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Socratic Triads and other methods of Philosophical Inquiry with P4C through Dialogue Works

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Socratic Triads and other methods of Philosophical Inquiry with P4C through Dialogue Works

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What is P4C?

P4C is an approach to teaching and learning based on philosophical inquiry. It shows teachers how to teach through dialogue, facilitate student-led inquiries and get to know the students better.

P4C shows students how to think independently, reason effectively, communicate persuasively and explore their values. The students have a strong say in the content of a lesson and a safe space to discuss views on a wide range of topics.

P4C is fun: students and teachers love it. Take a look at this video from Bow School, London to see what we mean.

What is P4C Plus?

P4C Plus adds two important innovations:

Thinking Moves A - Z adds a new vocabulary for metacognition and thinking skills development.

Philosophical Teaching extends P4C into a pedagogy which can be used across the entire curriculum, on the basis of our P4C Plus teacher training.

P4C Plus is well suited to International Baccalaureate and other schools, where inquiry is at the heart of the curriculum. IB teachers who have been trained in P4C Plus, report how much they appreciate what the courses teach them about the practice of inquiry.

P4C Plus creates space for open inquiry in response to a stimulus, or provocation. Without practice in open inquiry, where the pupils make and choose their own questions for discussion, the spirit of inquiry can fade away. With it, every lesson can be seen by pupils as an opportunity to ask questions - whether questions of meaning or value judgement, or questions seeking information.

P4C Plus gives teachers practice and guidance in philosophical facilitation moves that widen or deepen inquiry. It helps teachers keep dialogue constructive, focus on concept connections, draw on relevant reflections and push for reasons.

The best philosophical teacher will also emphasise the valuing of virtues. And in this respect P4C Plus again aligns well with the IB's Learner Profile and Attitudes.

What are the foundations of P4C and P4C Plus?

P4C draws on Socratic questioning, Vygotsky's constructivism and Dewey's ideas of democracy in education. Mathew Lipman developed P4C 40 years ago in New York. He wanted children to become "more thoughtful, more reflective, more considerate and more reasonable individuals".

P4C is built on four foundations:

What is a Community of Inquiry?

A community of inquiry is the group in which a P4C session takes place. It is a group in which the individuals feel valued by each other and where they feel safe to express their views and share their experiences. In most schools the whole class will form the community of inquiry, but it can also work with smaller groups.

What is 4Cs Thinking?

Four types of thinking are central to P4C's values and practice:

Caring thinking: this is about respect for others in the community of inquiry and respect for the subject of the inquiry.

Collaborative thinking: this is about helping the community as a whole to progress by building on each other's ideas.

Critical thinking: this is about questioning and reasoning well, and seeking understanding.

Creative thinking: this involves making connections and suggesting ideas.

What is Philosophical Questioning?

Philosophy is often defined as the love of wisdom. It seeks to explore questions and find meaning about issues which our central to our lives: issues such as truth, identity, virtue, knowledge, beauty and existence. P4C encourages students to create their own questions on topics such as these.

Examples of philosophical questions in P4C inquiries might be:

Does everyone have a right to a good education?

Can animals create art?

Would it ever be right to tell a friend a lie?

Does it matter what I look like?

Is there truth in dreams?

Do things have to be equal to be fair?

What is the 4 Phase Inquiry Method?

The standard P4C inquiry model consists of four phases. Teachers and pupils need to familiarise themselves with this model, as each phase contributes importantly to the value of the inquiry. Once the community is conversant with the standard model, teachers can vary it to suit particular learning goals.

Training and support

Through our training programmes, DialogueWorks will give you all the practical advice you need to start facilitating P4C inquiries with your students. Over time, we will help you build your P4C facilitation skills so that your students, and you, can get the most out of your inquiries. We will show you how you can use P4C Plus as the basis for incorporating Philosophical Teaching into all your lessons.

Contact

bobhouse@dialogueworks.co.uk for more information.

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What is P4C? P4C is an approach to teaching and learning based on philosophical inquiry. It shows teachers how to teach through dialogue, facilitate student-led inquiries and get to know the students better. P4C shows students how to think independently, reason effectively, communicate persuasively and explore their values.

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For session 1

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Sample Unit Plans, Course Structures, additional Guidance for the Pos

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For Session 10

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For session 1

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https://ibpublishing.ibo.org/prl/?lang=en

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Session 6 - In reference to Blau, Sheridan

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Description of stimulus

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The Danger of a Single Story (extract)  https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story#t-495895 & Danez Smith's Poem Dinosaurs in the Hood
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/57585/dinosaurs-in-the-hood

GI Connection: The power of prejudice in representation of "the other"

My IO will Explore how both authors expose the disparity in of fair representation in the media, a state which limits the aspirations of those who are not in power, and disproportionately positions those who are in power toward obliviousness of the complex humanity and endless potential of those who lack a voice in the global narrative.

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For session 2

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Receptive Skills: "Saying, Doing, Being"

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Receptive Skills: "Saying, Doing, Being"

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Thinking Routines for texts:
"Language is a way of saying, doing, being." - Gee
Upon reading a text, students ask what the author is saying (literal), what they're doing (purpose & audience), and based on those aspects, who the author is being.

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https://www.thisisinsider.com/disney-princess-jobs-2018-5?fbclid=IwAR3dssf8F-bOeWF7RNeh3I6DxiRY6W1IG2TXzgFPneohSXPjhUnX-ZB2H9o

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https://www.nytimes.com/column/learning-whats-going-on-in-this-picture

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2

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https://ibpublishing.ibo.org/prl/?lang=en

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Adapted from Harvard's Project Zero Thinking Routines

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Resource Summary

A routine for organizing one's understanding of a topic through concept mapping

Select a topic, concept, or issue for which you want to map your understanding.

Generate a list of ideas and initial thoughts that come to mind when you think about this particular topic/issue.

Sort your ideas according to how central or tangential they are. Place central ideas near the center and more tangential ideas toward the outside of the page.

Connect your ideas by drawing connecting lines between the ideas that have something in common. Explain and write in a short sentence how the ideas are connected.

Elaborate on any of the ideas/thoughts you have written so far by adding new ideas that expand, extend, or add to your initial ideas.

Continue generating, connecting, and elaborating new ideas until you feel you have a good representation of your understanding.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage?

This routine activates prior knowledge and helps to generate ideas about a topic. It also facilitates making connections among ideas. Concept maps help to uncover students' mental models of a topic in a non-linear way.

Application: When and where can I use it?

This routine can be useful as a pre-assessment before the beginning of a unit of study if students already have a lot of background information about the topic. Conversely, it can also be useful as a post or ongoing assessment to see what students are remembering and how they are connecting ideas. Individual maps can be used as the basis for construction of a whole classroom map. Maps can also be done progressively, with students adding to their maps each week of the unit.

Launch: What are some tips for starting and using this routine?

Depending on how much familiarity students have with concept maps, you may need to demonstrate making a concept map using this routine with the whole class. However, if students are relatively familiar with the idea of concept maps, you can launch right into the routine explaining that students will be making concept maps but in a structured way. Give time for students to complete each step of the routine before moving on to the next step. It isn't necessary that students generate an exhaustive list of all their ideas initially, but make sure they have time to generate a rich and varied list before moving on. Tell students that at any point they can add new ideas to their list and incorporate them into their map. If you are adding to a map over time, you might want to have students use a different color pencil each time they make additions. Explaining and discussing maps with partners helps students to consolidate their thinking and gain other perspectives.

Already use this Thinking Routine?

We want to hear about it. Post examples of your work on Twitter using the hashtag #PZThinkingRoutines and be sure to tag @ProjectZeroHGSE.

Projects

Related Project Resources

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Generate, Sort, Connect, Elaborate: Concept Maps

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Select a topic, concept, or issue for which you want to map your understanding. Generate a list of ideas and initial thoughts that come to mind when you think about this particular topic/issue. Sort your ideas according to how central or tangential they are.

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For Session 3

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Student sample

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For Session 6

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For Session 8

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Session 6 - In reference to Blau, Sheridan

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Sample B Feedbackl

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Re

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Group1:
Fleshing out as we go along in terms of content and concepts

Do we touch on all, with every text? Or do we focus on one at a time in each text

try to focus on one but in the long run we make connections between them

Students could be encouraged to make connections

Also organised by AOE with Global Issues/

Looking at it from an assessment model: Paper 1 and IO, linking texts to them while students develop links to the AoEs.

What IS a body of work?

To bring the concepts in, AOEs are often a positive way of doing that, but students are also  making their own connections

Alex: Question: Concept model is easier to explore.