I must say, philosophy has been really good to me. I
“discovered” philosophy as an undergraduate at John Carroll University and it
immediately brought back the sense of wonderment and purpose that had been missing in my schooling experience since second grade. From third grade on we never
sat in a circle or shared our ideas with our peers, and we were rarely given a
chance to ask the questions that mattered to us. Wonder was essentially
removed from the classroom and, as a result, school became far less
meaningful. It was something that was done to us, rather than something we
actively engaged in. Philosophy made me realize it does not have to be that way. It was this enlightenment that prompted me to become
a teacher and it continues to inspire my work in bringing the activity of
philosophy into the public school experience.
The purpose of this blog is to spread my work with philosophy to a wider audience. My posts will offer a “field report” of the
philosophy for children Hawai‘i movement (p4chawaii.org), provide space to
extend (and reflect upon) the philosophical inquiries students are having in classrooms, include
ideas on how to bring philosophy into the k-12 classroom, and engage others in
living an examined life. My good friend Josh Stumpenhorst (http://stumpteacher.blogspot.com)
inspired me start this blog and while I am not entirely sure what this
experiment will look like, I do know I am excited to become a more active
member of the online educational community.
