It's not about teaching the history of a subject; it's about teaching from the questions the subject attempts to answer. In physics, it might be as simple as, "

It's not about teaching the history of a subject; it's about teaching from the questions the subject attempts to answer. In physics, it might be as simple as, "What is the concept of reversibility?" Or in mathematics, "How can you compute the area of any triangle?" In philosophy, the questions being asked don't have an absolute answer. Something as vague as "Who am I?" is difficult, just as something as specific as, "What is property?" is quite challenging. This makes it all the more important to discuss the method of answering because it's really the most concrete thing you can take away from a class: exploring a particular thinker's ideas can result in your agreement or disagreement (or better yet, a tangential exploration of your own) and they're all valid consequences.