Socratic Seminars

"The unexamined life is not worth living."

-Socrates
Socratic Seminars
Socratic Seminar Student Guidelines

Background
The Socratic method of teaching is based on Socrates' theory that it is more important to
enable students to think for themselves than to merely fill their heads with "right" answers.
Therefore, he regularly engaged his pupils in dialogues by responding to their questions with
questions, instead of answers. This process encourages divergent thinking rather than
convergent.
Students are given opportunities to "examine" a common piece of text, whether it is in the
form of a novel, poem, art print, or piece of music. After "reading" the common text "like a
love letter", open-ended questions are posed.
Open-ended questions allow students to think critically, analyze multiple meanings in text,
and express ideas with clarity and confidence. After all, a certain degree of emotional safety
is felt by participants when they understand that this format is based on dialogue and not
discussion/debate.
Dialogue is exploratory and involves the suspension of biases and prejudices.
Discussion/debate is a transfer of information designed to win an argument and bring
closure. Americans are great at discussion/debate. We do not dialogue well. However, once
teachers and students learn to dialogue, they find that the ability to ask meaningful
questions that stimulate thoughtful interchanges of ideas is more important than "the
answer."
Participants in a Socratic Seminar respond to one another with respect by carefully listening
instead of interrupting. Students are encouraged to "paraphrase" essential elements of
another's ideas before responding, either in support of or in disagreement. Members of the
dialogue look each other in the "eyes" and use each other names. This simple act of
socialization reinforces appropriate behaviors and promotes team building.

What are Socratic Seminars?

Socratic Seminars are a highly motivating form of intellectual and scholarly

discourse conducted in K-12 classrooms. They usually range from 30-50
minutes--longer if time allows--once a week.
Socratic Seminars grew out of the early work of Mortimer Adler and the
Great Books program. The National Paideia Center continues today to
promote socratic discussions in the form of Paideia seminars. The
Touchstones Discussion Project has similar roots and is a leader in the
production of outstanding texts for Socratic Seminars. For a clear description
of the significant similarities and only minor differences of these techniques,
please see Paideia, Socratic Seminars, and Touchstones Discussion published
by the Touchstones Discussion Project.
An effective Socratic Seminar creates dialogue as opposed to
debate. Dialogue creates "better conversation." As William Issacs states
in Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together,dialogue is a conversation
in which people (students) think together in relationship. Thinking together
implies that you no longer take your own position as final. You relax your
grip on certainty and listen to the possibilities that result simply from being
in a relationship with others---possibilities that might not otherwise have
occurred."
The practice of Socratic Seminars teaches students to recognize the
differences between dialogue and debate and to strive to increase the
qualities of dialogue and reduce the qualities of debate in each Socratic
Seminar. Some of the most significant differences between dialogue and
debate are presented below.
DIALOGUE AND DEBATE

Dialogue is collaborative: multiple sides work toward shared understanding.

Debate is oppositional: two opposing sides try to prove each other wrong.

In dialogue, one listens to understand, to make meaning, and to find

common ground.
In debate, one listens to find flaws, to spot differences, and to counter
arguments.

Dialogue enlarges and possibly changes a participant's point of view.

Debate affirms a participant's point of view.

Dialogue reveals assumptions for examination and reevaluation.

Debate defends assumptions as truth.

Dialogue creates an open-minded attitude: an openness to being wrong and

an openness to change.
Debate creates a close-minded attitude, a determination to be right.

In dialogue, one submits one's best thinking, expecting that other people's
reflections will help improve it rather than threaten it.
In debate, one submits one's best thinking and defends it against challenge
to show that it is right.

Dialogue calls for temporarily suspending one's beliefs.

Debate calls for investing wholeheartedly in one's beliefs.

In dialogue, one searches for strengths in all positions.

In debate, one searches for weaknesses in the other position.

Dialogue respects all the other participants and seeks not to alienate or
offend.
Debate rebuts contrary positions and may belittle or deprecate other
participants.

Dialogue assumes that many people have pieces of answers and that
cooperation can lead to a greater understanding.
Debate assumes a single right answer that somebody already has.

Dialogue remains open-ended.

Debate demands a conclusion.

By creating dialogue, Socratic Seminars foster active learning, critical

thinking, and close reading skills as participants explore and evaluate the
ideas, issues, and values in a particular text. An effective seminar consists of
four interdependent elements: (1) the text being considered, (2) the
questions raised, (3) the seminar leader, and (4) the participants.

The Text - A seminar text can be drawn from readings in literature, history,
science, math, health, and philosophy or from works of art or music.
Touchstones Discussion Project are the leaders in the publication of
outstanding text selections. Contact Oscar Graybill directly for purchasing
options.

The Question - An opening question has no right answer; instead it reflects

a genuine curiosity on the part of the leader. An effective opening question
leads participants back to the text as they speculate, evaluate, define, and
clarify the issues involved. Responses to the opening question generate new
questions from the leader and participants, leading to new responses. In this

way, the line of inquiry evolves on the spot rather than being predetermined
by the leader.

The Leader - In a Socratic Seminar, the leader plays a dual role as leader
and participant. The seminar leader consciously demonstrates habits of mind
that lead to a thoughtful exploration of the ideas in the text. As a seminar
participant, the leader actively engages in the group's exploration of the text.

The Participants - In a Socratic Seminar, participants share with the leader

the responsibility for the quality of the seminar. Effective seminars occur
when participants study the text closely in advance, listen actively, share
their ideas and questions in response to the ideas and questions of others,
and search for evidence in the text to support their ideas.

Answer:

Socratic Seminar is a structured classroom practice that promotes critical and creative
thinking, intellectual curiosity, collaboration, and scholarly habits of mind. The main goal of
Socratic Seminar is to build deep conceptual understandings of texts and ideas, where the
word "text" is used loosely to refer to a piece of writing, visual art, music, movement, etc. In
seminar, the teacher shifts his or her role to that of facilitator or questioner, so that the
students can move from passive reception of knowledge to actively constructing meaning and
understanding. They will build on others' ideas, cite the text, ask questions and voice their
own opinions. With practice, the students become self-sufficient and together they can tackle
even the most challenging texts.

Participants in Socratic Seminar are meant to engage in dialogue, which is different than both
debate or discussion. Debates and discussions are both fine practices and they have their own
goals and purposes. Debates are typically characterized by two sides in oppositional or
competitive roles, where each team attempts to prove their entrenched view. Dialogue is
characterized by a cooperative atmosphere, where all of the participants attempt to work
together to form greater shared understandings. Classroom discussions often look similar, but
they are typically meant to broaden a topic, whereas Socratic Seminars are meant to deepen.

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