Socratic Seminars in the Elementary Classroom:

An Action Research Study

Katherine Hallford

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

November 12, 2018

Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 1

Abstract

This research study focused on the impact of the Socratic seminar teaching method in

regard to written responses in an elementary English Language Arts classroom. Two classes of

students, alike in demographics, participated in this study. The results found that Socratic

seminars increased student’s written responses when able to discuss, rationalize, and deepen their

thinking with groups of their peers. On average, students showed growth in their written

responses from the beginning of the study to the end. This paper also discusses the importance of

additional written research on the Socratic seminar.

Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 2

Why study the Socratic Seminar?

In my short time as an educator, I have seen how effective discourse can be when used

effectively in a classroom setting, especially with students that are acquiring English as a second

language. I have been interested in using Socratic seminar in the classroom for the last two years,

first after seeing it in action during a New Teacher Symposium through Clark County School

District, and second after finding novel studies based around the Socratic seminar. Afterwards, I

did research to see how effective it could be in the elementary classroom and found that the

research was severely lacking. Most research led me to middle and high school classrooms, but I

wanted to take a risk and implement it in my classroom to see how my students responded and

what the impact of it may be.

The Question

How does the inclusion of Socratic seminars in the ELA classroom impact written

responses in novel studies?

Design

The design of this study was quasi-experimental and qualitative in nature. I utilized my

two ELA classes and relied on their written responses to determine the outcome of the study.

When reading through written responses, I used a 4-point rubric to determine student mastery of

the topic.

Participants

The participants of this study are two fifth-grade classes at a southern Nevada elementary school.

This school is Title One, Tier One, with 100% of students qualifying for free and reduced lunch.

Class one is made up of twenty seven students. 14 of these students are male, and 13 students are
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 3

female. Class two is also comprised of 27 students, with 16 male students and 11 female

students.

Methodology

Part One: Where did the participants come from?

The students were selected from an elementary school in Southern Nevada. The classes

were chosen as I am their teacher of record for English Language Arts instruction. Each

classroom has the same number of students, sees the same two teachers, and receives equal

amounts of instructional time.

Part Two: What was done to the participants?

Each class participated in the same instructional unit, which was a novel study of Harry

Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling. There was no pre-test data gathered, as each

class was new to this format and it was determined that the most effective determination of

growth would be to see how students performed throughout the study.

Part Three: Data Collection and Analysis

Data was collected through student notebooks and Google Classroom submissions.

Students wrote two responses per day; a guiding question that was tasked at a DOK level one,

and an interpretive question tasked at a DOK level three. The students’ responses were collected

at three points during the course of the study: chapters 1-5, 6-10, and 11-17. When grading each

session, I utilized a rubric that looked at the student’s reading comprehension, writing

proficiency, and language. Each section was based on a scale of 4, with one being limited and 4

being exemplar. Additionally, I took anecdotal notes of my observations of the students’

performance during these seminars. These notes allowed me to reflect daily on the aspects of

each lesson that worked and didn’t work, and I made adjustments as needed. These adjustments
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 4

were as small as changing a question to allow for more depth of discussion, to modifying how

the Socratic seminar was run, with small group discussions as opposed to whole group

discussions. Students also transitioned from paper and pencil response note books to Google

Classroom response assignments during this time period.

The research found that students improved in both their reading and writing

comprehension over the course of the novel study. In looking at the first collection of responses,

both classes scored significantly lower than anticipated. However, my notes also show that in

this initial period, students struggled significantly with the structure of Socratic seminars. They

were hesitant to speak and share thinking with their peers, especially in a whole class format.

After noticing the difficulties students were having, I transitioned into small group discussions

for the majority of the seminars, with a whole class debrief at the end. With this adjustment,

students became more comfortable sharing their thoughts and remained engaged during the

entire session. The scores improved throughout the next two sessions, and it is my belief that the

discourse students participated in significantly aided in their comprehension and skills. In the

following charts, I have shown student growth through the seminars, with each class (Class One

and Class Two) having distinct growth differences.

Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 5

Reading Response Grades- Class One

30

25

20

15

10

0
Chapters 1-5 Chapters 6-10 Chapters 11-17

One Two Three Four

Reading Response Grades- Class Two

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Chapters 1-5 Chapters 6-10 Chapters 11-17

One Two Three Four

What I Learned

To begin with, I found that current, modern research on the Socratic seminar method of

instruction is fairly lacking in content and depth. I had a difficult time finding research that

supported Socratic seminar in the Elementary classroom. However, the research I did find was

rich and interesting, and allowed me to support and deepen my practice as an educator. This

research varied from books on implementing Socratic methods in the way that is best suited for

students, to utilizing the Socratic seminar in discipline specific and special education classrooms.

It is my hope that as Socratic seminars become a more popular pedagogical strategy, more
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 6

research will be done to enable educators to make evidence-based decisions regarding the

happenings in their personal classrooms.

With the results of my data, I believe in the effectiveness of the Socratic seminar. My

students, when given the reigns of a discussion, are more empowered and inspired to maintain

engagement and focus in the text. Utilizing a method that allows for this thinking, and strays

away from traditional novel studies that ask students to read and respond to lower level questions

allows students to become more confident in their own abilities to analyze and understand texts.

Additionally, it builds reading skills that will be applicable to any reading they do, not just a

specific assigned text. While I saw evidence of this in my own research, I also found that

researchers studying the same topic found an increase in student achievement and critical

thinking while implementing the Socratic seminar method.

Students as Learners First

One of the most important things to remember when implementing Socratic seminars is

the need for student engagement and self-advocacy, while still guiding the student as a learner in

the classroom. As Holden and Schmidt (2002) have stated, “They are not only learning about the

literature itself but are also learning about how literature is discussed” (p. 15) I appreciate what

Holden and Schmidt have done with Inquiry and the Literary Text because it has made the more

daunting work of Socratic seminars much easier to digest and use in the classroom, whether that

classroom be elementary or secondary. Holden and Schmidt (2002) acknowledge that in these

instances, while we would much enjoy a fully student-centered classroom, much of the discourse

and questioning will be at first led by the teacher far more often than students and their peers (p.

16). This is a key aspect of student learning to remember, especially for myself, as I often forget

that students are still in the process of mastering each skill each day. While we work towards
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 7

mastery, very rarely will it be seen instantaneously, and in the instance of literary analysis,

impossible to see during the course of one school year. As Alexis Wiggins states in Spinning the

Web, “…I liken Spider Web Discussions [Socratic seminars] to writing; it’s not a one off activity

but a long term, practiced skill.” (p. 81)

In that line of thinking, utilizing Socratic seminars requires us to ensure students are

understanding various reading strategies and skills before they are being introduced in the

classroom. This is imperative in any classroom, as content area literacy strategies are utilized

across disciplines and ensure student success in reading in any discipline. Barbara Fink

Chorzempa and Laurie Lapidus stress this in their article To Find Yourself, Think for Yourself

(2009), an article regarding utilizing Socratic seminars in the inclusive classroom. The article

focuses on the third and fifth grade classrooms of Lapidus, which aligns well with my

elementary classroom as well. They state that “…students need to know the difference between

‘in the book’ and ‘in your head’ questions…” (Fink Chorzempa & Lapidus 2009 p. 56). This was

something I found necessary to the success of my students as well, if the discussions were to be

productive and meaningful. I coached in the moment to encourage these lines of questioning that

promoted dialogue and discourage questions that were “right there” questions. These questioning

skills are still supported later in the high school classroom. Griswold, Shaw, and Munn (2017)

describe the importance of creating questions to foster student thinking and discussion, with

three question types: literal questions, interpretive questions, and evaluative questions. (p. 494)

Holden and Schmidt aren’t the only ones with the belief that student learning in the

classroom isn’t just about discipline specific learning. In her article That’s Fierce! Collaboration

in the English Classroom (2010), Rebecca Kipp-Newbold addresses this, saying: “I learned my

job was not simply to teach the fundamental concepts of literature and writing, but also to teach
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 8

students the fundamentals of conversation and collaboration” (p. 74). As we know, speaking,

listening, and collaboration are highly stressed skills in the modern classroom, so allowing

students to learn and strengthen these skills in authentic environments is crucial to their success.

Collaboration in Socratic Seminars

One of the strongest aspects of utilizing Socratic seminars has to be the effect it has on

student collaboration. While students are required to do their own thinking, they come together

in new ways as they are tasked with having productive conversations that require them to both

agree and disagree with their peers in a respectful manner. Kipp-Newbold (2010) stressed the

importance of peer collaboration by stating “…the exploration of questions helped the students

shape community understanding and helped them learn how to question and respond without

dominating the conversation. It created a tangible way for students to see inquiry as a

collaborative effort – one that does not have to be teacher centered” (p. 77) This is a struggle I

and many other teachers in my grade level face on a daily basis – finding ways to enhance

student learning in a way that takes us out of the role of main speaker. By talking less and

allowing students to dominate the conversation, we provide more opportunities for authentic

engagement. (Loan 2003)

Critical Thinking in Socratic Seminars

Beth Walsh-Moorman mentions a thought she’s had in The Socratic Seminar in the Age

of the Common Core (2016): “To be sure, there have been truly invigorating moments when I

have been left in speechless awe of my students because of the insight they have shared in my

seminar” (p. 73) This is also a thought I had many times throughout the seminar study. My

students, left to think and reason for themselves away from the constraints of worksheets,

blossomed. One of my most enjoyable experiences throughout was monitoring the classroom,
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 9

listening in on the thoughts and rationales of my students. Often, they made predictions about the

story that were right on or had drawn conclusions that I had missed on my first read at their age.

Students notice the deeper connections and analytical thinking happening in the classroom as

well. In Walsh-Moorman’s study on online versus traditional seminars (2016), her student, Maya

is quoted as saying that online seminars “did not challenge her to consider the viewpoints of

others” (p. 75). This is important to note, as the goal of many seminars is to increase students’

thinking and questioning skills.

Future Steps and Conclusion

This was the first novel study I’ve done where I felt the majority of students were

consistently engaged and focused on what we were learning. While a part of that was due to the

novel, the choice and student-led discussions helped my students feel empowered to lead and

speak. I am planning on continuing Socratic seminars in the future and am very interested in

implementing it with shorter texts and articles that cause students to think even more critically. I

am interested and have been working up the courage to have a more social and racial justice

focused classroom, and having these lessons be student driven through Socratic seminars would

help develop independent thoughts without adult influence, which is always a major concern

when discussing more controversial topics.

In the future, there are some changes that I would be interested to make if I were to do

similar research studies. In hindsight, I would have made one class the control, completing a

novel study in a more traditional way, and the other would have participated in the Socratic

seminars. Making these changes would have increased the credibility and validity of the study

itself. I also found that the behavior and attitudes of my classes impacted the study as well. In

Class One, my students on average perform higher on standardized tests, are less likely to need
Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 10

intervention services, and have a lower number of behavior issues to report. In Class Two, the

students on average scored lower on standardized tests, have a higher likelihood of needing

intervention services, and have higher instances of behavior issues. In analyzing the data, I found

that while both classes made growth, Class Two had lower instances of growth, with many

students remaining in the 1-2 area of the rubric. It is my belief that there are two reasons for this.

First, on average students in this class tend to be striving readers over proficient readers. Second,

behavioral challenges with certain students effected the classes ability to have rich, uninterrupted

learning sessions on a majority of days. If these problems were able to be addressed and progress

was made to remedy the situation, I believe the students in Class Two would have had a better

chance at being more successful in the novel study.

With this opportunity for learning and growth as an educator, I have seen many ways the

Socratic seminar can be adapted and used in a variety of classrooms, ranging in disciplines from

English to Science, with an included focus on the inclusive classroom. Each article I read and

studied showed a new way to utilize this strategy, with opportunities to share it with colleagues

in a way that could tailor it to their classrooms or subjects of interest. Not only did performing

this research study strengthen my abilities as an educator, but I believe strengthened my skills as

a contributor to the school environment.

Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 11

References

Chorzempa, B., & Lapidus, L. (2009). "To find yourself, think for yourself": Using socratic

discussions in inclusive classrooms. Teaching Exceptional Children, 41(3), 54-59.

Griswold, J., Shaw, L., & Munn, M. (2017). Socratic seminar with data: A strategy to support

student discourse and understanding.(report). The American Biology Teacher, 79(6), 492.

doi:10.1525/abt.2017.79.6.492

Holden, J., & Schmit, J. S. (2002). Inquiry and the literary text: Constructing discussions in the

English classroom. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.

Socratic Seminar in the Elementary Classroom 12

Kipp-Newbold, R. (2010). That's fierce! collaboration in the english classroom. English

Journal, 99(5), 74-78.

Loan, B. (2003). A strong case for more talk in a montessori classroom. Montessori Life, 15(3),

40-42. Retrieved

from http://ezproxy.library.unlv.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dir

ect=true&db=eft&AN=507842366&site=ehost-live

Walsh-Moorman, B. (2016). The socratic seminar in the age of the common core: A search for

text- dependent discourse. English Journal, 105(6), 72-77.

Wiggins, A. (2014). Spinning the web. Educational Leadership, 72(3), 78-81. Retrieved

from http://ezproxy.library.unlv.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dir

ect=true&db=aph&AN=99289055&site=ehost-live