“Young Plato:” Film Screening, Dialogue, & Inquiry hosted by University of Hawaii’s p4c Hawaii
Date: Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Time: 5:00–8:00 pm
Location: Hanahau'oli School Professional Development Center, 1922 Makiki Street, Honolulu HI 96822
Cost: Free, with option to pre-order dinner
John Dewey (1916) was adamant that there is a deep connection between education and philosophy. He wrote, “If we are willing to conceive education as the process of forming fundamental dispositions, intellectual and emotional, toward nature and fellow men, philosophy may even be defined as the general theory of education” (p. 328). Central to the aims of a progressive education, when philosophy becomes “the general theory of education,” schools become a place where human beings, who have thoughts, feelings, cultures, and experiences, come to engage in meaningful teaching and learning. This core belief about the relationship between philosophy and education is at the heart of the brand new film, Young Plato.
Summarized on the website, Rotten Tomatoes:
An inspiring documentary from the filmmakers of School Life, Young Plato charts the dream of Elvis-loving school headmaster Kevin McArevey -- a maverick who is determined to change the fortunes of an inner-city community plagued by urban decay, sectarian aggression, poverty and drugs. The all-boys primary school in post-conflict Belfast, Northern Ireland, becomes a hot house for questioning violence, as the headmaster sends his young wards home each day armed with the wisdom of the ancient Greek philosophers. The boys challenge their parents and neighbors to forsake the prejudice that has kept this low-level civil war on the boil for decades. Young Plato hums with the confidence of youth, a tribute to the power of the possible.
At this event we will join in community for a night of food, film, dialogue and inquiry. The evening will begin with a catered dinner and conversation. Then we will watch the film Young Plato together. At the film’s conclusion, we will have time for dialogue and inquiry.
Learn more about this exciting film at youngplato.com