The Questioning Project
The impact of the introduction of philosophical enquiry and critical thinking has been proven in schools, especially in areas with a high pupil premium.
The challenge, however, is that it is often introduced as an additional extra for schools, who have to find time outside the curriculum and fund training for teachers (who might move on before embedding practice throughout the school).
The Questioning Project has been designed to encourage both independent and collaborative learning, as well as the exploration of different perspectives. The programme helps embed critical thinking, questioning, dialogue and the development of empathy within day to day teaching and requires little to no additional investment on the part of the school.
Click here to find out more
Please email fj3@soas.ac.uk if you or your school would be interested in taking part in the development of the programme.
Initial research shows the development of independent thinking can give children a sense of autonomy, of being heard and valued. This in turn fosters success and gives a sense of purpose to a child's learning. Building on our experience from the last 5 years of running the UK-wide programme Tolerance Day, we expect to see benefits in terms of building resilience and self esteem, fighting bias and prejudice while improving learning skills.
The research project will evaluate the effects of the Questioning Project on children’s:
The Questioning Project builds on Robin Alexander’s work on Dialogic Teaching but has been created to specifically address the needs of younger children.
We are currently developing a one year curriculum based package. It consists of three anchor workshops on religious tolerance, assessing information and storytelling. These workshops combined with lesson plans and projects enable the exploration of rules, fairness, the nature of knowledge, and the development of perspective and empathy/acceptance.
The programme also includes an INSET day in which the Learn2Think Foundation will work with teachers to brainstorm how to put questioning, collaboration, dialogue and personal agency at the heart of the lesson. This will enrich current teaching practices, support reflection and create a space for creative cross-curricula collaboration with colleagues.
The challenge, however, is that it is often introduced as an additional extra for schools, who have to find time outside the curriculum and fund training for teachers (who might move on before embedding practice throughout the school).
The Questioning Project has been designed to encourage both independent and collaborative learning, as well as the exploration of different perspectives. The programme helps embed critical thinking, questioning, dialogue and the development of empathy within day to day teaching and requires little to no additional investment on the part of the school.
Click here to find out more
Please email fj3@soas.ac.uk if you or your school would be interested in taking part in the development of the programme.
Initial research shows the development of independent thinking can give children a sense of autonomy, of being heard and valued. This in turn fosters success and gives a sense of purpose to a child's learning. Building on our experience from the last 5 years of running the UK-wide programme Tolerance Day, we expect to see benefits in terms of building resilience and self esteem, fighting bias and prejudice while improving learning skills.
The research project will evaluate the effects of the Questioning Project on children’s:
- Ability to think independently, to assess and evaluate information sources
- Open mindedness to learning and to others
- Confidence in their own voice and sense of agency
The Questioning Project builds on Robin Alexander’s work on Dialogic Teaching but has been created to specifically address the needs of younger children.
We are currently developing a one year curriculum based package. It consists of three anchor workshops on religious tolerance, assessing information and storytelling. These workshops combined with lesson plans and projects enable the exploration of rules, fairness, the nature of knowledge, and the development of perspective and empathy/acceptance.
The programme also includes an INSET day in which the Learn2Think Foundation will work with teachers to brainstorm how to put questioning, collaboration, dialogue and personal agency at the heart of the lesson. This will enrich current teaching practices, support reflection and create a space for creative cross-curricula collaboration with colleagues.