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Theory of Knowledge: How do I know things?

ToK - a core component of the IBDP

What is does it mean?

The IB TOK Guide identifies the importance of Ways of Knowing as means of identifying how we know. 

The Ways of Knowing are:

  • Language
  • Sense perception
  • Emotion
  • Reason
  • Imagination
  • Faith
  • Intuition
  • Memory

You won't be looking at all of these in depth, probably four. 

If you're looking for information to support your understanding of Ways of Knowing, then please see sub-tabs for each WoK. 

The ways of knowing should not be isolated

Ways of knowing should not be viewed in isolation. They interact in various ways in the construction of knowledge and the formation of knowledge claims. For example, even a simple claim such as “this table is blue” involves a number of ways of knowing coming together. I need language to be able to understand the terms “table” and “blue”. I need a conceptual system based on reason to realize that a table is something that has the possibility of being blue. I need sense perception to recognize that what I see is a table and that the colour of the table is blue. In this way, the individual ways of knowing are woven together into more elaborate structures in order to generate knowledge in the areas of knowledge.

from the 2015 IB ToK Study Guide