In this week’s episode, I’m joined by Jonas Christensen for a deep dive into the creative ways philosophy and political literacy are being brought to life in the classroom. From the physical logistics of team teaching to the “gamification” of complex ideologies, this conversation is packed with takeaways for any teacher looking to increase student engagement.
Jonas shares how he and his colleague effectively use their physical classroom space to facilitate team teaching. By breaking down the traditional classroom, chalk and talk delivery, they create a dynamic environment for S3 pupils to explore political philosophy.
We discuss
- The importance of political literacy and not just in Modern Studies!
- Teaching “tough” topics like Freedom of Speech.
- Using provocations, such as the Westboro Baptist Church via Louis Theroux’s documentaries, to engage pupils with extremist viewpoints in a safe, analytical way.
Jonas shares his success with a Traitors-style skepticism game and various logic puzzles. We explore how gamification acts as a bridge to play-based learning in secondary school – providing a “hook” that allows students to hang complex concepts onto a memorable experience.
There has been a fascinating shift in the classroom over the last decade. We observe that pupils today often feel more comfortable identifying with a belief in a “higher power” or “creator” than they did ten years ago. We discuss this religious literacy and the importance of fostering an environment where identity is embraced.
Jonas discusses his course inspired by Daniel Kahneman’s work on cognitive biases. His colleague recently presented a workshop on this at the STARME Festival of Learning. I’ve already started adapting this for my own S3 classes, and the pupils have been very engaged in it.
Resources & Further Reading
- Catch Up: Watch Jonas’s session on How to Introduce Philosophy to Your School and the workshop on Incels and Ideologies.
- The Reading List:
- Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman – A foundational text for understanding the “two systems” of thought discussed in this episode.
- Education Scotland: Political Literacy Resources – Explore the benchmarks for political literacy in the Scottish curriculum.
- Dream Guest: Jonas mentions Alastair Richmond from the University of Edinburgh. You can find out more about his work here.
- My Resources: I am currently finalizing my adapted S3 unit on Ideologies. You can find my current resource bank here.
Are you using “play” in your secondary classroom? I’d love to hear how you bridge the gap between gamification and curriculum outcomes.
Join the conversation on social media, you can tag me @learningRMPS or email me learningRMPS@gmail.com