Philosophy for Children: Towards Pedagogical Transformation

Philosophical inquiry (Lipman, Sharp & Oscanyan, 1980) has the capacity to push boundaries in teaching and learning interactions with students and improve teacher's pedagogical experiences (Scholl, Nichols, Burgh, 2008). This paper focuses on the potential for Philosophy to foster pedagogical transformation. Two groups of primary school teachers, 59 in total, have been involved in a comparison of pedagogical transformation between teachers who implemented Philosophy and teachers who used thinking tools (graphic organisers) for conceptual exploration. A mixed methods approach, including, questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, was employed to inquire into the effect of teaching Philosophy on teachers' perceptions of their pedagogy. This paper describes how the engagement in communities of philosophical inquiry results in a significant improvement in perceptions of pedagogy, teacher thinking and student engagement. (Contains 2 tables.)