Prof. Dr. Lena Kästner
Teaching Experience
mission statement
My main motivation for teaching is to help students discover topics that fascinate them, ignite their intrisic motivation and guide them towards critical thinking and developing their own thoughts to empower them for their future careers. My goal is to provide them with foundational concepts in the field as well as the tools they need to further explore what they are interested in. I train them to present their own views in coherent and structured ways, and make them comfortable in engaging with abstract and complex topics, within and beyond the boundaries of their home discipline. In teaching writing, I focus on training students to write clear and concise papers presenting well-supported arguments.
I teach students at all levels and supervise undergraduate, graduate and PhD theses nationally as well as internationally. My classes range from introductory undergraduate classes covering classical philosophical topics to advanced research-related graduate seminars for Masters students and PhD candidates. Many of my students have interdisciplinary backgrounds, mostly in philosophy, psychology, education, computer science or neuroscience. I teach theoretical philosophy in its full spectrum with a focus in philosophy of mind and philosophy of science; besides, I also teach basic empirical research methods. Teaching about topics at the intersection of philosophy and empirical research I especially enjoy. I greatly enjoy interactive and discussion-based teaching using a variety of methods, especially problem-based ones. Both content and format of my classes are tailored to their audience.
In 2016, I was awarded the Berlin Higher Education Teaching Certificate. My class “Epistemology of Neuroscience” was selected as a case of best teaching practice by the Berlin Center for Higher Education Teaching (BZHL).
lectures
| summer 2023 | Minds and Machines | University of Bayreuth (MA level) |
| winter 2021/22 | Artificial Intelligence | Tilburg University (MA level) |
| winter 2021/22 | Philosophy of Mind for Psychologists | Tilburg University (BA level) |
| winter 2021/22 | Introduction to Philosophy of Science | Saarland University (BA level) |
| summer 2021 | Einführung in die Philosophie des Geistes [Introduction to Philosophy of Mind] |
Saarland University (BA level) |
| winter 2020/21 | Introduction to Philosophy of Science | Saarland University (BA level) |
| summer 2020 | Einführung in die Philosophie des Geistes [Introduction to Philosophy of Mind] |
Saarland University (BA level) |
| summer 2019 | Einführung in die Philosophie des Geistes [Introduction to Philosophy of Mind] |
Saarland University (BA level) |
| winter 2015/16 | From Hempel to Mechanisms: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Science | Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Human Development (PhD level) |
graduate courses
| summer 2023 | Machine Learning in Neuroscience | University of Bayreuth |
| summer 2023 | Challenges for AI in Society: Explainability & Fairness | University of Bayreuth |
| summer 2023 | Explainable AI: Contemporary Debates | University of Bayreuth |
| winter 2022/23 | Empirical Methods: An Introduction to Imaging and Experimental Design for Philosophers | University of Bayreuth |
| winter 2022/23 | Understanding | University of Bayreuth |
| winter 2022/23 | Explainable AI: Contemporary Debates | University of Bayreuth |
| summer 2022 | Artificial Intelligence: History, Core Concepts and Recent Debates | University of Bayreuth |
| summer 2022 | The Many Shades of Beliefs | University of Bayreuth |
| winter 2021/22 | Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence: Reflections and Recent Debates | Saarland University |
| summer 2021 | Erkenntnistheoretische und ethische Aspekte der Digitalisierung [Epistemological and ethical aspects of digitization] |
Saarland University |
| winter 2020/21 | Discovery, Pursuit & Justification in Science | Saarland University |
| summer 2020 | Philosophy of Psychiatry: Contemporary Readings | Saarland University |
| winter 2019/20 | Alive and Kicking?! – A New Take on the Identity Theory | Saarland University |
| summer 2018 | Explaining the Mind: New Mechanists’ Accounts | Ruhr-University Bochum |
| winter 2017/18 | Predictive Processing: Perception and Other Applications | Ruhr-University Bochum |
| summer 2017 | Prediction Machines – A New Theory of Mind and Brain? | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2016/17 | Philosophy of Logic | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2016 | Causality | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2016 | Strange Beliefs: A Neurophilosophical Look at Faith and Delusions (co-taught with Henrik Walter (Charité)) |
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2015/16 | Thought Experiments | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2015/16 | Scientific Explanation | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2015 | Epistemology of Neuroscience | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2014/15 | Woodward’s Interventionism | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2014/15 | Concepts (co-taught with Astrid Schomäcker) |
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2014/15 | Current Issues in Mind and Brain Research (lecture series, co-organized with Richard Moore) |
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2014 | Mind Your Body | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2014 | Mechanistic Explanations in the Life Sciences | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
undergraduate courses
| winter 2022/23 | Famous Philosophical Arguments | University of Bayreuth |
| summer 2022 | Wissenschaftliche Erklärungen [Scientific Explanations] | University of Bayreuth |
| winter 2019/20 | Scientific Explanations in Philosophy and Beyond (interdisciplinary class with guest lectures from psychology, linguistics, computer science andphilosophy) |
Saarland University |
| summer 2019 | Geist, Gehirn und Körper [Mind, Brain and Body] |
Saarland University |
| winter 2018/19 | Die empirische Erforschung kognitiver Phänomene [Empirically Investigating Cognitive Phenomena] |
Ruhr-University Bochum, Saarland University |
| summer 2018 | Das Neue Organon: Francis Bacons Sicht der Wissenschaft [The New Organ: Francis Bacon’s Take on Science] |
Ruhr-University Bochum |
| winter 2017/18 | Einführung in die Wissenschaftstheorie [Introduction to Philosophy of Science] |
Ruhr-University Bochum |
| summer 2017 | Early Indian Philosophy | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2016/17 | Descartes’ Meditations – A Contemporary Perspective | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| summer 2015 | Introduction to Philosophy of Science | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin |
| winter 2012/13 | Philosophy Meets Cognitive Science (lecture series, co-organized with Albert Newen and Markus Werning) |
Ruhr-University Bochum |