Associate Professor Gilbert Burgh
Honorary Associate Professor
Researcher biography
Gilbert has taught Philosophy at The University of Queensland from 1999 to 2020. He was the founding president of the Queensland Association of Philosophy in Schools (QAPS) from 1994 to 1996, and president of the Federation of Australasian Philosophy in Schools Associations (FAPSA) from 2002 to 2003. He has published widely on democratic education, civics and citizenship education, dialogic pedagogy, the development of the community of inquiry in educational discourse, and the history and development of philosophy in schools in Australia.
| Featured projects | Duration |
|---|---|
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Philosophical Inquiry with Children: An Australian history dedicated to creating an inquiring society Summer Research Scholarship |
2016–2017 |
Publications
Books
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2022). Teaching democracy in an age of uncertainty: place-responsive learning. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781003098089
Freakley, Mark, Burgh, Gilbert and MacSporran, Lyne Tilt (2015). Values education in schools: a resource book for student inquiry Translated by Sayyedah Mobina Shaheri Langroudi. Tehran, Iran: Siahroud.
Freakley, Mark, Burgh, Gilbert and Tilt MacSporran, Lyne (2008). Values education in schools: a resource book for student inquiry. Camberwell, VIC, Australia: ACER Press.
Burgh, G., Field, T. K. and Freakley, M. (2006). Ethics and the Community of Inquiry: Education for Deliberative Democracy. 1 ed. South Melbourne, Victoria: Thomson Social Science Press.
Freakley, M. and Burgh, G. (2000). Engaging with Ethics: Ethical Inquiry for Teachers. Katoomba, NSW: Social Science Press Australia.
Book Chapters
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.
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 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
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
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 (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 Articles
Burgh, Gilbert (2025). Review of Gareth B. Matthews, The Child’s Philosopher, edited by Maughn Rollins Gregory & Megan Jane Laverty. Educational Philosophy and Theory, ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print), 1-3. doi: 10.1080/00131857.2025.2486683
Nishiyama, Kei, Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2025). Teaching Democracy in an Age of Uncertainty: Place-Responsive Learning. Childhood and Philosophy, 21 e202590320, 01-09. doi: 10.12957/childphilo.2025.90320
Thornton, Simone, Burgh, Gilbert and Graham, Mary (2024). Place, empire, environmental education and the community of inquiry. Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 11 (1), 83-103. doi: 10.46707/jps.v11i1.218
Fynes-Clinton, Elizabeth, Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2024). Toward a self-correcting society: Deep reflective thinking as a theory of practice. Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 11 (1), 63-82. doi: 10.46707/jps.v11i1.217
Bleazby, Jennifer, Burgh, Gilbert, Thornton, Simone, Graham, Mary, Reid, Alan and Finefter-Ronsebluh, Ilana (2023). Teaching about climate change in the midst of ecological crisis: responsibilities, challenges, and responsibilities. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 55 (10), 1087-1095. doi: 10.1080/00131857.2023.2211260
Bleazby, Jennifer, Thornton, Simone, Burgh, Gilbert and Graham, Mary (2023). Responding to climate change ‘controversy’ in schools: Philosophy for Children, place-responsive pedagogies & Critical Indigenous Pedagogy. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 55 (10), 1096-1108. doi: 10.1080/00131857.2022.2132933
Thornton, Simone, Graham, Mary and Burgh, Gilbert (2021). Place-based philosophical education: reconstructing ‘place’, reconstructing ethics. Childhood and Philosophy, 17, 1-29. doi: 10.12957/childphilo.2021.54696
Burgh, Gilbert (2021). The narrow-sense and wide-sense community of inquiry: What it means for teachers. Analytic Teaching and Philosophical Praxis, 41 (1), 12-26.
Burgh, Gilbert (2020). Book review: In community of inquiry with Ann Margaret Sharp: Childhood, philosophy and education, by Maughn Rollins Gregory & Megan Jane Laverty (eds.). Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 7 (1), 132-138. doi: 10.46707/jps.v7i.112
Thornton, Simone, Graham, Mary and Burgh, Gilbert (2019). Reflecting on place: environmental education as decolonisation. Australian Journal of Environmental Education, 35 (3), 239-249. doi: 10.1017/aee.2019.31
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2019). Ecosocial citizenship education: facilitating interconnective, deliberative practice and corrective methodology for epistemic accountability. Childhood and Philosophy, 15, 43-61. doi: 10.12957/childphilo.2019.42794
Burgh, Gilbert (2018). The need for philosophy in promoting democracy: a case for philosophy in the curriculum. Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 5 (1), 38-58. doi: 10.21913/JPS.v5i1.1483
Nichols, Kim, Burgh, Gilbert and Kennedy, Callie (2017). Comparing two inquiry professional development interventions in Science on primary students' questioning and other inquiry behaviours. Research in Science Education, 47 (1), 1-24. doi: 10.1007/s11165-015-9487-5
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2016). Philosophy goes to school in Australia: A history 1982-2016. Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 3 (1), 59-83. doi: 10.21913/jps.v3i1.1300
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2016). Lucid education: resisting resistance to inquiry. Oxford Review of Education, 42 (2), 165-177. doi: 10.1080/03054985.2016.1151410
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2016). Inoculation against wonder: finding an antidote in Camus, pragmatism and the community of inquiry. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 48 (9), 884-898. doi: 10.1080/00131857.2015.1079516
Scholl, Rosie, Nichols, Kim and Burgh, Gilbert (2016). Connecting learning to the world beyond the classroom through collaborative philosophical inquiry. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 44 (5), 436-454. doi: 10.1080/1359866X.2015.1095279
Scholl, Rosie, Nichols, Kim and Burgh, Gilbert (2014). Transforming pedagogy through philosophical inquiry. International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning, 9 (3), 253-272.
Burgh, Gilbert (2014). Democratic pedagogy. Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 1 (1), 22-44. doi: 10.21913/jps.v1i1.990
Gillies, Robyn M., Nichols, Kim, Burgh, Gilbert and Haynes, Michelle (2013). Primary students' scientific reasoning and discourse during cooperative inquiry-based science activities. International Journal of Educational Research, 63, 127-140. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2013.01.001
Burgh, Gilbert and Nichols, Kim (2012). The parallels between philosophical inquiry and scientific inquiry: Implications for science education. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 44 (10), 1045-1059. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-5812.2011.00751.x
Gillies, Robyn M., Nichols, Kim, Burgh, Gilbert and Haynes, Michele (2012). The effects of two strategic and meta-cognitive questioning approaches on children's explanatory behaviour, problem-solving, and learning during cooperative, inquiry-based science. International Journal of Educational Research, 53, 93-106. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2012.02.003
Gillies, Robyn M., Nichols, Kim and Burgh, Gilbert (2011). Promoting problem-solving and reasoning during cooperative inquiry science. Teaching Education, 22 (4), 429-445. doi: 10.1080/10476210.2011.610448
Burgh, Gilbert and Yorshansky, Mor (2011). Communities of inquiry: Politics, power and group dynamics. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 43 (5), 436-452. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-5812.2007.00389.x
Burgh, Gilbert (2009). Citizenship as a learning process: Democratic education without foundationalism. Farhang, 22 (69), 117-138.
Burgh, Gilbert (2007). Education and Civic Responsibility. Professional Voice, 4 (3), 33-37.
Burgh, G. (2005). Reason, feminism and philosophical education. Critical & creative t\inking: the Australasian journal of philosophy for children, 12 (1&2), 67-78.
Burgh, G. (2004). "Seeking Justice as a strategy for teaching and learning in SOSE: the Ring of Gyges, the Veil of Ignorance and the Prisoner's Dilemma". The Social Educator, 22 (3), 25-33.
Burgh, G. (2003). The world of dialogue (a review of Trevor Curnow, ed., Thinking Through Dialogue). Analytic Teaching, 23 (2), 65-66.
Burgh, G. (2003). Philosophy in Schools: Education for democracy or democratic education. Critical and Creative Thinking: The Australasian Journal of Philosophy in Schools, 11 (2), 18-30.
Burgh, G. and O'Brien, M. (2002). Philosophy and Education: Integrating Curriculum, Teaching and Learning. Critical & Creative Thinking: The Australasian Journal of Philosophy for Children, 10 (1), 45-58.
Freakley, M. and Burgh, G. (1998). Improving teacher education students' ethical thinking using the community of inquiry approach. Analytic Teaching: The Community of Inquiry Journal, 19 (1), 38-45.
Field, Terri and Burgh, Gilbert (1995). Philosophising with Children. The History Teacher, 31 (1), 45-47.
Field, Terri, Jordan, S. and Burgh, Gilbert (1993). Talking with Girls: Philosophy in the classroom. Queensland Teachers Union Professional Magazine, 11 (2), 19-23.
Conference Papers
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2016). Philosophy for children in Australia: then, now, and where to from here?. 45th Annual Conference of the Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia, Melbourne, Australia, 5-8 December 2015. PESA.
Burgh, Gilbert and Thornton, Simone (2015). Engagement as dialogue: Camus, pragmatism and constructivist pedagogy. Education as Philosophies of Engagement: 44th Annual Conference of the Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia (PESA), Hamilton, New Zealand, 22-25 November 2014. Claremont, WA, Australia: Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia.
Park, Ji Yong and Burgh, Gilbert (2013). Culturally inclusive design in a multicultural society: dualism, monism, and holism. KODDCO 2013 International Design Conference, New York, NY, USA, 2 August, 2013. Gyeonggi-do, Korea: 한국디지털디자인협의회 KODDCO.
Burgh, G. (2009). Professional development and training: A case of initiative, inventiveness and re-adaptability. XXII World Congress of Philosophy, Seoul, Korea, 30 July - 5 August, 2008. Lewiston, United States: The Edwin Mellen Press.
Scholl, R., Nichols, K. and Burgh, G. (2009). Philosophy for children: Towards pedagogical transformation. Annual Conference of the Australian Teacher Education Association (ATEA), Albury, NSW, Australia, 28 June - 1 July 2009. Bathurst, NSW, Australia: Australian Teacher Education Association.
Burgh, Gilbert (2009). Reconstruction in philosophy education: The community of inquiry as a basis for knowledge and learning. The Ownership and Dissemination of Knowledge, Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia Conference, The Queensland University of Technology, 4-7 December 2008. Brisbane, Australia: Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia.
O'Brien, M., Byers, H. K., Huber, T. L., Jacobsen, I., Bulmer, M., Burgh, G., Crosthwaite, C. A., Harrison, J. and Hughes, C. P. (2005). Actualising research-led teaching and learning within university curriculum. Effective Teaching and Learning Conference, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, 3-4 November, 2005.
Burgh, G. and Davey, S. L. (2004). Learning for democracy: Caring, dialogue and deliberative communities. Education and Social Action Conference, Sydney, Australia, 6-8 December 2004. Sydney, Australia: University of Technology, Sydney.
Burgh, G. (2003). Human Resource Development in the Asia-Pacific Region: Implications for education (English/trans. Vietnamese). Res. on Culture, Man & Human Res. at the Beginning of 21st Cen, Hilton Hotel, Hanoi, Vietnam, 27-28 November 2003. Hanoi, Vietnam: Inst, of Human Studies, Nat. Ctr for Soc. Sci & Humanities.
O'Brien, M. and Burgh, G. (2001). Revisioning SOSE: Examining the Role of Philosophy in Contemporary Social Education [OBRO1469]. AARE Annual Conference, University of Western Australia, Freemantle, WA, December, 2001. Australia: Australian Association for Research in Education.
Thesis
Burgh, Gilbert (1998). Is demarchy possible? : a case for ruling and being ruled in turn. PhD Thesis, Department of Philosophy, The University of Queensland. doi: 10.14264/uql.2017.152
Newspaper Articles
Graham, Mary, Thornton, Simone and Burgh, Gilbert (2025, 03 27). What about place? Education, identity and ecological justice BERA Bites (Issue 12) 8-9.
Graham, Mary, Thornton, Simone and Burgh, Gilbert (2022, 09 21). What about place? Education, identity and ecological justice BERA Blog