seminar, we will practice philosophizing with children using selected text genres (philosophical, literary, and non-philosophical non-fiction texts), while incorporating guidelines for age- and developmentally appropriate oral and written work in philosophy classes. In doing so, we will learn how the methods, models, and theories of philosophy education translate into concrete classroom practices. We will expand our theoretical toolkit by comparing the various approaches to philosophizing with children—such as those of Lipman, Martens, and Matthews—in a practical, application-oriented manner.

We will address practical teaching aspects using selected examples: Why is it important at all to develop a specific argument? Why is it useful to reach a common understanding of the meaning of central concepts such as justice, truth, reality, etc., and how does one do this in practice?

Lecturer: Dr. Thomas Sukopp

Times: Tue, 14.04.2026 – 21.07.2026, 12–2 p.m., c.t.

Location: AR-M 0216

Description: This seminar focuses less on the methods and models of philosophy education and more on the following questions:

• How can we strike a balance between subject-oriented and student-oriented approaches?

• What teaching methods, assessment options, etc., are available?

• What media can we use in philosophy classes, and how?

• What forms of presenting philosophy are available, and how can we use them effectively in philosophy classes?

• How can we appropriately manage teaching and learning situations?

• How can we encourage students to think independently?

Lecturer: Dr. Thomas Sukopp

Times: Tue, 14.04.2026 – 21.07.2026, 4–6 p.m., c.t.

Location: AR-HB 022

Description: Beyond Nietzsche’s famous statement “God is dead” (The Gay Science, Aphorism 125), Nietzsche is known to some as an aggressive atheist and to others as a veritable model of free-thinking. It is well known that Nietzsche was an influential critic of religion who remains philosophically underappreciated. Less well-known, or at least often overlooked, are the following aspects, which we will explore in this seminar:

• Was Nietzsche an atheist at all, or rather a diagnostician? (The aforementioned Aphorism 125 speaks of the fact that we have killed God.

• Which religious concepts, theories, and traditions does Nietzsche criticize, and how does he do so?

• What are the connections between Nietzsche’s morality or critique of morality and his critique of religion?

• What can we learn from Nietzsche’s view of humans as religious, anti-religious, or areligious beings?

• How has Nietzsche’s critique of religion been evaluated in the history of its reception?

• We will read and interpret selected passages from Nietzsche’s works together and draw connections between them. Secondary literature will also be consulted and announced in advance of the seminar.

Lecturer: Dr. Thomas Sukopp

Times: Wed, 15.04.2026 – 22.07.2026, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m., c.t.

Location: AR-K 100

Description: The advanced seminar in subject-specific pedagogy is designed to prepare students for both their teaching practicum and their future careers as teachers, as well as to deepen and expand on the subject-specific pedagogical content they have learned so far. We will address the following questions and topics, among others:

• How can discussions in philosophy classes be conducted in such a way that as many students as possible participate (including skillfully guiding the class toward the learning objectives)

• Practical implementation of methods in philosophy instruction (what is the purpose of a method?)

• Practicing the role of the teacher: What does it mean to be a philosophy teacher? Reflecting on the role of the teacher

• Discussing and reflecting on lesson plans; here, the complete phasing, including didactic and methodological commentary, is particularly relevant; deepening aspects of lesson planning

• Philosophical reading: Practicing specific philosophical reading techniques

• Formulating learning objectives (methodological learning objectives, cognitive learning objectives, learning to formulate the main learning objective and sub-objectives for each lesson based on content)

• Addressing approaches to philosophy didactics that have received little or no attention to date, such as: the contemplative approach, the science-oriented approach, and the educational-philosophical approach

• Dealing with cultural and ideological plurality in philosophy instruction

Lecturer: Dr. Christian Prust

Times: Tue, 09.06.2026, 4–5:30 p.m., s.t.; Fri, 10.07.2026, 2–6 p.m., c.t.; Sat/Sun, 11./12.07.2026, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., c.t.

Location: AR-D 6101 & US-D 109

Description: The preparatory seminar for the philosophy practicum semester is divided into three thematic blocks:

1. What constitutes good (philosophy) instruction? – Current challenges for teachers. In this block, participants will gain a deeper, practical understanding of relevant subject-specific teaching methodologies and philosophically grounded educational theories. Furthermore, attention will be drawn to current challenges facing teachers (inclusion, dealing with heterogeneity, classroom disruptions, etc.); these will be discussed together with a particular focus on philosophy instruction, and participants will be prepared to address them appropriately.

2. Preparation for one’s own philosophy instruction (during the practicum semester): First, the curricula/core syllabi/guidelines (including the thematic areas [practical philosophy] and content areas [philosophy]) for philosophy instruction will be discussed together. Building on this, students will plan their own lessons and conduct or simulate them in the seminar; these will then be reflected upon and evaluated together.

3. Study Projects and Fieldwork Recommendations: First, students will work together to develop an outline for a potential study or research project. This process will focus primarily on the project’s timeline, content, and methodology, but will also prepare students to address potential challenges. Students who will not be undertaking a study project in philosophy should be sensitized to the school as a learning environment through recommendations for observation, action, and classroom observation.