Associate Professor Gilbert Burgh

Honorary Associate Professor

School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences

Overview

Gilbert Burgh has been active in promoting philosophy in schools since 1990. He has published widely in the field of educational philosophy (philosophy functioning educationally), especially democratic education and collaborative philosophical inquiry as pedagogy, and in 2009 completed an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Project Grant to conduct a study on the effectiveness of philosophy on children’s explanatory behaviour, problem-solving, and learning. He has participated in a number of philosophy teacher education programs in Australia and the United States, and was the founding president of the Queensland Association of Philosophy in Schools (1994-1996), and president of the Federation of Australasian Philosophy in Schools Associations (2002-2003). As one of the founding members of the Australian Philosophy Research Group (APRG), he works closely with other members, Dr. Simone Thornton (School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, UOW / Honorary Research Fellow, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, UQ), Assoc. Prof. Michelle Boulous Walker (School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, UQ), and Adjunct Assoc. Prof. Mary Graham (School of Political Science and International Studies, UQ / Doctor of the University honoris causa, UQ / QUT), a Kombumerri and Wakka Wakka community development leader, Elder, educator, and philosopher, who has long been a sounding board and driver of Aboriginal philosophy. The aim of the group is to develop an Australian philosophy in dialogue with Indigenous and non-Indigneous scholars, to develop a place-based, grounded philosophy. This project informs his current research on place-responsive pedagogy as an ecological approach to education to improve human-environmental relations and how we understand citizenship and democracy.

Research Interests

  • Research Interests
    Educational philosophy (philosophy functioning educationally), esp. democratic education, civics and citizenship education, dialogic pedagogy, the history and development of philosophy in school in Australia; Social and political philosophy, esp. democracy, alternatives to electoral politics, deliberative politics and citizenship, and democracy and education.
  • Current Research Projects
    Place-responsive pedagogies; democratic education; the role of genuine doubt in classroom inquiry to acquire critical awareness of epistemic bias in educational practice; John Dewey’s theory of democracy and education; Matthew Lipman’s practice of philosophy as the methodology of education.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
  • Bachelor (Honours) of Arts, The University of Queensland

Publications

View all Publications

Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • (2019) Doctor Philosophy

  • (2019) Doctor Philosophy

View all Supervision

Publications

Book

Book Chapter

  • Thornton, Simone, Burgh, Gilbert, Bleazby, Jennifer and Graham, Mary (2023). Rethinking teacher preparation for teaching: controversial topics in a community of inquiry. Philosophy with children and teacher education: global perspectives on critical, creative and caring thinking. (pp. 194-203) edited by Arie Kizel. London, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781003212737-25

  • Thornton, Simone and Burgh, Gilbert (2019). Growing up with philosophy in Australia: philosophy as cultural discourse. Philosophical inquiry with children: the development of an inquiring society in Australia. (pp. 236-249) edited by Gilbert Burgh and Simone Thornton. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9780429431821-22

  • Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2019). The philosophical classroom: an Australian story. Philosophical inquiry with children: the development of an inquiring society in Australia. (pp. 1-5) edited by Gilbert Burgh and Simone Thornton. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9780429431821-1

  • Burgh, Gilbert, Thornton, Simone and Fynes-Clinton, Liz (2018). ‘Do not block the way of inquiry’: cultivating collective doubt through sustained deep reflective thinking. Parecidos de familia. Propuestas actuales en Filosofía para Niños [Family Resemblances: Current trends in philosophy for children]. (pp. 47-61) edited by Ellen Duthie, Félix García Moriyón and Rafael Robles Loro. Madrid, Spain: Anaya.

  • Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2017). From Harry to Philosophy Park: the development of philosophy for children resources in Australia. The Routledge international handbook of philosophy for children. (pp. 163-170) edited by Maughn Rollins Gregory, Joanna Haynes and Karin Murris. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781315726625-34

  • Thornton, Simone and Burgh, Gilbert (2017). Making peace education everyone’s business. Inclusion, diversity and intercultural dialogue in young people's philosophical inquiry. (pp. 55-65) edited by Ching-Ching Lin and Lavina Sequeira. Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers. doi: 10.1007/978-94-6351-065-3

  • Burgh, Gilbert (2017). Philosophy in Schools: An Australian perspective. History, Theory and Practices of Philosophy for Children: International Perspectives. (pp. 157-166) edited by Saeed Naji and Rosnani Hashim. London, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781315208732

  • Nichols, Kim, Burgh, Gilbert and Fynes-Clinton, Liz (2017). Reconstruction of thinking across the curriculum through the community of inquiry. The Routledge international handbook of philosophy for children. (pp. 245-252) edited by Maughn Rollins Gregory, Joanna Haynes and Karin Murris. Abingdon, Oxon United Kingdom: Routledge.

  • Burgh, Gilbert (2014). Creative and lateral thinking: Edward de Bono. Encyclopedia of educational theory and philosophy. (pp. 187-189) edited by D. C. Phillips. Thousand Oakes, CA, United Sates: Sage. doi: 10.4135/9781483346229.n86

  • Burgh, Gilbert (2010). Citizenship as a Learning Process: Democratic education without foundationalism. Asian-Arab Philosophical Dialogues on Globalization, Democracy and Human Rights. (pp. 59-69) edited by Darryl R.J. Mracer and Souria Saad-Zoy. Bangkok Thailand: UNESCO, Regional Unit for Social and Human Sciences in Asia and the Pacific.

  • Burgh, Gilbert (2008). P4C in Australia: Interview with Gilbert Burgh by Saeed Naji. Philosophical Inquiry for Children: Interviews with Some Leaders of Philosophy for Children throughout the World. (pp. x-x) edited by Saeed Naji. Tehran, Iran: Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies.

  • Burgh, Gilbert (2007). Aesthetic Encounters of the Human Kind (Foreword). Gleaner or Gladiator: the struggle to create. (pp. 6-9) edited by Marshall, Lyne. Tallegalla, Queensland: Art Clique Projects.

  • Burgh, G. (2005). From Socrates to Lipman: Making Philosophy Relevant. Creative Engagements: Thinking with Children. (pp. 25-31) edited by Daniel Shepherd. Oxford, UK: Inter-Disciplinary Press.

  • Burgh, G. (2003). Democratic Education: Aligning curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and school governance.. Philosophy, Democracy and Education. (pp. 101-120) edited by Philip Cam. Seoul, Korea: Korean National Commission for UNESCO.

Journal Article

Conference Publication

Other Outputs

PhD and MPhil Supervision

Note for students: Associate Professor Gilbert Burgh is not currently available to take on new students.

Current Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

Completed Supervision