Learning Objectives:

The curriculum and the learning objectives of TAPSS 2012 are designed to enable you to think yourself through the issues of pluralism, choices, alternatives, and translations that characterize the field of communications and the discursive landscape of contemporary theory and methods in the Arts Humanities and Social Sciences. The Summer School will help you to:

• Develop high-level conceptual and communicative tools.
• Deepen your disciplinary knowledge and prepare yourself for interdisciplinary cooperation.
• Learn to evaluate and employ methodological skills on three levels:

Level 1 – Identifying basic and often tacit assumptions and commitments implied in different research methodologies. Learn to compare, select and justify the employment of different modes of conducting empirical inquiry, including deductive and inductive logics, question and hypothesis formation, argumentation and analysis, and different approaches to designing the research cycle.

Level 2 – Placing those concrete methodological issues in the wider contexts of sociological and philosophical frameworks. Learn to identify and apply relevant conceptual vocabulary to contribute to and profit from inter disciplinary frameworks.

Level 3 – Influencing debate on social and political issues and future policy-making by shaping our capacity to understand and utilize critical methodologies. Learn to face the ‘post-disciplinary' challenges in contemporary research, education and professional contexts.

In a strongly student-centred and collaborative setting, you will participate in sessions led by UCC sociologists and philosophers as well as international guests.

In a move towards collaborative teaching and learning, conventional didactic presentations are bolstered by small group work, student-led seminars and discussions and self-directed preparation for peer-group presentation and feedback sessions. This is accomplished in the following ways:

CONVERSATIONS: These sessions speak to the interest of all participants. Like all good conversations they are oriented to identifying, clarifying and extending the common ground we share across different disciplines. These sessions, for all participants, are dedicated to establishing a framework for meaningful interdisciplinary work by highlighting disciplinary differences in terminology, jargon and assumptions.

READINGS: Reading Groups are small working groups (5 or 6 participants) wherein people present and discuss their work in progress with their peers. Each group meets several times, ensuring that everyone's work is thoroughly discussed and developed.

SYMPOSIA: Symposia seek to exemplify methods of theorizing rather than merely ‘reading' or ‘applying' particular theories. In groups of 10 -15 participants we discuss examples of the practices of understanding and explaining which are shown here ‘in action' with a view to demonstrate core methods and approaches.

DEBATES: Debates are the 'intellectual core' of Theory & Philosophy Summer School, comprising presentations that represent and put to debate 'state of the art' in Theory and Philosophy for the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. (For all participants).

Public Academy: 'Understanding and explaining the current crisis.' These sessions provide a topic of current public interest and policy relevance –namely, the grave and pressing financial, political-economic and social crises occurring at national, EU and global level. Subjects on which we shall bring our theoretical discussion of understanding and explaining to bear. (These sessions are open to the public).