'WHO is more important – a doctor or a soldier?'

A tough enough question for the wisest philosophers, this was a problem put to schoolchildren to get them challenging their preconceptions.

Pupils were also shown photographs of people from various different ethnic backgrounds and asked to guess what those people were known for.

The challenges were all part of an event hosted by Fitzwaryn special school in Wantage on November 14 for Anti-Bullying Week 2017.

A total of 28 pupils from seven schools in the Wantage-area's Springline partnership joined the session, which aimed to encourage dialogue through the use of philosophy.

Alexandra Miller, the Fitzwaryn teacher who led the morning, said: "We have been using a philosophical approach to communication and discussion at Fitzwaryn since 2015 and have been delighted with the positive effect it has had on the pupils' social interaction and debating skills.

"It was a real pleasure to invite pupils from local primary schools to join in with a really fun and interesting workshop, especially one that links so closely with the ethos of the national anti-bullying campaign."

The focus of this year's national Anti-Bullying Week was 'All Different, All Equal'.

With that in mind, the pupils were challenged to ask each other philosophical questions ranging from the more light-hearted 'What superpower would you like and why?' to the more serious 'Who is more important, a doctor or a soldier?' which led to further group discussions and debate.

The final activity of the morning involved pupils being paired with someone from a different school and challenged to discover one way they were alike and one way they were different.

Pupils attended from Grove C of E Primary School, Uffington C of E Primary School, Stanford-in-the-Vale C of E Primary School, Stockham Primary School, Ridgeway C of E Primary School, St. Amands Catholic Primary School and Fitzwaryn Special School.