The Case Study Of Children Philosophy Course Implementation

In 1997, a course of Children Philosophy was introduced into the area of primary school in our mainland. As a new emerging course, Children Philosophy provides a new way for the upcoming new course reform. As for Children Philosophy,it is actually a course which can develop children’thinking by learning philosophical story and cultivate children’spirit of innovation and creative ability by means of philosophy.At the beginning of introducing into "Children Philosophy" course, the words was not familiar to people. Only part of scholars made some studies from several aspects such as conception teaching materials and teaching methods. Part of schools regarded it as their school course and wrote their own teaching materials by themselves, forming their own course system. However, from the characteristics of Children Philosophy themselves and China’s present situation, the course doesn’t play its role very well because the theoretical researchers separate themselves from school performers. What’s more, school performers just get little taste of Children Philosophy Course and teachers do not have philosophical thinking and the development of teaching materials is difficult.From the perspective of development and performance of Children Philosophy Course, the aim is to find out disadvantages during the performing process of this course and explore the way to improve it. Specifically, after combing relevant theories, works and actual situation of Children Philosophy, from the concept of Philosophy for Children, Plato’s philosophy originating from surprise and curiosity, the relations between Lev Vygotsky and Jerome Seymour Bruners’language and thinking, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s theory of children-centered, John Dewey’s theory of high school and critical education schools’s argue for cultivating students’ critical spirits prove the possibility of Children Philosophy Course. Moreover, on the basis of analyzing the characteristics of Children Philosophy Course, we make comments on the opening situation of WenZhou WaShi Primary School concerning Children Philosophy Course, analyzing its advantages and disadvantages and putting forward a way to improve Children Philosophy Course. Therefore, the main contents of our research are as follows.First part, introduction. From four aspects including the analysis of the needs for social talents, mental growth of children, current educational trends and personal reasons we explain the origin, purpose, thinking and the methods we used and we also make remarks on relevant researches at home and aborad from three aspects such as some works, theoretical research, practical explorations relating to Philosophy for Children.Second part, we define some main concepts like children, philosophy, Children Philosophy Course and thinking. As for the basis of theories, we also explain them explicitly.Third part, we expound the characteristics of Children Philosophy Course from six points. They are:first, the goal of Children Philosophy Course; second, teaching children think, teaching materials and the organization forms of teaching; third, community of inquiry and methods of teaching; forth, the procedure of communication and teaching; fifth, community inquiring and evaluated methods of teaching; sixth, the evaluation of process and the requirements for teachers.Forth part, taking WenZhou WaShi Primary School as a respondent, we expound the history, course installation, the development of teaching materials, teaching method, teaching evaluation, teaching effects and the tendency of development of this school’s Children Philosophy Course and analyze its advantages and disadvantages.Fifth part, further to disadvantage of Children Philosophy Course existing in WenZhou WaShi Primary School, we put forward a way to improve Philosophy for Children including first, curriculum goal (combination consistency and study time, three-dimensional goal; second, teaching resources (focusing on textbook and adopting multiple forms) third, improving the organization of teaching (everyone taking part in, grouping scientifically and everyone doing his duties, forth teaching methods (focusing on conversation and adopting a variety of forms)In epilogue, the writer make a whole summary of the paper, pointing out three disadvantages which the author will study further in future. The first is that the author doesn’t have a full understanding of children. Second is that the class observation for Children Philosophy Course at WenZhou WaShi Primary School is in an unnatural state.The last is that processing evaluation scale, we don’t have evidence to prove the validity of processing evaluation scale.