Where is the Socratic Seminar when we need it?
If the adults on FaceBook are models for our children,
it is not surprising educators have difficulty teaching students to honor
multiple perspectives and keep the peace, so to speak.
Let me explain.
On the same day in June of this year, while glancing through the Home
pages on FaceBook, I viewed the two comments below:
- "If you are not voting for Hilary Clinton, you can unfriend me."
- "If you support Hillary Clinton, please unfriend me."
Wow! What is a person to do? I've seen similar
comments such as, "If you don't agree, you can unfriend me" and “If
you don’t like ___, please unfriend me!” I'm just wondering when we
reached the point that we cannot respectfully disagree with one another and
still remain friends?
So back to my question: Where is the Socratic Seminar
when we need it, and why do we need it?
Socratic comes from the name Socrates. Socrates (ca.
470-399 B.C.) was a Greek philosopher who developed a respected theory of knowledge.
The seminar is a collaborative, intellectual
dialogue, facilitated with open-ended questions about text, values and ideas.
The
seminar is best regarded for developing higher order thinking. However, because it is a protocol for a
respectful conversation, the seminar is valuable for teaching essential life skills, as well.
The
following are typical seminar agreements for participants:
- Think deeply about the ideas and values expressed in the
conversation, examining the various perspectives with an open mind.
- Address others respectfully by using others’ names.
- Agree
constructively by adding
and making connections to the comments of others. Respectfully disagree constructively by saying phrases such as, “I disagree
with ______ because ____________.”
- Listen by looking at the speaker, perhaps taking notes, and not talking while another is
talking. (No sidebars. No interruptions.)
- Refer to ideas and text by citing specific
information and quoting actual passages and accurate information to
support a point of view. (In other
words, your emotions are not evidence of fact!)
- Share the talk time.
In our consulting, Larry and I promote and coach
the Socratic Seminar, because we can think of no better instructional strategy
for our students as they develop their thinking, problem-solving and social
skills.
The above focuses on the participant’s role. A Socratic Seminar requires time and
strategic planning on the part of the teacher.
In my next post I’ll focus on the facilitator/teacher role.
For now, wouldn’t it be
nice if the seminar guidelines could somehow be transferred to FaceBook?
