Philosophy with children as and for moral education

Moral education takes many guises, often taking place in schools, arguably because it is easier to socialise children into a desired way of being (Biesta, 2015). This assumes a particular view of the child, one that sees her as an entity to be moulded into what she will become, or what society wants her to become. Lipman (2003) advocates the need for a moral education that allows children to be part of a community. Such a view is premised on a different view of the child, one that sees her as being-in-and-of-the-world (Kennedy, 2010; Murris, 2013; Cassidy & Mohr Lone, 2020). Childism, that calls for a ‘profound ethical restructuring’ of society (Wall, 2010, p.3), may offer a perspective to moral education that allows us to strive for morally educated citizens. This chapter proposes that practical Philosophy with Children, as a pedagogy of compassion, has the potential to enable children to reflect on the world in which they live, what it means to live well and to take action towards that goal