I highly recommend the book, "Teaching as a Subversive Activity" by Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner. Copywrite 1969, publisher Dell Publishing; ISBN-10: 0385290098 ISBN-13: 978-0385290098
The authors discuss the process of questioning which enables students to become self-learners. Great book in my opinion.
Jerry
Jerrold Strong, M.A.
Strong Consulting
Leadership and Performance Development
Bus: 707-449-1298
Fax: 707-452-9326
"Everyone gets the experience; some get the lesson."
T.S. Eliot
Joe,
I'd like a copy of your forthcoming book.
George
friend of mine sent me this thread and I wanted to make a quick comment although I am not part of this group.
I have taught now for 39 years in college but I have used the Socratic Method exclusively since 1991 (every single day). I was named the 2007 Virginia Professor of the Year by CASE which makes me think that, despite the fact that students do want to be handed answers, it is a method that does work very well if your goal is to get students to prepare, consider, and reason. The key is, I think, to stretch them a little, question by question, and not throw them into questions that they cannot possibly answer.
As a result, I am in the process (along with C. J. Skender of UNC) of writing an entire textbook in a question and answer (Socratic) format. It is an intro Financial Accounting textbook and is being published (as a free textbook, no less) by Flat World Knowledge. The book comes out as an online book in the next 4-6 weeks. I love the Socratic approach so much that I wanted to see if it could not be used to create a new type of textbook.
Ask those questions!!!!
Joe Hoyle
Robins School of Business
University of Richmond