Abstract
This paper is based on a literature review of articles discussing the teaching and learning of philosophy in primary and secondary schools. The purpose of this review was to address two research questions: What <em>is </em>philosophy? What does philosophy do? This paper addresses the first research question—What <em>is</em> philosophy?—by gathering together the various understandings of the word ‘philosophy’ circulating in the literature. There are ten understandings of what philosophy <em>is</em> that have arisen from the literature: philosophy as a foundational concept; philosophy as thinking—a skill, a disposition, a practice; philosophy as method or process; philosophy as a tool or instrument; philosophy as a creative task; philosophy as inquiry; philosophy as search for truth; philosophy as non-dogmatic teaching and hence the emancipation of thought; philosophy as communal activity; philosophy as a way of life. These ten understandings have been consistent over time, from writing in the field in the 1970s through to the present day. Many commentators hold and work with multiple understandings of what philosophy <em>is</em> in their writing.
Highlights
Since the 1970s there have been movements to have philosophy taught in primary and secondary schools in a number of countries
This article was undertaken in response to expressions of need made by participants at Australasian philosophy conferences, including the New Zealand Association of Philosophy Teachers (NZAPT) and the Federation of Australasia Philosophy in Schools Association (FAPSA)
Before embarking on this project we corresponded with international commentators in the field, asking if they were aware of a literature review that explored the questions ‘What is philosophy and what does philosophy do?’ These correspondents were unaware of any work of this kind and responded enthusiastically that a review article of this sort was needed and would be a valuable contribution to the literature
Summary
Since the 1970s there have been movements to have philosophy taught in primary and secondary schools in a number of countries. This article was undertaken in response to expressions of need made by participants at Australasian philosophy conferences, including the New Zealand Association of Philosophy Teachers (NZAPT) and the Federation of Australasia Philosophy in Schools Association (FAPSA) Before embarking on this project we corresponded with international commentators in the field, asking if they were aware of a literature review that explored the questions ‘What is philosophy and what does philosophy do?’ These correspondents were unaware of any work of this kind and responded enthusiastically that a review article of this sort was needed and would be a valuable contribution to the literature. In this article we confine ourselves to the first research question and the ten understandings of what philosophy is that have arisen from the literature concerned with the teaching and learning of philosophy in schools.1 These ten understandings have been consistent over time, from the early writing in the field through to the present day. Whilst this review will enable comments and further research questions to be raised by others, we have made several comments and raised questions that point to areas of further investigation
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