philosophy & reason€¦ · the 2018 philosophy & reason senior external examination was...

Statistics Year Number of

candidates Level of achievement

VHA HA SA LA VLA

2018 11 2 6 2 0 1

2017 9 3 4 1 0 1

2016 8 1 3 3 1 0

2015 17 4 1 7 2 3

2014 22 2 6 8 4 2

General comments The 2018 Philosophy & Reason Senior External Examination was based on the Philosophy & Reason Senior External Syllabus 2004.

This year, responses were generally of a high quality for both Paper One and Paper Two.

Paper One Candidates were particularly proficient in applying techniques and procedures of deductive reasoning, although their understanding of the principles underpinning these procedures was less comprehensive.

Part A Question 15 gave candidates an opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of the difference between a proposition in the form of a conditional and an argument. Many responses to this question lacked detail and clarity, and did not demonstrate extensive understanding. Similarly, responses to Part C Question 3 did not provide a clear and coherent explanation of the concepts of necessary and sufficient conditions.

The probability questions (Part C Questions 1 and 2) were generally very well done this year.

Philosophy & Reason 2018 Senior External Examination: Assessment report

Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority January 2019

Paper Two

Part A Question 1

Many candidates did not identify the conclusion of the argument, despite it being provided in the question. It is important to read all information carefully.

Most candidates correctly classified the argument as an inductive analogy, and justified this classification with reference to the basic comparison between seatbelts and vaccines. However, in many responses the evaluation of the argument was unclear, and reflected a lack of awareness of the subtleties of the argument.

Question 2

Several candidates’ responses to Question 2 were of a much higher quality than their responses to Question 1. The passage proved to be a rich source of fallacies and, in general, candidates were able to provide a well-justified explanation of a range of mistakes in reasoning.

Part B Responses to the Philosophy section of the paper were also generally pleasing this year. Candidates were well prepared for the unseen moral philosophy question, but should avoid relying on memorised material rather than directly responding to the question.

Responses to the prepared Philosophy question covered a wider range of topics than in previous years, which indicates a more genuine, individual engagement with philosophical ideas.

Candidate responses The following candidate responses were judged to be at an A standard and have been published to help teachers and prospective candidates. They are not prescriptive model responses and are not the only way of solving a problem. Other approaches and problem-solving strategies may be just as acceptable. These responses may contain errors.

Paper One

Paper Two

Redacted due to copyright restrictions

philosophy & reason€¦ · the 2018 philosophy & reason senior external examination was...

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