Customer Reviews

The Habit of Thought: From Socratic Seminars to Socratic Practice

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I enjoyed reading 'The Habit of Thought' - a sign that the author had some enjoyment in writing this book. And I found many points to relate to my own education.

I enjoyed most the discussion of teaching mathematics, physics and science from a Socratic discussion view point, rather than the conventional dictation most of us recieved for as many years as I can remmeber. I did not recieve true Socratic education until later graduate education at the doctoral level in this country.

Furthermore, Mr.Strong's point that most software and manuals theses days require a new conceptual understanding from the reader, bears notice. A true understanding of many of our current practices in our information society requires achieving a higher conceptual level of thought. Socratic process may hold the key to more quickly and successfully teaching children, than the current methods geared to just more focused narrative educational methods of more money and better student to teacher ratios.

This collection of five essays is an inspirationally helpful introduction to the idea of student-focused, conversational learning--what Strong calls "Socratic Practice". This idea, that text-based, student-driven "conversations" are a most effective means of education, reflects that of Postman & Weingartner ("Teaching as a Subversive Activity") and Postman ("The End of Education"), but grows directly out of Strong's experience at St. John's College, where seminars replace lectures in all subjects.

Strong's second assumption is that true learning means learning how to think ... about everything that one encounters, and that people only truly learn what they are interested in, so that students should be allowed [encouraged] to pursue their own trains of thought, but (since he advocates beginning this process in 4th grade) most classes will do this best if their conversation is focused on understanding a text (which is why he calls this Socratic "Practice" rather than "Seminar").

He weaves these themes together with clear illustrations and practical suggestions into a book that would revolutionize education if it were followed.

I highly recommend this for teachers, and especially teachers and students of education. I warn parents and students in conventional schools, however: This book could foster discontent with the status quo!

As a practicing poet who participates in groups, I find this book to be helpful. Often the workshop/discussion/critique group falls down or deteriorates due to a lack of trust and a lack of ways to approach texts. I have blogged extensively on this topic www.rockcitypoet@blogspot.com and am endeavoring to use Strong's text to initiate Socratic Dialogue in my existing poetry group.

Additionally, my eldest daughter is a public school teacher and I know this book will help her to enable her students to find ways of knowing, ways of discussing, and a more mature understanding of themselves as sentient beings capable of informed judgments.

This book sits next to How to Read Literature Like a Professor (Foster) as two of my top ten.

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Michael Strong's book is clearly written, with excellent examples, and good reasoning about the process of learning, especially learning to reason. He offers a plethora of evidence that Socratic practice results in highly advanced cognitive skills and independent judgment, plus some interesting reasoning about why it works. Worth reading and passing on to other teachers.

I absolutely love this book, as a teacher it has given me some great ideas to think about in both classroom content and classroom management. Go Socrates!