Socratic Circles

Socratic Circles
Author: Matt Copeland
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2023-10-10
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1003844162

The benefits and importance of Socratic seminars are widely recognized, but little has been written on how to make them happen successfully in the classroom. In Socratic Circles: Fostering Critical and Creative Thinking in Middle and High School , author Matt Copeland provides real-world examples and straightforward answers to frequent questions. He creates a coaching guide for both the teacher new to Socratic seminars and the experienced teacher seeking to optimize the benefits of this powerful strategy. Socratic Circles also shows teachers who are familiar with literature circles the many ways in which these two practices complement and extend each other. Effectively implemented, Socratic seminars enhance reading comprehension, listening and speaking skills, and build better classroom community and conflict resolution skills. By giving students ownership over the classroom discussion around texts, they become more independent and motivated learners. Ultimately, because there is a direct relationship between the level of participation and the richness of the experience, Socratic seminars teach students to take responsibility for the quality of their own learning. Filled with examples to help readers visualize the application of these concepts in practice, Socratic Circles includes transcripts of student dialogue and work samples of preparation and follow-up activities. The helpful appendices offer ready-to-copy handouts and examples, and suggested selections of text that connect to major literary works. As our classrooms and our schools grow increasingly focused on meeting high standards and differentiating instruction for a wide variety of student needs and learning styles, Socratic seminars offer an essential classroom tool for meeting these goals.Socratic Circles is a complete and practical guide to Socratic seminars for the busy classroom teacher.

Socratic Methods in the Classroom

Socratic Methods in the Classroom
Author: Erick Wilberding
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 112
Release: 2021-09-23
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1000503348

Since the Renaissance, the Socratic Method has been adapted to teach diverse subjects, including medicine, law, and mathematics. Each discipline selects elements and emphases from the Socratic Method that are appropriate for teaching individuals or groups how to reason judiciously within that subject. By looking at some of the great practitioners of Socratic questioning in the past, Socratic Methods in the Classroom explains how teachers may use questioning, reasoning, and dialogue to encourage critical thinking, problem solving, and independent learning in the secondary classroom. Through a variety of problems, cases, and simulations, teachers will guide students through different variations of the Socratic Method, from question prompts to the case method. Students will learn to reason judiciously, gain an understanding of important issues, and develop the necessary skills to discuss these issues in their communities. Grades 8-12

The Socratic Classroom

The Socratic Classroom
Author: Sarah Davey Chesters
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2012-09-13
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9460918557

This book provides a framework for a collaborative inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning suitable not only for formal educational settings such as the school classroom but for all educational settings. For teachers, educationalists, philosophers and philosophers of education, The Socratic Classroom presents a theoretical as well as practical exploration of how philosophy may be adopted in education. The Socratic Classroom captures a variety of philosophical approaches to classroom practice that could be broadly described as Socratic in form. There is an exploration of three distinct approaches that make significant contributions to classroom practice: Matthew Lipman’s Community of Inquiry, Leonard Nelson’s Socratic Dialogue, and David Bohm’s Dialogue. All three models influence what is termed in this book as ‘Socratic pedagogy’. Socratic pedagogy is multi-dimensional and is underpinned by 'generative, evaluative, and connective thinking'. These terms describe the dispositions inherent in thinking through philosophical inquiry. This book highlights how philosophy as inquiry can contribute to educational theory and practice, while also demonstrating how it can be an effective way to approach teaching and learning. Audience This publication is suited to educators, teacher educators, philosophers of education and philosophers in general. It has a theoretical and practical focus, making it truly interdisciplinary.

The Socratic Method Today

The Socratic Method Today
Author: Lee Trepanier
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 376
Release: 2017-12-14
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1351245805

This exciting new textbook provides a sophisticated examination of the Socratic method for teaching political science students in higher education. It shows how the Socratic method is employed in the Platonic dialogs, compares its transformative approach to other student-centered teaching philosophies, and addresses the challenges of adopting the Socratic method in the contemporary classroom. The book is divided into three sections that integrate these practical aspects on the Socratic method with the theoretical considerations of Socratic philosophy while also addressing contemporary concerns about teaching and learning in higher education. Section One explores how the Socratic method is portrayed by Socrates in Plato’s dialogs. Section Two compares the Socratic method with modern and contemporary accounts of teaching and learning. Section Three examines some of the contemporary challenges of practicing the Socratic method in the university classroom today and how teachers can overcome them. Written in a clear and engaging style, this timely intervention is essential reading for upper undergraduate students enrolled in courses that specialize in pedagogical techniques, political theory, Socratic philosophy, and law.

Think Like Socrates

Think Like Socrates
Author: Shanna Peeples
Publisher: Corwin Press
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2018-08-16
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1506391656

Socrates believed in the power of questions rather than lecturing his students. But how did we get so far away from his method of inquiry? Shanna Peeples, 2015 National Teacher of the Year, will show you how teachers can create an engaging atmosphere that encourages student questions and honors their experiences. This resource provides Questions paired with sample texts Step-by-step lessons for generating and using students’ questions Lesson extensions for English language learners, special education students, and gifted and talented students Writing suggestions, in-class debate questions, and scoring rubrics Multimedia texts Protocols for using inquiry with adults as a base for professional development

An African American and Latinx History of the United States

An African American and Latinx History of the United States
Author: Paul Ortiz
Publisher: Beacon Press
Total Pages: 298
Release: 2018-01-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 0807013102

An intersectional history of the shared struggle for African American and Latinx civil rights Spanning more than two hundred years, An African American and Latinx History of the United States is a revolutionary, politically charged narrative history, arguing that the “Global South” was crucial to the development of America as we know it. Scholar and activist Paul Ortiz challenges the notion of westward progress as exalted by widely taught formulations like “manifest destiny” and “Jacksonian democracy,” and shows how placing African American, Latinx, and Indigenous voices unapologetically front and center transforms US history into one of the working class organizing against imperialism. Drawing on rich narratives and primary source documents, Ortiz links racial segregation in the Southwest and the rise and violent fall of a powerful tradition of Mexican labor organizing in the twentieth century, to May 1, 2006, known as International Workers’ Day, when migrant laborers—Chicana/os, Afrocubanos, and immigrants from every continent on earth—united in resistance on the first “Day Without Immigrants.” As African American civil rights activists fought Jim Crow laws and Mexican labor organizers warred against the suffocating grip of capitalism, Black and Spanish-language newspapers, abolitionists, and Latin American revolutionaries coalesced around movements built between people from the United States and people from Central America and the Caribbean. In stark contrast to the resurgence of “America First” rhetoric, Black and Latinx intellectuals and organizers today have historically urged the United States to build bridges of solidarity with the nations of the Americas. Incisive and timely, this bottom-up history, told from the interconnected vantage points of Latinx and African Americans, reveals the radically different ways that people of the diaspora have addressed issues still plaguing the United States today, and it offers a way forward in the continued struggle for universal civil rights. 2018 Winner of the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award

Thunder Cake

Thunder Cake
Author: Patricia Polacco
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 34
Release: 1990-03-15
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0399222316

A loud clap of thunder booms, and rattles the windows of Grandma's old farmhouse. "This is Thunder Cake baking weather," calls Grandma, as she and her granddaughter hurry to gather the ingredients around the farm. A real Thunder Cake must reach the oven before the storm arrives. But the list of ingredients is long and not easy to find . . . and the storm is coming closer all the time! Reaching once again into her rich childhood experience, Patricia Polacco tells the memorable story of how her grandma--her Babushka--helped her overcome her fear of thunder when she was a little girl. Ms. Polacco's vivid memories of her grandmother's endearing answer to a child's fear, accompanied by her bright folk-art illustrations, turn a frightening thunderstorm into an adventure and ultimately . . . a celebration! Whether the first clap of thunder finds you buried under the bedcovers or happily anticipating the coming storm, Thunder Cake is a story that will bring new meaning and possibility to the excitement of a thunderstorm.

The Best Class You Never Taught

The Best Class You Never Taught
Author: Alexis Wiggins
Publisher: ASCD
Total Pages: 177
Release: 2017-09-27
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1416624716

The best classes have a life of their own, powered by student-led conversations that explore texts, ideas, and essential questions. In these classes, the teacher’s role shifts from star player to observer and coach as the students Think critically, Work collaboratively, Participate fully, Behave ethically, Ask and answer high-level questions, Support their ideas with evidence, and Evaluate and assess their own work. The Spider Web Discussion is a simple technique that puts this kind of class within every teacher’s reach. The name comes from the weblike diagram the observer makes to record interactions as students actively participate in the discussion, lead and support one another’s learning, and build community. It’s proven to work across all subject areas and with all ages, and you only need a little know-how, a rubric, and paper and pencil to get started. As students practice Spider Web Discussion, they become stronger communicators, more empathetic teammates, better problem solvers, and more independent learners—college and career ready skills that serve them well in the classroom and beyond. Educator Alexis Wiggins provides a step-by-step guide for the implementation of Spider Web Discussion, covering everything from introducing the technique to creating rubrics for discussion self-assessment to the nuts-and-bolts of charting the conversations and using the data collected for formative assessment. She also shares troubleshooting tips, ideas for assessment and group grading, and the experiences of real teachers and students who use the technique to develop and share content knowledge in a way that’s both revolutionary and truly inspiring.

Making Classroom Discussions Work

Making Classroom Discussions Work
Author: Jane C. Lo
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2022
Genre: Education
ISBN: 080776664X

For the past 2 decades, the field of social studies education has seen an increase in research on the use of discussions as an essential instructional technique. This book examines the importance of using quality dialogue as a tool to help students understand complex issues in social studies. This edited volume provides a collection of well-known, evidence-based discussion techniques, as well as classroom examples showing the methods in use. While using discussion as an instructional method is widely considered a best practice of civic learning, actual high-quality discussions are rare and notoriously difficult to facilitate. Making Classroom Discussions Work is designed to guide teacher educators and classroom teachers in facilitating equitable and productive discussions that will boost learning and democratic engagement. Book Features: Emphasizes the rationale for using discussion in social studies teaching. Collects strategies that have been proposed in disparate journal articles and books in one convenient volume. Presents research-based challenges and supports for conducting and assessing discussions in the social studies. Includes methods and tips to help teachers make discussions more equitable in their classrooms.