Philosophy for Children (P4C) has long been considered as crucial for children’s ethical and moral education and a decisive contribution for education for the democratic life. The book gathers contributions from experts in the field who reflect on fundamental issues on how childhood and ethics are interrelated within the P4C movement. The main interest of this volume is to offer an understanding of how different philosophical conceptions of childhood can be coordinated with different ethical and meta-ethical philosophical considerations in P4C addressing topics such as P4C and relativism, P4C and Virtue ethics, ethics and emotions in P4C, philosophical commitments and P4C application, and Socratic practice within a pragmatist framework. A thought-provoking collection about how assumptions of particular philosophical conceptions of childhood modify moral and ethical education and a testimony of the undeniable contribution of P4C for moral education and reconceptualization of childhood.
Adult preconceptions about the mental life of children tend to discourage a child’s philosophical bent. By exposing the underpinnings of adult views of childhood, Matthews clears the way for recognizing the philosophy of childhood as a legitimate field of inquiry and conducts us through influential models for understanding what it is to be a child.
This book explores the contribution to education contained in the theoretical work and teaching practice of Matthew Lipman (1923-2010) and Ann Margaret Sharp (1942-2010). Their long-lasting cooperation gave rise to the well-known “Philosophy for Children” (P4C) curriculum, which is nowadays globally widespread. P4C basically relies on the following innovations: firstly, the unprecedented connection between philosophy and childhood; secondly, the reframing of philosophy in practical, viz., not reductively theoretical terms; thirdly, the employment of philosophy to foster democracy and moral capabilities through the development of children’s thoughtfulness and autonomous thinking, which would eventually result in empowering children’s social abilities and increasing their self-defence against consumerism, propaganda, and manipulation; finally, the stand against a strictly cognitivist approach to education. More than just contextualizing these innovations in the coeval historical and social context, the author shows that P4C’s revolutionary stance on education relies on the fruitfulness of Lipman and Sharp’s intellectual cooperation and on their manifold abilities as researchers, teachers, trainers, communicators, motivators, and community-builders. The book analyzes their philosophical-educational vision and the scholastic curriculum they developed jointly; additionally, it provides a critical appraisal of P4C’s achievements as well as of its future perspectives.
Teaching for Moral Imagination: An Interdisciplinary Exploration examines the multifaceted nature of morality and ethics, moral development, and moral education so to provide educators with a clear yet complex understanding of theories, issues, practices, and curricular content. This text is intended to be an accessible work of academic significance that inspires educators’ deliberation about personal and societal values as well as approaches for fostering children’s and adolescents’ moral development, cultivating ethical classrooms and schools, and creating transformative moral education curricula. Teaching for Moral Imagination will be a pertinent text for teacher preparation courses that specifically focus on the moral dimensions of education as well as more comprehensive classes about teaching, teachers, and classroom culture. Such classes are offered in undergraduate and graduate teacher preparation programs, professional studies for experienced teachers, educational studies classes in the liberal arts, and doctoral seminars for students becoming teacher educators and educational leaders. This book also is intended as a source for teachers’ professional development in schools and for reading groups. Finally, in our contemporary societies emphasizing extreme individualism, competition, conformity, and prejudice as well as unexamined beliefs leading to violence in words and actions, it is crucial to consider how schools can encourage ethical reasoning, compassion, and transformative alternatives for moral education. ENDORSEMENTS: "Teaching for Moral Imagination is a remarkable book and a wonderful contribution to the field. It is a must read for anyone trying to make sense of the multi-faceted moral nature of schooling. Everyone who pursues a career in teaching is fundamentally drawn to the moral dimensions of their work, but there is little, if any, emphasis given to those fundamental moral features in teacher preparation programs and teacher professional development. In this book, Dr. Joseph does the difficult work of both conceptualizing the moral domain and illustrating these dimensions in way that will uniquely help teachers and school leaders develop elegant moral language and fully understand their role as moral educators and moral agents. It is an outstanding contribution from a scholar who brings the philosophy of morality and the psychology of moral development to bear on life in classrooms." — Rich Osguthorpe, Brigham Young University "In her book, Teaching for Moral Imagination, Pamela Joseph shows profoundly how moral values are embedded in education and in the pedagogical role of teachers. Joseph brings together many different perspectives on moral education, including philosophical and psychological foundations, and develops her interesting own position with a focus on moral imagination. She argues for “widening ethical perspectives, encouraging critical reflection on values, stimulating new perspectives about how to be moral human beings, and creating just and caring classroom and school communities”. Joseph’s book can inspire teachers and researchers in their work on preparing young people for future society." — Wiel Veugelers, University of Humanistic Studies "This is an incredibly complex and wonderful book. When you read Teaching for Moral Imagination, what will become clear is what educators need to learn and do to transform the wider ethical environment all around us. This is invaluable reading for all teachers, school and district leaders and teacher educators who realise the significance of ethics in education and who seek to critically engage with the potential of human and social moral development. Joseph offers a rich vision of interdisciplinary scholarship and on her horizon is nonviolence for all forms of life on the planet. The book conceptualises how moral imagination generates powerful insights into individual, social and cultural normative diversity and explores a range of transformative moral curricula to grow future generations’ capacities for tackling complex relations and global challenges." — Daniella J. Forster, University of Newcastle, Australia
This volume is unique in providing a comprehensive discussion of moral education in the light of a range of ethical theories. In a balanced, thoughtful and penetrating account, the author addresses important contemporary issues and controversies (morality and citizenship, family values, sexual morality). The author is a highly respected authority on this and related educational topics. The book is written in an accessible and jargon-free style.
In recent years there has been an increase in the number of calls for moral education to receive greater public attention. In our pluralist society, however, it is difficult to find agreement on what exactly moral education requires. Philosophical Discussion in Moral Education develops a detailed philosophical defence of the claim that teachers should engage students in ethical discussions to promote moral competence and strengthen moral character. Paying particular attention to the teacher's role, this book highlights the justification for, and methods of, creating a classroom community of ethical inquiry.
This edited volume combines reflections, methods, and experiences from a globally diverse group of scholars to investigate the meaning, value, and effectiveness of the pedagogy of the Community of Philosophical Enquiry (CoPE) – derived from or in conversation with Lipman and Sharp’s Philosophy for Children (P4C) – in the context of civic education. Maintaining that a rich diversity of voices is an important corrective to narrower academic discourses, the chapters in this book bring an array of scholarly thought from across the world working in various political and educational contexts to bear on a common question: How can CoPE help practitioners engage in civic education? The contributions draw on qualitative methods, philosophical literature, and practitioner case studies to explore the benefits, challenges, questions, and methods related to the use of CoPE for the sake of citizenship education in Thailand, Malaysia, Italy, Iceland, Israel, Greece, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. Ultimately, the book provides critical reflections and insights into the civic dimension of CoPE (and some CoPE-related practices) across a wide range of pedagogic, cultural, and political contexts. Addressing the need for a touchstone publication on the interplay between CoPE and citizenship education, the book will be of interest to academics and postgraduate students interested in the philosophy of education, citizenship education, democratic education, and international and comparative education.
This book offers a broad and diverse reflection of the ways in which child poverty could be conceptualised, and the ways in which it is intertwined with childhood as a specific social condition. Furthermore, the responsibilities towards children and the possible mechanisms required for dealing with this condition will be analysed and clarified. This is the first volume on philosophy and child poverty. Despite the increasing number of publications on poverty, the particular phenomenon of poverty during childhood has not received much philosophical attention. This is surprising, given the severity and depth of child poverty around the globe. This volume brings together various philosophical approaches and how they understand and tackle child poverty. This is an important addition to the philosophical literature, which is also of wider interest to scholars working in the social sciences and with an interest in child poverty.
The SAGE Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood Studies navigates our understanding of the historical, political, social and cultural dimensions of childhood. Transdisciplinary and transnational in content and scope, the Encyclopedia both reflects and enables the wide range of approaches, fields and understandings that have been brought to bear on the ever-transforming problem of the "child" over the last four decades This four-volume encyclopedia covers a wide range of themes and topics, including: Social Constructions of Childhood Children’s Rights Politics/Representations/Geographies Child-specific Research Methods Histories of Childhood/Transnational Childhoods Sociology/Anthropology of Childhood Theories and Theorists Key Concepts This interdisciplinary encyclopedia will be of interest to students and researchers in: Childhood Studies Sociology/Anthropology Psychology/Education Social Welfare Cultural Studies/Gender Studies/Disabilty Studies
