Save Our Schools...from the politicians!

As English schoolchildren prepare to return to their classrooms after a very long time away, there has rightly been much discussion about how best this should be managed, with the question of face-masks dominating much recent debate. Beyond these important practical concerns however, we should not lose sight about what schools are actually for. “Learning and education”, I hear you cry! Of course, but to what end? This year’s ‘results’ chaos touched on one reasonable anxiety about what education should be about, namely, ‘getting on’ in life, so that the long-term economic prospects of our young people are not greatly damaged by the Covid pandemic. If this is the only point of a school however, then I suggest we have seriously lost our way as a culture and society. For a distinguishing trait of our species is not only a sense of wonder at the world, and our place in it (all parents of young children know this!), but the intuition that we cannot fully be human without even attempting to engage with the biggest questions of life, relating to our meaning, purpose and identity. The very good news is that there’s plenty of evidence linking good philosophical education in schools (explore the ‘Philosophy for Children’ P4C movement, if you don’t believe me) with improved engagement and attainment in all the other subjects too. It’s almost like treating young people as thinking agents (as opposed to passive receivers of information) is a magical key to unlocking their academic, but also human, potential. There are schools out there that know this and are doing their best within a system that is led by people who do not really understand children or education. However, if you worry that your child is disengaged with learning, at school or home, then please do get in touch, either with us, or some of the other excellent P4C providers that are mentioned on our Links page. As an experienced classroom teacher, I’ve never been more excited at returning to help my students find their inner philosopher and hope that, out of the current messy educational situation, a wiser vision will emerge.
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