I am a little perplexed that Marj Adams, as a teacher of philosophy, suggested in her column on the review of teacher education (December 4) that “the theory of pedagogy is far removed from the practice of it”.

To me, this seems to be a philosophical turkey voting for Christmas, given that one of the main purposes of philosophy is to explore the assumed interface between metaphysical and ethical world views and human behaviour.

To my knowledge, it is years since Marj has had a student teacher in her department. Perhaps a future student placement would add a little gravitas to her observations about teacher training.

Criticality is a key part of what I instil in student teachers, but I am concerned that the reactionary, selective and oppositional tone of Marj’s columns may give critical thinking a bad name.

Graeme Nixon, lecturer, religious, moral and philosophical studies, University of Aberdeen.