Matthew Lipman

Matthew Lipman was born on August 24, 1923, in Vineland, New Jersey. He studied philosophy at Columbia University, receiving his doctorate in 1953. Lipman taught at Columbia for many years, but his attention gradually turned more and more to the issue of teaching thinking and the shortcomings of the educational system in cultivating students' reasoning and judgment.

The most important intellectual legacy of Lipman is the formation of the 'Philosophy for Children' program. This program emerged in the 1970s in the United States, aiming to introduce philosophy not merely as an academic subject, but as a method for strengthening questioning, reasoning, dialogue, and judgment into children's education. Lipman, along with Ann Margaret Sharp, expanded the program and in 1974 founded the Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children at Montclair State University. This program later spread to numerous countries and became one of the significant currents in the philosophy of education.

One of Lipman's main innovations was the use of philosophical stories for children. With works such as Harry Stottlemeier's Discovery, Lisa, Pixie, and Kio and Gus, he created narrative situations that led children to pose logical, ethical, epistemological, and social questions. The goal of these stories was not to transmit a set of philosophical answers, but to provide a context for thinking and dialogue.

Within this framework, Lipman emphasized the concept of the 'community of inquiry'; a classroom where children, instead of passively receiving the teacher's answers, dialogue with one another about their own questions, reason, and refine their viewpoints. In his view, philosophy was an activity that could cultivate the capacity for critical, creative, and caring thinking, and ultimately connect with education for democratic life.

Among his important theoretical works are Thinking in Education and Philosophy in the Classroom. The book Thinking in Education is one of his most significant theoretical formulations on thinking, judgment, and educational reform, holding a central place in contemporary philosophy of education. He also launched the journal Thinking: The Journal of Philosophy for Children and played a role in expanding research and education in philosophy for children internationally.

Until his final years, Lipman continued to reflect on philosophy for children and the experience of this movement's formation. In one of his last conversations in 2008, he spoke about the history of the Philosophy for Children program's evolution and the role of narrative in cultivating philosophical thinking. He passed away on December 26, 2010, at the age of 87.