Encouraging Critical Thinking in the Classroom

The Socratic Method

Jeremy Wysakowski-Walters

The Cognitive Process

cog·ni·tiveadjective \ˈkäg-nə-tiv\: of, relating to, or involving conscious

mental activities (such as thinking, understanding, learning, and remembering)

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive

How do we learn?

What do students actually remember from a lesson?

Which methods ensure learning is long term?

Ways to encourage active learning

Using dialouge as a diadactic tool

The Socratic Method

Applying The Socratic Method to Reading

The Text

A text should be chosen which is closely connected to the overall goals of the subject, unit, and the classroom.

The Question

The starting question to encourage the dialogue should be well-planned, and resemble an authentic thought-provoking inquiry.

The Leader

The next chief constituent in Socratic instruction, is typically the teacher, who not only guides the discourse, but also takes an

active part in it.

The Participants

The most important element is the participants which are primarily the students but also include the teacher.

A sample TextMedicine 1 Ch 7

Question from the book

Different types of questions

Closed Questions

DefinitionThere are two definitions that are used to describe closed questions. A common definition is:

A closed question can be answered with either a single word or a short phrase.

Thus 'How old are you?' and 'Where do you live?' are closed questions. A more limiting definition that is sometimes used is:A closed question can be answered with either 'yes' or 'no'.

Open Questions

DefinitionAn open question can be defined thus:

An open question is likely to receive a long answer.

Although any question can receive a long answer, open questions deliberately seek longer answers, and are the opposite of closed questions.

Why and How

Open questions therefore often begin with ‘why’ and ‘how’

How to create dialouge

The Socratic Method is made of four key components:

• the text• the question• the leader• the participants

Guided Discovery

Bringing the whiteboard alive

How student ideas reinforce learning

Bringing the whiteboard alive

Student input during discussion goes on the boardPictures are taken of board

Blog is updated using genuine lesson material

Mobile phones in the classroom

Are they a good thing?

Mobile phones in the classroom

In subsequent lessons, material reviews are done using mobile phones

Student questions are answered in class and if relevant immediately posted on the blog

Any absent students have instant access to material covered

Questions

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