Rethinking Philosophy Education in Aotearoa’s New Curriculum Through Plato’s Academy

Abstract The forthcoming inclusion of philosophy in Aotearoa New Zealand’s secondary school curriculum presents a timely opportunity to rethink how philosophy should be taught. This paper argues that philosophy education must move beyond the standardised and overly academic models often found in universities, which risk reducing the discipline to technical exercises rather than meaningful inquiry. Returning to the dialogical and imaginative spirit of Plato’s Academy, the paper advocates for teaching practices that prioritise dialogue, curiosity, and creativity over rote instruction and rigid assessment. Drawing on experimental teaching methods developed in collaboration with a university colleague and on practical experiences teaching philosophy at a secondary school in New Zealand, it demonstrates how dialogical and creative assessments, such as student-written dialogues and role-based discussions, enhance engagement and deepen philosophical understanding. These approaches are situated in relation to the Philosophy for Children movement (Lipman, 2003; Lipman et al., 1980) and the broader literature on dialogic pedagogy (Alexander, 2020; Mercer, 2002), showing that the Platonic model shares important commitments with these traditions while offering a historically grounded and imaginatively rich framing for secondary classrooms. By treating philosophy as a living practice of reflection and conversation, this approach aims to cultivate students’ capacity to think independently, imaginatively, and critically within the context of Aotearoa’s evolving curriculum.