The philosopher activist
An interview with Violet CoCo . There’s a memorable short video in which philosopher of happiness Dr Caroline West is asked why Western society has become so obsessed with material […]
Tag Archives: ethics
Wake up!
Philosophy education and the climate crisis Like many in our community, I find myself moving between shock, anxiety, grief and frustration as news reports indicate that our planet is heating […]
Tolerance gone rogue: More troubles with relativism
“I guess what makes something right is how I feel about it. But different people feel different ways, so I couldn’t speak on behalf of anyone else as to what’s […]
Questioning debate
The recent podcast episode ‘Debatable‘ from WNYC’s Radiolab got me thinking about formal debating and its relationship to the sort of collaborative enquiry we foster at The Philosophy Club. The podcast […]
Saving Babies
(Or, Which Ethical Paradigm Do You Choose?) I once facilitated a philosophical dialogue among 8 – 10 year olds about The Lost Thing, an animated short film based on Shaun […]
On the point of life
I was tickled pink by this exchange between one girl’s mum (who hosted a Philosophy Club workshop at her home), and another girl’s dad (who arrived a little early to pick […]
Are philosophers still relevant?
(Or, Earning Your Keep in the Ivory Tower) In a memorable passage from his Essays (published in 1580), Michel de Montaigne describes philosophers as one-eyed ranters who do nothing but […]
Boot camp for intellectual virtues?
On the lookout for new ways to help kids improve their thinking, I came across the Intellectual Virtues & Education Project (IVEP). And the more I learnt about it, the […]
Helping kids develop moral judgement
Unless children can think ethically, they won’t be able to behave ethically in a way that’s resilient to outside pressures. This is the last of three posts in which I […]
Do children need moral guidelines?
How should a facilitator respond when students express controversial opinions in Ethics? Here I share my email conversation with a friend who volunteers as a facilitator in the NSW Primary […]
