Page - 32 - in Reflective Cosmopolitanism - Educating towards inclusive communities through Philosophical Enquiry

32 REfLECTIvE COsMOPOLITANIsM Discussion Plan: Bullying 1. What does bullying mean? 2. How can we handle bullying? 3. What is the difference between making fun and bullying? 4. Does it matter what other people think about you? 5. Is it a good thing that Amir didn’t say anything when Andy and Fabio bullied him? 6. What reasons could there be for bullying? 7. Is bullying for example in France or Finland the same as in other countries? Are there any differences? 8. What is the difference between bullying and normal conflict between peers? Episode 4: A bird in a cage Since Amir´s mother had talked to the principal about bullying she was afraid to let Amir go outside just by himself. Amir feels terrible; he says he is like a bird in a cage. He wants to be free – free to get outside and play. He also thinks that it was unfair to let him stay at home. What do you think? Leading Idea 1: Comparisons and Analogies Amir compares himself with a bird in a cage. Whenever we want to compare two things to each other we can use a simile. A simile is a comparison between two things, even though it is inexact. In Matthew Lipman´s book Pixie, Pixie states that similes “are alike only in some eentsy way.”12 The act of comparing plays a great role in language. Often children can also find relationships between things through analogies. An analogy is a particular kind of comparison. It is a comparison of one relationship to another. So we can say analogies are relationships that compare two things that have a feature in common but are otherwise unlike. A smile uses “like” or “as” in the comparison. What are the differences between similes and analogies? Discussion Plan: Comparisons and Analogies 1. What are comparisons? 2. Can you compare anything you want? 3. Do you need certain requirements to make a comparison? 4. Can you compare only objects of reality? 5. Are there objects you are not able to compare? If so, give examples and reasons. 6. Is it possible to define and explain things without making any comparisons? 7. What is the difference between a comparison and an analogy? 8. Are there similarities or even equalities between a comparison and an analogy? 9. What is an analogy? 10. What do you need analogies for? 12 Matthew Lipman, Pixie. Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children. Montclair, 1981