This post is part of our Behind the Scenes and Project Vox Classroom blog series.
For many years, Project Vox has offered teaching resources focused on undergraduate classrooms. Beginning this year, we’re expanding that work, with the aim of reaching high school classrooms, too.
Project Vox’s Education & Outreach team has begun developing lesson plans that will enable high school teachers to incorporate our marginalized philosophers into their social studies and English courses.
The team — composed of Lindsay Huth, Mary Purcell, and Audrey Ledbetter, all philosophy PhD students at Duke — presented that work at the Public Philosophy Network (PPN) Conference at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, in October.
Project Vox’s presentation was part of a panel, “Developing Mutually Beneficial Philosophical Partnerships Between High Schools and Universities,” organized by Project Vox board member Karen Detlefsen.
During the presentation, the team explained their research and development process and shared early drafts of lesson plans with the audience, which included high school teachers and public philosophers.
Project Vox’s high school lesson plan work emerged from discussions at our 10th Anniversary Symposium last spring. Over the summer, the newly-formed Education & Outreach team developed a list of 10 initial lesson plan ideas. The team then discussed those ideas with local teachers and curriculum specialists to gauge teacher interest and classroom feasibility. Based on those discussions, the team chose six ideas to develop into full lesson plans.
The conference presentation prompted helpful conversations, especially concerning how to ensure we are collaborating as closely and as productively as possible with teachers during the lesson-plan development process.
“Connecting with people who have years of experience working with philosophy in high school classrooms was invaluable,” Ledbetter said. “I felt both affirmed and inspired—affirmed that we are on the right track and the work that we are doing is valuable and inspired to move forward with a renewed vigor for developing relationships with local teachers. “
Back at Duke, work continues. The team is busy making adjustments to existing lesson plan drafts, developing new drafts, and getting another round of feedback from teachers and curriculum specialists. They are also planning a workshop for teachers in the spring, when they will invite local teachers to Duke’s campus to collaborate on the lesson plans, brainstorm new ideas, and talk about how to lead philosophical discussions in the classroom.
If you or someone you know has experience in high school classrooms and is interested in talking with us as we develop these materials, please reach out to Lindsay Huth at lindsay.huth@duke.edu.
