Universities, Ethics and Professions by Strain John;Barnett Ronald;Jarvis Peter;

Author:Strain, John;Barnett, Ronald;Jarvis, Peter;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Computer Science
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Published: 2009-03-06T00:00:00+00:00

Modern Socratic Dialogue

Modern Socratic Dialogue is a structured method for philosophical discussion that was developed in the early twentieth century by a group of German thinkers and educationists surrounding the philosopher Leonard Nelson (1882–1927). It begins with the premise that everyone has an inborn aptitude for philosophical thought and that no specific book learning is required for pursuing philosophical insights. All that is required is a facilitator who is trained to bring out this ability in all of the participants. Groups ranging from six to twelve gather to discuss a topic that is couched as a general question and proceed through a number of stages that conclude when consensus is reached on an answer to that question. It takes time and perseverance to reach such a result and the quest for consensus ensures that the group thoroughly explores everything that is contributed to the discussion. Anyone who does not understand a statement made by another or who does not agree with it will be left behind by the discussion and will not be part of the concluding consensus. Accordingly, it is an important rule of the procedure that everyone persists in seeking understanding. It is also a requirement that everyone makes themselves clear and that they do not invoke unexplicated book knowledge.

Suppose that the topic for a given dialogue was ‘What is courage?’ The session would begin with the facilitator asking the group to bring forward examples of incidents that they have themselves experienced in some way and which are germane to the question. The group then discusses the three or four examples that have been offered in order to choose one to concentrate upon. Already at this stage, themes will emerge as participants compare the examples and note similarities or differences between them. Having chosen the example the group then explores it by asking the example-giver for more details. The aim of this phase is for each participant to be able to imagine themselves in the incident. They then seek to understand, from their own perspective, how the incident illustrates what courage is or what the example says about courage. It is only when the group has understood what courage is in relation to the specific example and what features of courage might be specific to the example, that the facilitator will introduce the last phase of the dialogue: the phase in which the question is explored in its more general form.

It is significant that the method of Modern Socratic Dialogue calls upon participants to contribute examples from their own experience to the dialogue in order to provide a touchstone for the discussion. In proposing examples, participants are urged to tell their story briefly and in simple terms. Theoretical interpretations and constructions are to be avoided. Moreover, when exploring the example they have chosen, participants are urged not to speculate or to engage in hypothetical thinking, but to establish the facts. The task is to imagine yourself in the situation of the example-giver. It is not to reconstruct their thinking or their view of the world, or to explain them psychologically.

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