Philosophy, Children, and the Ageless Power of Wonder: Dr. Thomas Jackson at TEDxHonoluluED

Thomas E. Jackson (Dr. J) earned his doctorate in Comparative Philosophy from the University of Hawai`i in 1979. In 1980 he became a co-founder of the Hawai`i International Film Festival. In 1984 he trained in "Philosophy for Children" (P4C) at Montclair State University in New Jersey with other scholars from around the world. There he learned from P4C's creator, Matthew Lipman, an inspiring approach to working with children, a provocative new way of thinking about philosophy, and an exciting development in education. Since 1984 he has been passionately committed to the development of P4C in Hawai`i (p4cHI) and around the world. He is currently serving as Executive Director of the newly established Uehiro Academy for Philosophy and Ethics in Education, located in the College of Arts & Humanities, UH Mānoa, whose purpose is preparing, supporting and sustaining educators, researchers and students who engage or are interested in engaging in p4cHI worldwide.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)