How I Designed an Inclusive Socratic Seminar (and You Can Too!)

In this sketch video, I explain the benefits of Socratic Seminars and share a process for how to conduct one. For a longer exploration, please check out my blog post here: https://spencerauthor.com/socratic-se...

Transcript:

A Socratic seminar is a democratic, student-centered, approach to class discussions.

It can work at any grade level with any subject area.

In a Socratic Seminar, students ask and answer the questions while the teacher quietly observes.

Typically, students sit in a circle (or more likely an oval, because, let's be real, perfect circles are next to impossible to create).
Here they face one another.
There is no need to raise hands or call on names.
This is an open dialogue.

Unlike a traditional classroom discussion, where most questions and answers run through the teacher, a Socratic Seminar is interconnected.

Here students are empowered
to own the discussion process,
They gain empathy and
learn how to see multiple perspectives.
they become better listeners
while also finding their voice,

They engage in information literacy
Often, they participate in systems thinking
They improve critical thinking as
they use evidence to support claims

Along the way, they make connections between ideas
and connect the subject area to their world,
This helps them grow in awareness
as they engage in democratic dialogue
and discover that truth is often nuanced.
They grow more curious and intellectually humble.

Socratic Seminars can take many forms in the classroom. Here are a few of them.
You might do the Giant Circle Approach: Students sit together in a large circle. Desks are pushed all the way back so that there is no physical barrier between students.
Or you could do the "Fish Bowl" Approach: Arrange an inner circle where students have the Socratic Seminar discussion and an outside circle with observers who take notes.
Another option is the Round Table Approach: Unlike the fishbowl, students gather around a singular round table where they can lean in and discuss ideas. This works well for smaller class sizes.
You might also break it into Multiple Socratic Seminars so that more students can speak up in smaller groups.
Or you could offer an online Socratic Seminars with the use of a text-based chat.
So, what does a Socratic Seminar look like? Here's an example.

In phase 1, you explain the process.

In phase 2, you set the parameters by reviewing norms. Note that these first two phases are often fast.

In phase 3, you prepare for your students for the Socratic Seminar. You might do a concept attainment mini-lesson, run an experiment, and review vocabulary. Your students might do some reflective writing, watch a video, listen to a podcast or engage with a mentor text

In phase 4, you start the Socratic Seminar. You might have a series of sample questions or sentence stems students can use to get started.

If you start with a mentor text, here are some questions you might ask:
• What is the main idea?
• What stands out to you?
• How does this text relate to your experiences?
• Was there anything confusing? What would you like to clarify?
• Where can you find evidence to back up the main premise of the text? What evidence might contradict it?
• What is the relevance of the text?
But then, they'll shift naturally into phase 5, where they broaden the discussion and take it in different directions. This is typically the longest phase of the Socratic Seminar.

Finally, in phase 6, students clarify and close the Socratic Seminar. Here they end the conversation.

A few guiding questions might be:
• Are there any questions you still have?
• Is there anything that still feels unsettled or unclear?
• What was a key take-away?

When it's over, students might reflect on the experience.
• What was this experience like for you?
• Did you feel understood by your peers?
• How did the group communicate?
• What were some points that challenged your thinking?
• Are there any new ideas that you have based on the discussion?

While this process might seem messy and even chaotic,
it allows students to learn the content at a deeper level
while developing critical skills they will need to be democratic citizens that shape our future.