Category Archives: Socrates

The Socratic Classroom: Reflective Thinking Through Collaborative Inquiry

Posted on July 12, 2017 by Giorgio Bertini

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 … Continue reading →

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A Socratic Seminar for Elementary Learners

Posted on February 6, 2017 by Giorgio Bertini

Socratic seminars have been around, obviously, since the days of Socratics. I believe they are an underutilized but powerful instructional strategy. In the Socratic method of education, teachers engage students by asking questions that require generative answers. Ideally, the answers … Continue reading →

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The rebirth of Dialogue: Bakhtin, Socrates, and the Rhetorical Tradition

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Giorgio Bertini

Dialogue has suffered a long eclipse in the history of philosophy and the history of rhetoric but has enjoyed a rebirth in the work of Hans-Georg Gadamer, Martin Buber, and Mikhail Bakhtin. Among twentieth-century figures, Bakhtin took a special interest … Continue reading →

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Philosophy in the 21st Century – Socratic Philosophy that Engages with People

Posted on October 30, 2014 by Giorgio Bertini

The way I see it, philosophy should serve human flourishing. To this effect, philosophy should break away from its academic and scholarly boundaries, take seriously its Socratic origins, and develop communicative strategies that work in the contemporary context. Philosophy is … Continue reading →

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Teachers Teaching with Socrates

Posted on October 29, 2014 by Giorgio Bertini

We’re starting this celebration of teaching with Socrates, the superstar teacher of the ancient world. He was sentenced to death more than 2,400 years ago for “impiety” and “corrupting” the minds of the youth of Athens. But Socrates’ ideas helped … Continue reading →

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Different Images of Knowledge and Perspectives of Pedagogy in Confucius and Socrates

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Giorgio Bertini

Confucius and Socrates, two cultural icons of the East and West, both declared they did “not know.” Confucius said, “Am I indeed possessed of knowledge? I do not know.” Socrates said, “As for me, all I know is that I … Continue reading →

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Socratic Seminars

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Giorgio Bertini

In a Socratic seminar, the students take responsibility for leading the conversation, and the teacher acts as a facilitator. Here are some basic teacher and student responsibilities we have culled from our own experience with this format: Teacher Responsibilities: Arrange … Continue reading →