The Socratic Seminar

1
The Socratic Seminar

• Dialogue and Debate

2
QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, ETC.The Socratic
Seminar begins with a teacher's question, but is
grounded in the idea that students learn through
questioning themselves and coming up with their
own ideas.
3
Why use Socratic Seminars?

• They enhance critical thinking skills
• analysis of text
• synthesis of ideas
• evaluation of concepts
• inferential reasoning
• speaking and listening

4
Why use Socratic Seminars?

• They address writing skills
• Students can write about the ideas presented
• Students can evaluate the quality of the seminar
  itself (participation, quality of comments,
  insights, new ideas).

5
Socratic Seminar Is More Than a Classroom
Discussion

• It is objective-driven. Teachers should go into a
  Socratic Seminar with a clear understanding of
  what the student outcomes are.
• It is content-driven. Student discussion should
  revolve around a book, painting, poem, film clip,
  scientific hypothesis, mathematical problem, etc.

6
What Do You Need for a Socratic Seminar?

• Time it should not be a 10 minutes and times
  up activity
• Space a room in which the participants in the
  discussion sit in a circle instead of in rows
• Guidance a teacher who is an observer/guider,
  not the principal performer standing in front of
  the group

7
The Teacher First Among Equals

• The Teachers Job Is
• Moderating
• Guiding
• Correcting
• Leading
• Arguing, like one more student!
• All must have the sense that they are
  participating as equals, as is the case in a
  genuine conversation.

8
But what about math?

• http//youtu.be/lGNqRmirT7Q

9
PLANNING

• FIRST Choose a text for INTEREST and COMPLEXITY
• SECOND Design questions that stimulate thought
  and provide a good opening to the conversation
• THIRD Be sure to teach background information
  necessary for a rich discussion. (This helps
  eliminate interruptions.)
• FOURTH Prepare the room. Desks should be
  arranged to provide an inner and outer circle
  (unless it is a small class).

10
FIFTH Explain the Socratic Seminar and Give
Students the Rules

• It is their conversation. They can move in any
  direction they would like, but they must frame
  their comments/ideas in terms of the
  text/content.
• It is their conversation. They should direct
  comments and questions to one another the
  teacher is merely an observer.
• It is a conversation. Encourage the students to
  think before they talk, try to comment or add on
  to what others have said, and listen respectfully
  to others.

11
AND YOURE OFF TO THE RACES!

• Toss out the question - but, be prepared
• Students have learned to be passive, and this
  activity can be risky for some students, so it
  may take time for some groups to catch on.
• The conversation is likely to have stops and
  starts, but it is crucial that the teacher not
  step in and try to rescue the conversation.
• If the conversation goes dead, wait. Students
  will find the silence unbearable before the
  teacher does. Your silence also indicates your
  level of commitment to the activity.

12
TEACHER BEHAVIOR

• Defer questions back to the students.
• Answer factual questions only if there is no way
  around it.
• Keep students from having side conversations.
• Ask students to cite support from the text if the
  conversation begins to wander.
• Invite specific students to participate.
• Keep conversations from becoming debate or
  debasement of others.
• Ask students to question their assumptions.

13
OTHER TECHNIQUES

• Manipulate the amount of participation.
• Those who have already participated must wait 5
  minutes before speaking again.
• Ask a disengaged scholar what theyre thinking.
• Use nonverbals to encourage participation/ gauge
  focus.
• Use the outer circle to your advantage.
• Have them summarize or comment on what they have
  heard.
• Ask them to re-introduce the points they thought
  were especially good or prematurely dropped.
• Have them monitor the inner circle for
  conversation as well as for ideas.

14
DEBRIEF AND ASSESS

• Include an exit ticket that assesses student
  mastery of the objective as well as how
  successful the seminar was.
• How does the text/problem/content relate to the
  unit we just completed?
• What is something new you learned through the
  analysis/discussion?
• What was an insightful comment one of your
  classmates made?
• How has your thinking changed about this topic?
• What went well during the seminar?
• What could we do better for the next seminar?

15
Video Clip

• Watch the following clip and think about the
  level of engagement of scholars in this Socratic
  Seminar
• http//youtu.be/fp8eE_csQC0
• What was strong about this seminar?
• How could it be improved next time?
• Thanks, Mr. Lodato!

16
Demonstration

• 1. Read the article and mark it up.
• 2. Following the guidelines for student
  participation, the inner circle will discuss the
  text first and the outer circle will listen
  attentively and take notes.
• 3. When time is called, the inner and outer
  circle will switch spots and responsibilities.
• 4. Be prepared to give feedback and to share your
  experiences with the whole group.

17
Debrief and Assess

• What went well in the demonstration seminar?
• What could be improved for the next seminar?
• How do you see incorporating this into your
  classroom?
• Do you have any questions/concerns about
  implementation?