摘要：This paper considers whether Philosophy for Children (P4C) can contribute
to the development of the ¡®thinking¡¯ key competency of The New Zealand
Curriculum. Additionally, it seeks to demonstrate what ¡®action research¡¯ looks like in
relation to a seven month trial in a New Zealand school of P4C and its associated
methodology of the Community of Philosophical Enquiry (COPE). The action
research methodology outlined here is broadly a form of practitioner enquiry, which
affirms the role of the researcher, thus breaking with conventional positivistic and
rationalist research that hides the researcher from view. Several data sources are
tracked to reach the conclusion that P4C does indeed encourage critical thinking
and deep questioning ¨C but not for all students, and not to the same extent for all in
this study, thus creating a new ¡®problem¡¯. The mixed success of the trial suggests
good grounds for further exploration of the practice of P4C in schools such as that
under study here.
