Abstract
The need to instil philosophical thinking in children is supported by the phrase ‘catch them young’. Children do have inquisitive mind which is one of the bulks philosophers are made. To harness this virtue through the introduction of philosophy at the basic education levels will be a great milestone in the quest for human development and environmental protection and sustainability. Thus this paper believes that such will equip the future leaders with critical thinking tools necessary in a fast and dynamic society faced with serious climate change challenges.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Here the works of Forman (1972) Murris (1992) and Murris and Haynes (2000, 2002) are good starts. There are also many local versions of some of such stories and others can be adapted following normal procedures. Cutter-Mackenzie and Edwards (2013) had suggested the play-way method through which children could grasp the message of climate change. They believed that the iterative use of the play-way method with content knowledge associated with environmental education would provide a good framework for thinking about how environmental education and early childhood education might be well integrated.
References
Baker, M.M., et al. 2019. Environmental ethics education. Christchurch, New Zealand: Eubios ethics institute.
Cutter-Mackenzie, A., and S. Edwards. 2013. Toward a model for early childhood environmental education: Foregrounding, developing, and connecting knowledge through play-based learning. The Journal of Environmental Education 44 (3): 195–213.
Forman, M. 1972. Dinosaurs and all that rubbish. London: Puffin.
Hacking, E.B., and R. Barratt. 2007. Editorial. Environmental Education Research 13 (4): 419–423.
IPCC (2018a, January 24). Climate change 2014 synthesis report: Summary for policymakers. Retrieved from: http://.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/syr/SYR_AR%_SPM.pdf
IPCC (2018b, January 24). IPCC synthesis report. Retrieved from: http://ar5-syr.ipcc.ch/ipcc/ipcc/resources/pdf/IPCC_SynthesisReport.pdf
Lipman, M. 1976. Philosophy for children. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
Lipman, M. 1988. Philosophy goes to school. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Lipman, M. 1993. Developing philosophies of childhood. In Thinking, children and education, ed. M. Lipman, 143–148. Kendall/Hunt: Duboque, Iowa.
Matthews, G and Mullins, A. (2015). The philosophy of childhood’ The Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, (Spring Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed) Retrieved from: http://plato.standford.edu/archives/spr2015/entries/childhood.
Murris, K. 1992. Teaching philosophy with picture books. London: Infonet Publications.
Murris, K., and J. Haynes. 2000. Storywise: Thinking through stories; Issue1. Newport: Infonet Publications.
Murris, K., and J. Haynes. 2002. Storywise: Thinking through stories; Issue2. Newport: Infonet Publications.
Nneji, B. 2010a. The philosophic turns. Port Harcourt: University of Port Harcourt Press.
Nneji, B. 2010b. Eco-responsibility: The cogency for environmental ethics in Africa. Essays in Philosophy 2 (1) Retrieved from: http://commons.pacificu.edu.eip.
Pearson, E., & Degotardi, S. (2009). Education for sustainable development in early childhood education: A global solution to local concerns. International Journal of Early Childhood, 419, pp97–111.
UNESCO. 1996. Learning: The treasures within. Paris: Report to UNESCO by the International Commission on Education for the Twenty-First Century.
UNESCO. 1998. Philosophy for children. Paris, UNESCO: Meeting of Experts Reports.
UNESCO. 2002. World commission on ethics of science and technology (COMEST) Paris.
UNESCO. 2005. United Nations decade of education for sustainable development (2005–2014): International implementation scheme. Paris: UNESCO.
UNESCO. 2009. Teaching philosophy in Africa: Anglophone countries. Paris: UNESCO.
UNESCO. 2010. Climate change education for sustainable development: The UNESCO climate change initiative. Paris: UNESCO.
UNESCO (2013a). Climate change education for sustainable development at UNESCO. http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-international-agenda/education-for-sustainable-development/climate-change-education/browse/1/. Retrieved: 02/01/2018.
UNESCO. 2013b. Climate change in the classroom. Paris: UNESCO.
UNESCO. 2017. Education for sustainable development goals. Paris: UNESCO.
UNFCCC (2018a). Education and training under Article 6. Available at: http://unfccc.int/cooperation_and_support/education_and_outreach/education_and_training/item/8954.php
UNFCCC (2018b). What is Article 6 of the Convention? Available at: http://unfccc.int/cooperation_support
UNICEF. 2009. Get real on climate change: Climate change lesson plans for grades 9–12. Canada: UNICEF.
Van de Leeuw, K. 2009. Philosophy for children as educational reform. In Children philosophize worldwide, ed. E. Marshal, R. Dobashi, and B. Weber. New York, Peter Lang: Theoretical and practical concepts.
Vansieleghem, N., and D. Kennedy. 2011. What is philosophy for children. What is philosophy with children: After Matthew Lipman, Journal of the philosophy of education society of Great Britain, May 25: 2011.
Worley, P. 2009. Philosophy in philosophy in schools, Think: Philosophy for everyone. In Autumn, 23(8). Royal Institute of: Philosophy.
Worley, P. (2011). What can university philosophy learn from primary philosophy; Royal Institute of Philosophy Lecture series.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Nneji, B. Childhood philosophy: a CASE for environmental ethics at basic education in Nigeria (Africa). International Journal of Ethics Education 5, 197–210 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40889-020-00096-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40889-020-00096-x