Philosophy goes to school in Australia: A history 1982-2016

Burgh, Gilbert; Thornton, Simone

doi:10.21913/jps.v3i1.1300

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…There is ample evidence, supported by many international research studies, on the effectiveness of philosophy in schools (Burgh & Thornton 2016a). According to Millett and Tapper (2012):…”

Section: Philosophy As An Exemplar Of Democratic Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The need for philosophy in promoting democracy: A case for philosophy in the curriculum

Burgh

2018

JPS

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The studies by Trickey and Topping, which provide empirical support that philosophy produces cognitive gains and social benefits, have been used to advocate the view that philosophy deserves a place in the curriculum. Arguably, the existing curriculum, built around well-established core subjects, already provides what philosophy is said to do, and, therefore, there is no case to be made for expanding it to include philosophy. However, if we take citizenship education seriously, then the development of active and informed citizens requires an emphasis on citizen preparation, but significantly more than the existing curriculum can provide, namely, the acquisition of knowledge and skills to improve students’ social and intellectual capacities and dispositions as future citizens. To this end, I argue for a model of democratic education that emphasises philosophy functioning educationally, whereby students have an integral role to play in shaping democracy through engaging in philosophy as collaborative inquiry that integrates pedagogy, curriculum and assessment. I contend that only philosophy can promote democracy, insofar as philosophical inquiry is an exemplar of the kind of deliberative inquiry required for informed and active democratic citizenship. In this way, philosophy can make a fundamental and much needed contribution to education.

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“…There is ample evidence, supported by many international research studies, on the effectiveness of philosophy in schools (Burgh & Thornton 2016a). According to Millett and Tapper (2012):…”

Section: Philosophy As An Exemplar Of Democratic Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The need for philosophy in promoting democracy: A case for philosophy in the curriculum

Burgh

2018

JPS

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“…Another offers that critical thinking is only meaningful in discipline area contexts, and that deep content knowledge is prerequisite to activating students' critical thinking capabilities. An example of the former is the teaching of philosophy to (mostly) primary school students through a variety of 'Philosophy for/with Children' (PC) programs that are well developed worldwide, including a substantial and historic movement in Australia (Burgh and Thornton, 2016). Based on the work of Matthew Lipman and Anne Sharp, and rooted in the pragmatic philosophy of John Dewey, this movement focuses on the development of thinking skills, including those of argument analysis, construction and evaluation in the contexts of collaborative philosophical inquiry.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

On critical thinking and content knowledge: a critique of the assumptions of cognitive load theory

Ellerton¹

2021

Preprint

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How critical thinking is understood has a logical impact on pedagogy and curriculum design in a critical thinking education. If critical thinking is seen as a complex mix of knowledge, skills and dispositions that can be articulated and made an object of study in themselves, then there is scope for intentional and explicit targeting of such things. If, however, critical thinking is seen as a general skill more or less impermeable to pedagogical influence and best realised through the development of content knowledge, then an explicit focus on developing thinking skills is misplaced and potentially distracting. The latter view is that of cognitive load theory (CLT), a theoretical framing of thinking and learning that has gained traction in education including with practitioners. This paper will explore some of the assumptions of CLT and show that they are either (1) in error, (2) vaguely or confusingly expressed and/or (3) irrelevant to the conclusions drawn within the theory which are often themselves errors of inference. Moreover, I point out that important educational research that weakens the claims of CLT is often not engaged with or addressed.

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“…Philosophy for/with Children (P4C) has grown in scholarly and practical interest over the last five decades with a presence in over 50 countries (Burgh & Thornton 2016;Goering, Shudak & Wartenberg 2013;Gregory, Haynes & Murris 2017;Yan, Walters, Wang & Wang 2018). Originating with Matthew Lipman and colleagues at the US Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children in the early 1970s, the 'community of inquiry' approach was developed, whereby a group of individuals explore an idea through dialogue by asking questions, discussing responses, substantiating viewpoints and acknowledging consensus or conflict (D'Olimpio 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student and teacher outcomes from participating in a Philosophy for Children program: Volunteer ethics teachers’ perspectives

Zappalà

Smyth

2021

Journal of Philosophy in Schools

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Despite the growth of philosophy for/with children (P4C) over the last five decades, its legitimacy remains contested. Key themes within the P4C literature are the potential learning outcomes for children as well as possible personal and professional development benefits for those that teach it. The literature on the former, while extensive, presents a mixed picture and highlights the challenges inherent in determining the impact of P4C on learning outcomes. The literature on the latter, while little explored, may provide valuable insights for teacher professional development.Unlike much of the literature, this paper examines the impact of P4C from the P4C educators' perspective. The paper presents the findings from a pilot study of volunteer teachers with the Primary Ethics program in Sydney, Australia. Two key findings emerged. First, ethics teachers felt they were making a material and positive difference to the children they taught, which included: the development of critical thinking and reasoning skills; increased confidence to express themselves; and enjoyment derived from class discussions. Second, teachers that use a philosophical and a community of inquiry approach with their students may themselves become more reflective and engage in critical thinking and ethical reasoning.

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Philosophy goes to school in Australia: A history 1982-2016

Cited by 10 publications

References 17 publications

The need for philosophy in promoting democracy: A case for philosophy in the curriculum

The need for philosophy in promoting democracy: A case for philosophy in the curriculum

On critical thinking and content knowledge: a critique of the assumptions of cognitive load theory

Student and teacher outcomes from participating in a Philosophy for Children program: Volunteer ethics teachers’ perspectives

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