Wednesday, 18th November

Today I will be witnessing how Philosophy for Citizenship is taught at Bishop Luffa School.

FIRST PERIOD – P4C – Miss Smerdon is teaching Year 9

This is a class about divorce. The starter activity is a song. While the students listen to the song, the teacher shows a list of questions they will try to answer about the story. Pupils should focus on the lyrics in order to answer them properly. After listening to the song, the teacher gives the students a couple of minutes to think and to jot down their answers. The teacher invites the students to give their answers raising their hands, and she later corrects them. However, I notice that shy students don't participate and have no opportunity to share their own opinions with the rest of the class.

Next activity is a mind map that students must complete. In the centre of the map there is a single question: 'What are the reasons why a couple may divorce?' Students work individually, and they share their opinions with the rest of the class later. After this, the teacher uses a slide to explain the main reasons that might cause divorce. Special attention is given to the common idea that many teens share when their parents divorce, thinking that they are responsible for their family to split up.

In order to explain this, the teacher shows a video making it quite clear that when parents divorce, it is never the kid's fault. The video also gives some advice about how to behave in such a difficult situation. Many students raise their hands and share with the rest of the class their personal experiences connected with divorce.

Working in pairs and threes students are invited to discuss what coping strategies could be suggested to a thirteen year old whose parents are going through a divorce. After a few minutes, the teacher tells the kids what is ok and what is not ok in such a situation. Another video is shown to present some strategies that might be useful for these 'teen betweeners'. Later, the teacher presents two tasks for the students to choose. They can create a role play showing a couple going through divorce, or they can write a diary entry from a person whose parents are divorcing. They are given 15 minutes do finish this task. I notice that students stand up, move around the class, meet their friends and feel free to do whatever they want. They seem to enjoy the role play activity, but I am shocked to see that they are not taking any notes at all!

PERIOD TWO – P4C – Year 9 - Gav Walker gives a lesson about divorce

Mr Walker's lesson is also about divorce. Actually, he is using the same slideshow that I saw at Miss Smerdon's class. Comparing how the same lesson is taught according to the different teaching styles of these two teachers can be a very interesting experience!

First of all, Mr Walker invites students who might feel uncomfortable with the lesson to leave the classroom if they want and spend this period in the library. He also explains that this class will be very helpful, both for those students who have been personally affected by divorce and for those who haven't. Actually, after watching the video a girl felt so bad that she began to cry and had to leave the classroom! He also makes it clear that the purpose of the lesson is not to share personal experiences, but to give some useful tips that might be helpful for the students. He also stresses the two basic ideas of this session: 1) kids are not to blame for their parents' divorce, and 2) it is important to get external support when facing such a situation.

Mr Walker is also using the song, and he is also asking the students to answer some questions about the lyrics. But this time he asks individual students to focus on specific questions, so they will pay special attention to particular aspects of the story. I think this is a fantastic way to keep them focussed and engaged in the activity! However, only some students take notes while listening to the song.

To complete the mind map, Mr Walker invites the students to share their opinions with the rest of the class before showing the next slide, which has the answer. Even though the teacher gives a lot of praise to the students, I feel that there is little time to listen carefully – everything seems to be very fast, at least from my personal point of view!

Another difference between Mr Walker and Miss Smerdon has to do with the Samaritans. Mr Walker talks about them, showing that they are ready to listen to people's problems when they need someone to talk to. Even though they will give you no advice at all, they are good listeners and they will help you to cope with your personal suffering. He also reminds the students that they can also talk to their friends, to a member of the Church, to someone in their family, to a teacher, to a psychotherapist or counsellor… as the worst thing they can do is to bottle up their emotions in such a stressful and distressing situation as a divorce.

When Mr Walkers shows what should be done and what should be avoided in these cases, he asks the students to copy these tips on their book, in a table. The last video doesn't seem to work, because of a technical problem, so Mr Walker goes on with his class, showing the kids the Samaritans webpage and telephone number. He also shows the Childline website. This is a charity organization that tries to help children who are suffering distressing situations.

As a final activity, the teacher asks the students to recap three important pieces of advice that could be given to someone whose parents are divorcing. Pupils raise their hands and give their opinions, while a students jots down these ideas on the board. This is a good way to revise the lesson contents and end the session.