Growth of Thinking in Children in Evolutionary Psychology
Reza Pourhossein
The innovative idea emphasized in this paper suggests that, unlike the common belief, a child is not a small adult. In other words, the world of a child is different from that of an adult. From the viewpoint of evolutionary psychology, philosophy for children means becoming involved in philosophizing and contemplation and not learning a series of abstract and formal concepts. Accordingly, philosophy for children refers to a method and mechanism which persuades children to research, wonder about, and inquire about different topics. Here, we refer to it as a balance-seeking method, which is the main basis of children's psychological development. The writer claims that it is possible to teach them the process of thinking; however, if someone learns the related process and mechanism, they will easily learn about the content of thinking, and if their thoughts are developed, they will be able to create ideas. Although teaching thinking is possible, it must match the "evolutionary age" of children. Before one can teach them substantial concepts, they should have reached the required biological potential; otherwise, their efforts will only result in a fragile type of rote learning. Therefore, "biological readiness" is the necessary condition for children to learn philosophical concepts and develop their thinking abilities.
Key Terms: child as a small adult, biological readiness, philosophy for children in evolutionary psychology, balance-seeking
Explaining the Meaning of Rationality and Analyzing its Place in the Philosophy for Children Program
Zohreh Isma'ili
Parastoo Mesbahi
Clarifying the meaning of rationality in order to provide a certainty criterion for knowledge is of vital importance in the pluralistic intellectual atmosphere of the present period. One of the most debated programs in the world of today is the Philosophy for Children Program, which is now being introduced into the educational system of our society. Learning about the significance of the meaning of rationality, its correct generalization to different scientific fields, its potentials, and its advantages and limitations not only results in identifying and employing a trustworthy criterion when dealing with scientific matters and everyday affairs, but also provides a logical and analytic perception of the meaning of intellect in the Philosophy for Children Program. In this paper, while discussing different classifications of the intellect and its place in religious education, the authors have examined the philosophical principles of philosophy for children and presented the relationships between different types of intellection and different types of thinking (critical thinking, creative thinking, collective thinking, and responsible thinking) in the Philosophy for Children Program. This study aims to demonstrate that, in the Philosophy for Children Program, rationality, more than being influenced by children's potentials as natural and acquired values which can be promoted at a childish level, is indebted to the elements of intellection based on certain non-childish criteria which have been designed to evaluate rational behaviors at a different level of human growth. On the other hand, because of the influence of the elements and features of the dominant philosophical trend, that is, post-modernism, on the Philosophy for Children Program, the conformity between this program and the religious atmosphere of the country is under question. Following the analytic-descriptive method and employing Tafsir al-mizan by 'Allamah Tabataba'i as the criterion, this study aims to discuss the required changes in the execution of the Philosophy for Children Program in terms of its content and goals in order to bring it into agreement with our country's native and religious approach to education.
Key Terms: rationality, Philosophy for Children, religious training, philosophical principles, types of thinking
A Comparative Study of Educational Views of Rousseau, Kant, and Farabi
Mina Khodapanah
There has always been some disagreement among experts and ordinary people regarding their understanding of the nature of education. However, both groups admit that it is a necessary and vital element in human life. There are also various definitions for education and various views regarding its nature. Therefore, the clarification of the related controversies can assist us to identify the adopted approaches, remove the potential ambiguities, and avoid confusing them with each other. The present study, while emphasizing the necessity of explaining the existing differences, refers to the educational views of Farabi, Kant, and Rousseau, who played influential roles in developing educational theories and ideas. According to these three thinkers, all human beings have a common good and healthy primordial nature. Generally speaking, they believe that the ultimate goal of education, whether in its individual or social dimension, is to train a human being who enjoys physical and mental health and ethical virtues and has passed through different educational levels in order to attain intellectual perfection. A comparison of the educational views of these three prominent thinkers regarding educational principles and methods indicates that intellection and thinking are extremely important to all of them, and they consider them to be among the most crucial tools of increasing the power of perception and recognition in human beings. The present paper explores Man's nature and the goals, principles, and various stages of education in Kant, Rousseau, and Farabi.
Key Terms: education and training, stages of education, principles of education, human nature
Pathology of the Philosophical Foundations of the Philosophy for Children Program in Islamic Wisdom
Nawwab Muqarrabi
If philosophy is to be presented in a nativized version, we initially need to explore our own Iranian-Islamic philosophy. In fact, more than everything else and before devising any native version of the Philosophy for Children Program, we need to refer to our own native philosophical principles. In other words, we need to learn about our "native philosophy of childhood", which can function as a useful guide in gaining our purpose. Now, the question is: What is the philosophy of childhood in the view of Mulla Sadra, who is the master of all principles and elements of the Iranian-Islamic wisdom? The truth is that, although he never wrote an independent book or treatise on childhood and the training and education of children, we can infer his ideas about childhood, the development of children, and the stages of their growth based on the fundamental principles of the Transcendent Philosophy and his innovative ideas regarding the theory of knowledge and epistemology. In the light of the insights rooted in Mulla Sadra's Transcendent Philosophy, this paper aims to identify the philosophical bases of the Philosophy for Children Program and elaborate on its pathology.
Key Terms: philosophical foundations of the Philosophy for Children Program, Islamic wisdom, Mulla Sadra, Philosophy and Children
Philosophical Virtues Leading to Practical Virtues through Children's Native Games
Mika'eel Rasulzadeh
Perhaps, we can remember that in a not very distant past, when children became ready to play some group games or native and local games, a few players volunteered for recruiting players for their teams and asked, "Who is with me?" At the same time, some players waited to be recruited or asked daringly, "To which team do I belong?" If we remember our own childhood and the games that we played at that time, we will understand that we grew up, built our own personalities, found friends, developed our feelings and emotions, and learnt about social life while playing those childish games. We owe a considerable amount of our philosophical virtues which have led to our practical virtues to the same native-local games of our childhood. One of the noteworthy topics in the field of critical thinking is philosophical virtues. They consist of positive thinking characteristics which contribute to better thinking. In this paper, the writer has dealt with a number of philosophical virtues, such as philosophical modesty, philosophical courage, philosophical synchrony, philosophical independence, philosophical honesty, philosophical perseverance, trusting wisdom, and justice. He has also explained the principles of the proposed philosophical virtues in children's native and local games. Presently, computer and TV games have resulted in forgetting these original games and depriving children from the virtues that were greatly appreciated in the past.
Key Terms: philosophical virtues, native and local games, children
Explaining the Realms and Concepts of Islamic Philosophy in a Story for Children
Hassan Moradi
Sahar Mousivand,
Fahimeh Nezam al-Islami
This study aimed to examine some philosophical themes in a story for children with the purpose of teaching Islamic philosophy to them. Given the fact that most of the philosophy for children programs are rooted in the theories of Western thinkers and follow them in terms of structure, it is necessary to rewrite ancient texts or create some new works in the field of philosophy for children in conformity with the Iranian-Islamic culture and philosophy. In line with this purpose, through creating a story originated in the culture of Islamic philosophy for children and raising some questions in relation to the content of the story, the researchers tried to teach some philosophical concepts which make children think about some problems which do not receive much attention in the field of children's education. Following the analytic-descriptive method of research, the authors aimed to demonstrate how we can teach philosophical thinking to children by using stories with a taste of native culture and thoughts.
Key Terms: Philosophy for Children, ontology, epistemology, axiology, philosophical themes
A Study of the Impact of Teaching Philosophy on Student's Moral Judgment and Emotional Self-Efficacy
Rahim Badri Gargari
Anvar Navidiyan
The present paper investigated the impact of teaching philosophy on the moral judgment and emotional self-efficacy of primary school fifth-graders. The target population consisted of all fifth-graders of Marivan city, and the research sample was chosen following a multilevel cluster sampling method. The participants were later divided into two control and experimental groups randomly. The package used for teaching philosophy included 15 stories by Michel Piquemal. The data collection instruments consisted of an emotional self-efficacy questionnaire (r=0.88) and a moral judgment questionnaire (r=0.55). The results of the questionnaires were quantitatively analyzed using the SPSS program. The test of Analysis of Covariance (ANCVA) was used to check the effects of the treatment on the dependent variables of this study. The research findings indicated that teaching philosophy to primary school fifth-graders has a significant effect on their moral judgment; however, it has no such effect on their emotional self-efficacy.
Key Terms: teaching philosophy, emotional self-efficacy, moral judgment