Public invited to join online philosophy course at UW-Whitewater

June 23, 2011

Create an online identity, choose your avatar and join the conversation in an online philosophy course that's being offered free to the public from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Philosophy 241, an introductory course, will be offered again through the online three-dimensional world of Second Life. The course is taught by Chris Calvert-Minor, an assistant professor of philosophy at UW-Whitewater.

"In Second Life you can do things you never could in an original classroom. Anything you can dream of can happen in Second Life," said Calvert-Minor.

He hopes community members will join the class and bring different perspectives to the online conversation.

"People from the community can add a richness of information. We have a lot to offer in this area, and the community can benefit," said Calvert-Minor.

Last summer's class boasted plenty of participation and discussion, with students contributing about eight pages of text-chat per class.

"Students were really active in the discussions. I'd say 99 percent of the students really engaged and participated," said Calvert-Minor.

He has made improvements to the course since last summer and now offers two different classrooms online, indoor or outdoor, and a massive orientation center.

The course will be offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, July 5 to Aug. 12, from 5:30 to 6:50 p.m.

Anyone interested in enrolling in the course may visit facstaff.uww.edu/calvertc or email Calvert-Minor at calvertc@uww.edu.