Cultivating Reasonableness in Education

This book focuses on the real-world application of the Philosophy for/with Children (P4wC) pedagogy to cultivate reasonableness in individuals through communities of philosophical inquiry. It presents a collection not only of theories but, more importantly, of experiences, discoveries, and innovations on P4wC by scholars, trainers, advocates, and practitioners around the world. Each chapter provides readers with insights and lessons that have resulted from the continuous application, exploration, and enrichment of the concepts, principles, and practices that were developed by Matthew Lipman and Ann Margaret Sharp into what P4wC is today - a dialogic pedagogical approach that may just be what is needed at a time when reasonableness and dialogue are essential to maintaining global stability and progress. In this light, this book also looks into how the P4wC approach can be practiced with adults such as when it is employed in various settings or contexts such as in business consulting, textbook writing, peace education, and extremism prevention, among others. Furthermore, this book also features chapters that discuss how the P4wC pedagogy can be beneficial once integrated into processes such as classroom teaching, teacher education, bioethics, and employee education.  This book provides valuable insights about how reasonableness that is cultivated through building communities of philosophical inquiry in education can be a powerful tool for nation-building and social transformation.

Marella Ada V. Mancenido-Bolaños teaches Philosophy at the Department of Philosophy and the Graduate School of the University of Santo Tomas (UST), Manila, Philippines, and obtained her MA and PhD in Philosophy from UST. She is currently the Chair of the UST Department of Philosophy. She is also a member of the International Council of Philosophical Inquiry with Children, Federation of Australasian Philosophy in Schools Association, Simone de Beauvoir Society, and Women Doing Philosophy. Marella has presented and published papers on Feminism (particularly about the works of Simone de Beauvoir and Iris Marion Young), Philosophy of Education, Philosophy for Children, and Philosophy of Childhood. She has conducted Philosophy for Children and Community of Inquiry training workshops for elementary and secondary school teachers, and also spearheaded an online community of philosophical inquiry with children ages 5-10.
Cathlyne Joy P. Alvarez-Abarejo teaches at the Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts and Letters, University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines. She obtained her BA in Philosophy (magna cum laude) and MA in Philosophy degrees from the Department of Philosophy, University of the Philippines Diliman. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Educational History and Philosophy at the College of Education, University of the Philippines Diliman. She specializes in Philosophy for Children, Epistemology, Ethics, Logic, Philosophy of Religion, and Filipino Philosophy. Cathlyne is also a licensed professional teacher (LPT) in Values Education. Her strong interest in the philosophy of education and passion in teaching drew her to the Philosophy for/with Children program. Over the years, she has attended, participated in, and conducted training in Philosophy for Children, and has also presented papers locally and internationally on the subject. Her research and teaching efforts are geared towards the introduction of Philosophy to young minds and the cultivation of thinking skills and intellectual virtues among the youth – all for her love of wisdom and the next generation.
Leander Penaso Marquez teaches philosophy, educational foundations, and values education courses at the University of the Philippines Diliman. He holds an MA in Philosophy degree and an MA in Education degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman. He also has a Master of Health Research Ethics (MOHRE) degree from the Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Leander sits as Co-chair of the Working Group on Bioethics of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Global Health Program, and serves as Junior Ambassador to the Philippines for the Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN). He is also a member of the International Council of Philosophical Inquiry with Children (ICPIC). He was first introduced to P4wC in 2014 and received training from the Institute for the Advancement of Philosophyfor Children (IAPC) in 2017. Since then, he has facilitated various training and workshops on teaching philosophy and P4wC. His research interests include Ethics, Epistemology, Bioethics, Research Ethics, Education Policy, Philosophy for Children, Philosophy of Education, and Philosophy and Popular Culture. Leander has published several articles in books and journals in addition to having presented some of his research in various conferences. He has also published a textbook for Filipino students that is based on the P4wC framework titled, ‘Trends, Networks, and Critical Thinking in the 21st Century Culture’ (2018).