The Impact of Philosophy with Children from the Perspective of Teachers

This article explores how Philosophy with Children (PwC) is perceived and might impact primary education from the perspective of teachers. The findings presented here stem from pilot studies conducted within the Danish Philosophy in Schools research project. Specifically, the article addresses two questions. Firstly, how does PwC teaching impact teachers and teaching from the perspective of teachers? Secondly, how does PwC teaching impact students from the perspective of teachers? Although the pilot studies do not allow for bold generalisations, preliminary answers are offered to both questions. Thus, it is found that teachers perceive PwC practice as highly positive and that PwC teaching has several positive impacts on teachers and teaching as well as on students. Most significantly, the studies indicate that PwC impacts the way in which teachers perceive their students and that PwC teaching is a form of teaching that is particularly favourable for marginalised students.