Matthew Lipman (August 24, 1923 in
Vineland, New Jersey – December 26, 2010 in
West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a suburban township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from the 46,207 counted in the 2010 Census. ) is recognized as the founder of
Philosophy for Children
Philosophy for Children, sometimes abbreviated to P4C, is a movement that aims to teach reasoning and argumentative skills to children. There are also related methods sometimes called "''Philosophy for Young People''" or "''Philosophy for Kids''" ...
. His decision to bring
philosophy to young people came from his experience as a professor at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, where he witnessed underdeveloped reasoning skills in his students. His interest was particularly on developing reasoning skills by teaching
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
. The belief that children possess the ability to think abstractly from an early age led him to the conviction that bringing logic to children's education earlier would help them to improve their reasoning skills.
In 1972 he left Columbia for
Montclair State College
Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public university in New ...
to establish the Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children (IAPC) where he began to take philosophy into
K-12 classrooms in Montclair. That year he also published his first book specifically designed to help children practice philosophy, ''
Harry Stottlemeier's Discovery''. The IAPC continues to develop and publish
curriculum
In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...
, working internationally to advance and improve philosophy for children.
Lipman died, aged 87, in
West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a suburban township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from the 46,207 counted in the 2010 Census. on December 26, 2010. Lipman's marriage to his first wife,
New Jersey State Senator Wynona Lipman, ended with their divorce.
[Martin, Douglas]
"Matthew Lipman, Philosopher and Educator, Dies at 87"
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', January 14, 2011. Accessed January 16, 2011.
Academic timeline
*Undergraduate study at Stanford University, California; Shrivenham American University, England; School of General Studies, Columbia University, New York.
*1948 – B.S., Columbia University, General Studies.
*1953 – Instructor in Philosophy,
Brooklyn College, Spring.
*Graduate study at Columbia University;
Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
, Paris;
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hist ...
, Austria.
*1953 – Ph.D., Columbia University.
*1953 to 1975 – Adjunct Assistant and Associate Professor, School of General Studies,
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
.
*1954 to 1972 – Assistant, Associate and Professor of Philosophy, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Columbia University, (Also, Chairman, Department of General Education during this period).
*1954 to 1962 – Lecturer in Philosophy and Contemporary Civilization, Columbia College, Columbia University.
*1955 to 1963 – Lecturer in Contemporary Civilization,
Mannes College of Music
Mannes School of Music is a music conservatory in The New School, a private research university in New York City. In the fall of 2015, Mannes moved from its previous location on Manhattan's Upper West Side to join the rest of the New School ca ...
, New York City.
*1960 to 1972 – Chairman, Philosophy Department, Evening Division, Baruch School, City College of New York.
*1961 to 1963 – Lecturer in Contemporary Civilization, College of Engineering, Columbia University.
*1962 to 1972 – Chairman, Department of General Education, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Columbia University.
*1963 to 1964 – Visiting Professor of Philosophy,
Sarah Lawrence College.
*1972 to 2001 – Professor of Philosophy, Montclair State College / University.
*1974 to 2001 – Director, Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children, Montclair State College / University.
Bibliography
*''What Happens in Art'' (New York: Appleton Century Crofts, 1967).
*''Discovering Philosophy'' (1st edition, New York: Appleton Century Crofts, 1969; 2nd edition, Englewood Cliffs, Prentice Hall, 1977).
*''Contemporary Aesthetics'' (Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1973).
*''Harry Stottlemeier's Discovery'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1974).
*''Philosophical Inquiry'' (Instructional Manual to Accompany Harry Stottlemeier's Discovery), with Ann Margaret Sharp (N.J.: IAPC, 1975). Second Edition: Philosophical Inquiry, with Ann Margaret Sharp and Frederick S. Oscanyan (N.J.: IAPC, 1979), co published with University Press, 1984.
*''Philosophy for Children'' (edited with Terrell Ward Bynam) (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1976).
*''Lisa'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1976), 2nd edition, IAPC, 1983.
*''Ethical Inquiry'', with Ann Margaret Sharp and Frederick S. Oscanyan (N.J.: IAPC, 1977) 2nd ed., IAPC and UPA, 1985.
*''Philosophy in the Classroom'', with Ann Margaret Sharp and Frederick S. Oscanyan (1st edition, N.J.: IAPC, 1977. 2nd edition, Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1980).
*Growing Up With Philosophy, ed. with Ann Margaret Sharp (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1978).
*''Suki'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1978).
*''Mark'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1980).
*''Writing: How and Why'' (instructional manual to accompany Suki; N.J.: IAPC, 1980).
*''Social Inquiry'' (instructional manual to accompany Mark; N.J.: IAPC, 1980).
*''Pixie'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1981).
*''Kio and Gus'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1982).
*''Looking for Meaning'' (with Ann Margaret Sharp) (N.J.: IAPC, 1982) UPA, 1984.
*''Wondering at the World'' (with Ann Margaret Sharp) (N.J.: IAPC, 1984).
*''Elfie'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1987).
*''Harry Prime'' (N.J.: IAPC, 1987).
*''Philosophy Goes to School'' (Philadelphia: Temple U. Press, 1988).
*''Getting Our Thoughts Together'', with Ann Gazzard (Upper Montclair, NJ: IAPC, 1988).
*''Thinking in Education'' (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991; 2nd edition, 2003).
*''Thinking Children and Education'' (Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt, 1993).
*''Natasha: Vygotskian Dialogues'' (New York: Teachers College Press, 1996).
*''Nous'' (New Jersey, I.A.P.C., 1996)
*''Deciding What to Do ''(Instructional Manual to Nous, New Jersey;IAPC, 1996)
See also
*
American philosophy
*
List of American philosophers
This is a list of American philosophers; of philosophers who are either from, or spent many productive years of their lives in the United States.
{, border="0" style="margin:auto;" class="toccolours"
, -
! {{MediaWiki:Toc
, -
, style="text-al ...
References
External links
IAPC home pageIAPC TimelineThe International Council of Philosophical Inquiry with ChildrenPhilosophy for Children entry in Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyCenter of Research in Philosophy for Children -Argentina, C.I.Fi.N- Argentina
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lipman, Matthew
American philosophers
Philosophy education
Columbia University School of General Studies alumni
City College of New York faculty
Brooklyn College faculty
Stanford University alumni
Writers from New Jersey
People from Vineland, New Jersey
1923 births
2010 deaths
Columbia University alumni
Mannes College The New School for Music faculty