developing new methods to assess community transformation through philosophical dialogue

Abstract

This study presents a methodological approach for assessing the educational impact of philosophical dialogues. Drawing upon the Q-U model, this research develops a framework designed to evaluate group dynamics. The framework was implemented in philosophical dialogue at a junior high school in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, to examine its practical applicability. Existing evaluation methods predominantly emphasize individual assessment. However, philosophical dialogues operate within a community, where collective transformations take place. The proposed framework assesses both individual and communal transformations through a structured self-assessment questionnaire, measuring participants’ critical and caring thinking. The findings indicate that philosophical dialogues contribute to the maturation of dialogue groups, as evidenced by changes in students’ critical and caring thinking abilities over time. Results from the exploratory study suggest that philosophical dialogues can foster gradual improvements in participants’ cognitive and social abilities. The feasibility of assessing community transformation through student self-assessments was examined and found to be viable. These findings suggest that this study contributes to the ongoing discourse on evaluating philosophical dialogues by advocating for assessment methodologies that capture their dynamic and interactive nature. Future research should incorporate teacher and peer evaluations to complement self-reported data. Furthermore, expanding the sample size and introducing control groups would enhance the validity of the proposed framework.