Extrait de l'article:
Philosophical discussions about truth, fairness or kindness appear to give a small but significant boost to the maths and literacy progress of primary school pupils, although experts remain puzzled as to why.
More than 3,000 pupils in 48 state primary schools across England took part in a year-long trial as part of a study named “philosophy for children”, and found that their maths and reading levels benefited by the equivalent of two months’ worth of teaching.
A Durham University evaluation said the results showed faster rates of progress for pupils eligible for free school meals, suggesting that the technique could “be used to reduce the attainment gap in terms of poverty in the short term”.
In the trial, key stage two classes of pupils aged between 8 and 11 were given regular classroom sessions featuring pupil-led discussions on topics such as fairness or bullying. Teachers received special training to act as moderators, while the children sat in a discussion circle.
Stephen Gorard, professor of education at Durham and author of the evaluation, said: “I think this study is interesting. All of the indicators are positive, even if they are small, and it’s a relatively small cost.”
Gorard said he couldn’t explain the success of the debates in improving an unrelated subject such as maths, but suggested that such open-ended discussions were unusual in primary classrooms, and meant children were more engaged and found school more enjoyable.
(...) Both teachers and pupils also reported improved classroom behaviour and relationships, as well as a boost to pupils’ confidence in speaking, patience when listening to others, and self-esteem. Some teachers said the discussions had a positive impact on classroom engagement and may have resulted in some pupils asking more questions across all lessons.