{"id":169,"date":"2026-02-05T12:21:02","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T17:21:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cci.utk.edu\/tops\/?page_id=169"},"modified":"2026-02-05T12:23:01","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T17:23:01","slug":"socratic-seminar","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cci.utk.edu\/tops\/resources-for-teachers\/group-speeches\/socratic-seminar\/","title":{"rendered":"Socratic Seminar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A&nbsp;<strong>socratic seminar<\/strong> can take different forms from class to class, but each resembles the following basic structure:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A small group of students shares an experience, such as a piece of entertainment or informative media.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In front of the class, they get together as a panel of presenters, each demonstrating that they have knowledge of the shared experience and can share their opinions on it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They may present their information formally, one by one, or via conversation with each other.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They field questions from each other and, most importantly, the surrounding class. This is not a debate, but an exploration of the topic.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a public speaking course, students are graded on their demonstration of knowledge and opinion \u2014 its delivery, structure, and credibility shown \u2014 and their prompt and thorough answering of questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The following represents an example of simple instructions for a panel discussion or socratic seminar assignment:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Student Instructions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You will be working with your group to develop a short panel discussion: You will present together at the front of the room, discuss an article your group has read, and answer questions from the audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Your discussion needs to include a shared presentation that summarizes the main points of the article. If a slides presentation is created, each group member must take part.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Normally, a panel discussion introduces the speakers, but we already know each other. Instead, we\u2019ll go directly into each one of you summarizing your opinion of the article: its arguments, its credibility, its clarity.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Every member of the group needs to express at least a part of the article\u2019s summary. Every member of the group must, at some point, express his or her evaluation\/opinion of the article and\/or its subject.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You will be graded not only on responding to questions, but also according to questions you ask when you are not presenting. If no questions are asked voluntarily, they will be asked involuntarily by the teacher\u2019s direction.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The panel presentation will have a minimum time limit of 3 minute per participant and a maximum of 4 minutes per participant. (Four people in a group means 12-16 minutes.) This does not include time spent answering questions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Make sure you meet together at least once to determine how you will go about summarizing and evaluating the article effectively. Consider what essential questions your particular article is seeking to answer. I strongly suggest you schedule a group meeting to read the article together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Teacher Instructions:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you are teaching or directing this assignment, your responsibility will be to form groups and assign media to each group for consideration, as well as instruct students on the amount of time (usually a few weeks) that their group needs for preparation and create rubrics or specific guidelines for grading and holding individuals and groups accountable for their work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The following articles have been effective media choices for groups:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2015\/06\/28\/world\/americas\/isis-online-recruiting-american.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cISIS and the Lonely Young American\u201d by Rukmini Callimachi<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/nospank.net\/bacon2.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cLoving Them to Death\u201d by Jon Krakauer<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/fivethirtyeight.com\/features\/the-sumo-matchup-centuries-in-the-making\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cThe Sumo Matchup Centuries in the Making\u201d by Benjamin Morris<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2017\/08\/26\/us\/fort-smith-arkansas-mosque-vandalism-and-forgiveness.html?smid=tw-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cThe Two Americans\u201d by Sabrina Tavernise<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/lifestyle\/magazine\/fatal-distraction-forgetting-a-child-in-thebackseat-of-a-car-is-a-horrifying-mistake-is-it-a-crime\/2014\/06\/16\/8ae0fe3a-f580-11e3-a3a5-42be35962a52_story.html?utm_term=.07c5c3162520\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cFatal Distraction\u201d by Gene Weingarten<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/lifestyle\/magazine\/pearls-before-breakfast-can-one-of-the-nations-great-musicians-cut-through-the-fog-of-a-dc-rush-hour-lets-find-out\/2014\/09\/23\/8a6d46da-4331-11e4-b47c-f5889e061e5f_story.html?utm_term=.b245a1d1f2f7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cPearls Before Breakfast\u201d by Gene Weingarten<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/article\/2006\/01\/18\/AR2006011801434.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cThe Peekaboo Paradox\u201d by Gene Weingarten<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A&nbsp;socratic seminar can take different forms from class to class, but each resembles the following basic structure: In a public speaking course, students are graded on their demonstration of knowledge and opinion \u2014 its delivery, structure, and credibility shown \u2014 and their prompt and thorough answering of questions. The following represents an example of simple [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":304,"featured_media":0,"parent":167,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-169","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Socratic Seminar - Tennessee Online Public Speaking Center<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cci.utk.edu\/tops\/resources-for-teachers\/group-speeches\/socratic-seminar\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Socratic Seminar - Tennessee Online Public Speaking Center\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A&nbsp;socratic seminar can take different forms from class to class, but each resembles the following basic structure: In a public speaking course, students are graded on their demonstration of knowledge and opinion \u2014 its delivery, structure, and credibility shown \u2014 and their prompt and thorough answering of questions. 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