Abstract:
In this paper I will argue for wide-ranging change in the school curriculum; more particularly for the inclusion of philosophical inquiry within every learning area. I will begin with this claim: If students are to develop an understanding of the world and what there is in it, then as teachers we must engage them in philosophical inquiry. This is my first premise. The second is that both social and individual good depend upon the development of such understandings. On the highly plausible assumption that education should be directed at social and individual well-being, it follows that teachers ought to engage children in philosophical inquiry. In the first section of the paper I will clarify these claims and defend them. In the second section I consider how deep thinking might best be taught, arguing that philosophical inquiry must be embedded in every curriculum area. I conclude by indicating how this might be done.