Socratic Seminar

"Socratic Seminar" engages students in academic discussions about texts. Although the strategy is highly structured, it promotes the exploration of ideas through higher level thinking. Sometimes referred to as the Socratic method, this strategy is widely used in secondary and post-secondary education as a tool to engage students in deep analysis of the texts they read.

• Enhances instruction through engaging discussions
• Improves students' ability to speak academically
• Promotes higher level, critical thinking
• Provides opportunities for students to practice mature conversations

Take a few minutes to explore the different features on this page. The "Literacy TA Process" and "School-wide" sections provide important details about how to teach the strategy. Once you are familiar with the content, think about how you might use the different elements provided on this page to enhance the teaching of this strategy.

Assessing the Skill

When assessing the effectiveness of a "Socratic Seminar," teachers could...

• listen to what individual students are saying and doing in the circle and evaluate the intellectual energy and engagement.
• use the assessment tool below to monitor and evaluate the types of comments students make during the discussion.
• ask students to write a brief reflection at the end of class that explains how the "Socratic Seminar" helped them learn new concepts.

Assessing Content Knowledge

If we are going to invest time teaching speaking strategies, we should have some idea of how the strategy is improving students' comprehension of course concepts. When assessing students' knowledge of the content, teachers could...

• develop a short series of multiple choice questions that assess students' knowledge of the content. The questions should focus on the topics you asked students to discuss in their groups.
• craft short answer prompts that ask students to articulate--in writing--their knowledge of the ideas in the text. Short answer prompts should also focus on the ideas you asked students to discuss in their groups.
• ask students to create an academic poster that accounts for the main ideas they discussed throughout the class period.
• ask students to take a quiz in pairs in order to evaluate the impact collaborative work has on student achievement.
• engage students in a formal conversation like a Socratic seminar, assessing students' knowledge through verbal performance.

Developing a Speaking Purpose

Before we ask our students to engage in a "Socratic Seminar," we should develop a purpose for their discussion. What do we want our students talking about? What types of questions will they explore? What will they learn from the seminar? We will want to keep these types of questions in mind as we purposefully select a text for the "Socratic Seminar."

Teachers engage students in Socratic Seminars for a variety of reasons.  A few reasons have been provided below.

• Students need to learn how to speak in large groups.
• Students need to learn how to disagree with someone in a public space without insulting or tearing the person down.
• Students need to learn how to listen and respond to various view points.
• Students need to practice speaking academically.
• Students need a safe place to explore and challenge ideas.
• Student engagement and retention of new ideas increases when they teach others.
• Students can help each other comprehend complex ideas.

Pacing and Supporting the Lesson

When introducing the "Socratic Seminar" strategy, explain the purpose behind this type of group activity. Make transparent how this strategy has two goals: the first, to help students gain deeper knowledge of a particular topic or issue; and the second, to teach students how to engage in academic discussions that they will see in college and at work.

Socratic seminars are most effective when students are given an opportunity to engage in them multiple times a year. For most students, this type of academic discussion is foreign to them, so they will need time to master the strategy. 

In the beginning...

• set norms for the discussion and teach students how to efficiently move in and out of Socratic circles (see the strategy handouts and slides for resources).  
• provide constant feedback until students are familiar with the expectations.
• limit the amount of time students communicate in a large circle. Students should share ideas in small groups before entering into the Socratic circle.
• articulate and model your expectations for the group discussion.

Learning the Skill

Here are a few effective ways to introduce the strategy, "Socratic Seminar."

• Establish norms for appropriate behavior.
• Model how students should speak to one another.
• Identify one or two questions that could be used to start the discussion and provide those questions for your students.
• Ask students who have experience with "Socratic Seminar" to join the circle so that they can model for those who are unfamiliar with the strategy.
• Establish a clear purpose for the discussion.
• Explicitly state how students will be assessed.
• Provide sentence starters so that students have some language they can use to effectively communicate their ideas.
• Coach students along the way, giving them feedback and suggestions.

Developing the Skill

As students develop their ability to engage in academic discussions, consider using the following strategies.

• Increase the amount of time students talk about a topic.
• Have students develop their own higher-level questions that they use to launch the discussion.
• Introduce more challenging texts for students to read and discuss.
• Walk around the room while students work in groups and provide feedback to individuals instead of talking to the whole group.
• Reduce the amount of scaffolds like sentence starters as students become more proficient at articulating their thoughts.

Mastering the Skill

Mastery of any skill takes time, lots of practice, and a solid understanding of the strategy. Consider applying some of the following approaches when developing students' mastery of "Socratic Seminar."

• Expect discussion groups to monitor their own behavior and productivity. Maybe the class reviews and updates their norms.
• Articulate to your students that you expect them to be more critical and analytical.
• Ask students to explore ways this strategy could be used across the content areas.
• Have students reflect on their learning process and share their processes with the class.
• Challenge students by removing all scaffolds like the digital timer, sentence starters, and individual coaching.

School Wide

In order to make a strategy transferable through a department and across a school, the name of the strategy must stay the same and it must be implemented and talked about in the same way. Although reading purposes may change from class to class, unit to unit, the work behind a strategy must be predictable and consistent for our students. When a set of effective literacy strategies are implemented throughout the school day, students gain a deep knowledge of how to use the strategy, when to use it, and most importantly, why to use it. The goal for school-wide literacy, therefore, is to develop students' mastery of a select set of strategies so that they can independently and strategically employ them in rigorous academic and professional environments.

English Description

In the English classroom, "Socratic Seminars" could function as a post-reading activity or pre-writing strategy. The purpose of the "Socratic Seminar" needs to be clearly communicated so that our students understand what it is we want them to discuss and what they will be expected to do after the Socratic is over.

When we want to engage our students in deep conversation about fiction, we could have our students analyze the author's style, diction, use of characters, or other elements of fiction. If reading non-fiction, students can discuss author's purpose, claims, evidence, or rhetorical devices. Poetry is a third type of writing that works well with the Socratic method. Students come to the "Socratic circle" with a poem that they have read critically. Students could talk about the author's audience, purpose, syntax, voice, and structure.

Math Description

In the math classroom, solving word problems or graphing algebraic equations is a good use of the "Socratic Seminar" strategy. When working with word problems, provide each student in the circle with a copy of the word problem. Before they talk about the problem, have them mark it and number the sentences so that students can reference material easily. In the circle, students can work together to isolate essential information, decide on the appropriate formula, and work toward a solution.

When graphing algebraic expressions, teachers could create a large scale image of a graph on flip chart paper and have students graph various equations. Teachers could also offer an equation that has been graphed and ask students to explain what is happening in the graph.

The purpose of the "Socratic Seminar" needs to be clearly communicated so that our students understand what it is we want them to discuss and what they will be expected to do after the Socratic is over.

Science Description

In the science classroom, "Socratic Seminars" could function as a post-reading activity, pre-writing strategy, or an opportunity to practice analyzing a visual (like a graph, chart, or diagram). The purpose of the "Socratic Seminar" needs to be clearly communicated so that our students understand what it is we want them to discuss and what they will be expected to do after the Socratic is over.

Try using the "Socratic Seminar" strategy for pre-lab work; specifically, students could analyze lab instructions, discuss materials, review the proper use of lab equipment, or do other pre-lab work not called out here.

This strategy is most effective when students work with a text, object, or visual.

Social Science Description

In the social science classroom, "Socratic Seminars" could function as a post-reading activity, pre-writing strategy, or an opportunity to practice analyzing a visual (like a map, graph, chart, or photograph). The purpose of the "Socratic Seminar" needs to be clearly communicated so that our students understand what it is we want them to discuss and what they will be expected to do after the Socratic is over.

When working with primary sources like autobiographies, essays, and speeches, have students spend some time with the source before they engage in a "Socratic Seminar." Students could discuss the author or speaker's life, what influenced him or her to write the text, the purpose of the text, or students could discuss the argument the author or speaker is making.

This strategy is most effective when students have a text to reference like a document, speech, or image.

Standardized Exams Description

The "Socratic Seminar" strategy is not appropriate during state or local standardized exams (or any exam for that matter), but we can use the strategy to help students learn how to read, write, and speak with greater proficiency which will transfer to student performance on standardized exams.