Children Philosophy facts and ideas

• “Philosophy” comes from the Greek philosophia meaning “love of wisdom”.
• While many think philosophy began with Plato in Ancient Greece it can be traced back to many other cultures long before Plato’s time of 400 BC. Indeed Egyptian philosophy can be traced back as far as 2880 BC!
• The character Professor Yaffle from Bagpuss was based on philosopher Bertrand Russell.
• There are many philosophers who are perhaps better known for their achievements in other areas.Examples include Lewis Carroll (a mathematical logician) and C.S. Lewis (a theologian). In contrast Ludwig Wittgenstein quit philosophy to become a primary school teacher!

What should you be thinking about to help you choose the right Philosophy teacher or class for your child?

• Does the class or teacher specialise in any particular form of philosophy that your child is interested in?
• What is your reason for your child wanting to take philosophy classes? Is it to help them with other subjects and their general knowledge or just for a bit of fun with other children in a club situation? Is this provider the right one to help you?

There are three examination boards accredited by Ofqual. These are:

AQA –On of the leading provider of GCSEs and A Levels. Used by most secondary schools and colleges in the UK.

Edexcel – Considered the UK’s largest awarding organisation, they offer both academic and vocational qualifications and testing to schools and colleges.

OCR (Oxford Cambridge and RSA Examinations) – Over 13,000 centres choose OCR for their A Levels and GCSEs.

Qualifications - Children and Young Adults

GCSE – while no examining bodies offer Philosophy GCSE the Religious Education GCSE features “Philosophy and Ethics” as a module.

A/AS Level Philosophy modules are available, mostly as an introduction to Philosophy with the particular focus being extremely varied. The RE paper will also have a Philosophy of religion module.

Qualifications - Adults

Philosophy can be taken as a standalone degree from many universities and also as a combined degree (e.g. Philosophy and History). Most subjects will also have a “Philosophy of…” module. For example science degrees often offer “Philosophy of Science” papers.

Qualifications of teachers/tutors

There is no minimum qualification required to tutor Philosophy at home in the UK at present, however we would recommend you ask to see copies of qualifications held.

• Provides a forum for children’s naturally inquisitive nature, questions like “why is wrong to lie?” “why aren’t animals people?” or just “why?” are actually welcomed in philosophy!
• Lets children discover that some questions might not have “correct” answers
• Gives children the opportunity to debate questions that interest them and are relevant to the world around them.
• Exposes children to an unusual and useful style of thinking.
• Teaches them to value their own and others views and appreciate that different people can have different points of view.
• Philosophy is a useful skill for most jobs. The Cambridge University Careers Website says:

“Thinking philosophically requires rigour, precision and creativity; qualities that can then be applied to any other problem. Although a Philosophy degree isn’t an essential qualification for any particular career, the analytical and critical skills developed through the study of philosophy prepare (you) for a variety of professions.”

Diogenes (born in Turkey in 412 BC) believed that all artificial creation gets in the way of happiness and so he threw away all his possessions away and lived in a barrel. He did own a bowl but when it was pointed out that a child was drinking with her cupped hands he threw that away too! When Alexander the Great offered Diogenes anything he asked for, Diogenes said “stand a little out of my sunlight.”

Greek philosopher Socrates (469 BC – 399 BC) was imprisoned for irritating the people of Athens by asking too many questions. When his friends broke in to rescue him he refused to escape from prison as a philosopher should not fear death and a citizen must obey even unjust laws.

More modern day fans of philosophy include: Bill Clinton, Harrison Ford, Martin Luther King Jr. and Bruce Lee.

Philosophy Club: Teaching primary school children to argue!