Lynch School of Education

Abstracts from Teaching Exceptional Children (TEC)

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TITLE:
“To find yourself, think for yourself”: Using Socratic Discussions in Inclusive Classrooms

VOLUME 41 ISSUE 3

AUTHOR(S):
Barbara Fink Chorzempa
Laurie Lapidus

DOCUMENT TYPE: Article

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ABSTRACT:
As schools and teachers strive to align instruction with state and national standards, teachers often struggle with developing students’ abilities to think for themselves. The procedures and justifications for the use of Socratic seminars as a means of developing critical thinking skills are well-documented in middle and high school classrooms (cf., Loan, 2003; Mawhinney, 2000; Metzger, 1998; Polite & Adams, 1997; Queen, 2000; Strong, 1997; Tanner & Casados, 1998; Tredway, 1995) but its use is rarely documented in elementary inclusive classrooms. Therefore, in light of the potential benefits of the Socratic Seminar this article provides a model and guidelines for using the Socratic method to develop students’ critical thinking and writing skills within elementary inclusive classrooms.