The Power of the Socratic Classroom

Education & Reference

synopsis

Synopsis

Do You Have 21st-Century Skills to Help Your Students Succeed? Do Your Students Have 21st-Century Skills to Think for Themselves? The Power of the Socratic Classroom has the answers you are looking for—answers that will supply the strategies to show students how to succeed into the future. A future that has unknown products, unidentified jobs, and unanticipated challenges. In Socratic Seminar, teachers shift to the role of facilitator, where they help their students develop the collaborative interpersonal skills, the critical and creative thinking skills, and the speaking and listening skills to face the upcoming challenges of the 21st century.

bio

Author Biography

Charles Fischer has taught in public and private schools in a variety of settings, from rural Maine to inner city Atlanta. In the past 20 years, he has worked with a wide range of students from 4th grade to AP English and has been nominated for Teacher of the Year four times. He has his Master’s degree in Teaching & Learning from the University of Southern Maine, and received his B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing from Binghamton University. His latest book, The Power of the Socratic Classroom, has won four awards, including the NIEA Best Education Book. His first novel, Beyond Infinity, won a 2014 Independent Publisher Book Award bronze medal (YA fiction). His areas of expertise are Socratic Seminar, Active Listening, Inquiry, Teaching & Learning, and Critical & Creative Thinking. He is currently working on a book of poetry, a short story collection, and several novels.

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Author Insight

Dialogue Debrief

"We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience." John Dewey. I remember reading that quote years ago and... reflecting on it. I struggled with the notion for a few years before really seeing the value of his words. Our experiences are often too fast to make sense of at the time and we find ourselves grasping the deeper meanings only later when we have a chance to step away from them. Dialogue is no different. Many conversations are fast moving and require participants to pivot and make choices in the heat of the moment. We might say words we don't mean or disagree with something that is incomplete or misinterpreted. Often we need to gather our thoughts before synthesizing understanding. This is why every seminar should have at least a small debrief at the end, and ideally a more thorough reflection process.

Book Excerpt

The Power of the Socratic Classroom

Many facilitators stop with 10-15 minutes remaining in class in order to reflect on how the seminar went, usually measured against a rubric or some other set of goals. This usually involves going around the circle and having students take turns sharing what worked and what didn’t work, or “popcorn style,” where students share out as they have something to contribute. Students could also be selected randomly (for example, using dice or popsicle sticks), especially when there is limited time remaining in class.

A typical debrief can be done orally or in writing with questions such as: “What did we do well today?” and “What do we need to improve on next time?” This often involves going around the circle and asking each participant for a pro or con. Students can be asked to journal about individual or group goals with reflective questions, such as:

• How was your participation?

• How well did we stay focused?

• Did we improve on not interrupting each other?

• Did you achieve your goal?

• Were you able to share everything you wanted to say?

• What should we focus on for next seminar?

• Should we continue this text next class, or are we done with it?

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Charles Ames Fischer

The Power of the Socratic Classroom

Synopsis

Author Biography

Author Insight

Dialogue Debrief

Book Excerpt

The Power of the Socratic Classroom

Comment on this Bubble