The author's first impression of the philosophy for children program in Hawai'i (p4c) was a strong, intuitive feeling that this approach to education can be a vehicle to change the world. This feeling has not faded at all in the course of her five-year commitment to p4c. Yet, as the author has exchanged her ideas about p4c with teachers and…

The author has been working at the same elementary school in Hawai'i for nearly twenty years. Nearly ten years ago, he argued in his doctoral dissertation that philosophy for children and its pedagogy of the community of inquiry is good for kids. His thesis is this: In today's American educational climate, with its laser-sharp focus on…

NCLB has created a climate where teachers feel increasingly pressured to ensure their students pass the test, with the result that they allocate less time for purposeful and authentic learning experiences (Kohn, 2004). Thus, rote memorization is favored over inquiry. Teachers must aim to create a classroom environment that recognizes and values…

Over the past several decades film and video have been steadily infiltrating the philosophy curriculum at colleges and universities. Traditionally, teachers of philosophy have not made much use of "audiovisual aids" in the classroom beyond the chalk board or overhead projector, with only the more adventurous playing audiotapes, for example, or…

In this article, the author explores local culture and local cultural practices in an attempt to understand the forces and influences that have affected the development of a local identity as well as the persistence of Pidgin (Hawai'i Creole) as its language. The author begins with an introductory discussion of themes that emerge in two short…

In this essay, the author discusses her experiences in creating her film about Hawai'i Creole. She shares how she chronicles the essence of local life in the film through Pidgin. She also discusses how she came to understand the power of Pidgin, its centrality in people's lives, and its place in defining the uniqueness of Hawai'i. As the author…

In this essay, the author examines the attitudes that people in Hawai'i have about Hawai'i Creole. The author first describes the background of the language and explores educators' views from the 1920s to 1940s about Hawai'i Creole (HC), which was first viewed as the the "Pidgin problem" in Hawai'i. The frustrations expressed by educators might…

This article presents an adaptation of a position paper written by Da Pidgin Coup, a group of concerned faculty and students in the Department of Second Language Studies (SLS). In fall 1999, the group became concerned about a statement made by the chairman of the Board of Education implicating Pidgin in the poor results of the students of Hawai'i…

For a number of years, Kent Sakoda has been teaching at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa in the Department of Second Language Studies. His course, "Pidgin and Creole English in Hawai'i," is popular among students on campus. He has also taught at Hawai'i Pacific University. Because of his expertise on the grammar of Pidgin (Hawai'i Creole),…

Every multicultural society has a language of power--the language spoken by members of the dominant group or groups--as well as languages that lack power because they are spoken by members of the subordinate group or groups. The ascension of one language over another has long been a source of controversy in Hawai'i, as it has in many parts of the…

Following the Japanese attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the nation was thrown into a state of fear and hysteria. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order No. 9066 which resulted in more than 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry being either interned in relocation centers, drafted, or…

This article presents an interview with Albert Nawahi Like, Hawai'i Department of Education teacher from 1927 to 1965. Albert Nawahi Like was born 1900 in Honolulu's Chinatown. When Like was eight years old, his family moved to Kalihi. After the death in 1912 of his father, Edward Like, who was editor of the Hawaiian-language newspaper "Ke Aloha…

This article presents an interview with Amy Lum Fern, Hawai'i Department of Education teacher from 1933 to 1972. Amy Lum Fern was born in Honolulu in 1909. She received her early education at Central Grammar School and later attended McKinley High School. After graduating from McKinley in 1928, she entered the University of Hawai'i, where she…

Laurence J. Capellas, teacher, principal, and administrator in the Hawai'i Department of Education from 1935 to 1977. Laurence J. Capellas was born in 1913 in Hakalau to two Hawai'i island school-teachers. After attending Hakalau School, St. Mary's School in Hilo, and St. Louis College in Honolulu, he went on to the University of Hawai'i Teachers…

This article presents an interview with Marion Frances Kaleleonalani McGregor Lee Loy who served as a teacher in the Hawai'i Department of Education from 1935 to 1974. Marion McGregor Lee Loy was born in 1911 in Honolulu. She attended Central Grammar and Lincoln Grammar schools before entering Kamehameha School for Girls in the ninth grade. Lee…