The ongoing debate over what should be taught or emphasized in American higher education
obfuscates a concern that is intimately connected to the question of what we should teach: how
should we teach? We neglect this question at our peril as doing so undermines efforts to educate the
entire person. If we fail to address it, we fail to satisfy the requirements of a liberal education and the
consequences of this failure threaten the great experiment that is democratic government.
In its original sense, liberal education refers to practicing the virtue of liberality.^2 If ancient
philosophers are to be believed, the object of a liberal education is the cultivation of a virtuous
person who is capable of living freely.^3 The preoccupation with virtue and living a free and noble
life should not be interpreted to mean that liberal education ignores skills. In fact, an educated
person requires many of the skills emphasized in higher education today (reading, writing,
counting, and reckoning). The difference between the contemporary emphasis on skills and liberal
education’s concern with virtue is that the former views skills as ends whereas the latter sees skills
serving the higher purpose of cultivating persons capable of self-government.
This vision of liberal education stands in marked contrast to a dominant method of teaching in
higher education today–student-centered learning. Defined as a broad teaching approach that
encompasses replacing lectures with active learning, integrating self-paced learning programs and/or
cooperative group situations, student-centered learning focuses on student needs, satisfaction, or
skill development. This view is in need of revision as it incorrectly identifies skill development as
the proper end of education. In its place, we should employ an understanding of Socratic student-
centeredlearning.Likecontemporarytheoriesofstudent-centeredlearning,Socraticstudent-centered
learning focuses on the individual and encourages students to be responsible for their own learning.
Whereas contemporary theories give primacy to project development and completion, Socratic
student-centered learning’s emphasis on asking the right question, listening, and contradiction
requires learners to reflect on one’s own life through critical reflection. Thus, unlike contemporary
theories, the Socratic version of student-centered learning focuses on developing good persons and
citizens.
This argument is developed by first providing a critical review of contemporary theories of
student-centered learning. This is followed by an overview of the three tenets of the Socratic method:
- The emphasis on virtue in Socratic philosophy; 2) The method of Socratic education as refutation
(elenchus); and 3) The form of Socratic philosophy as dialog. The third and fourth sections analyze
these tenets through an analysis of Plato’sLachesto demonstrate what Socratic student-centered
learning looks like. The final section identifies a pedagogical practice (discussion boards) that
instructors may use to facilitate the face-to-face interaction in class required by the Socratic method.
Contemporary Theories of Student-Centered Learning
On their surface, contemporary theories of student-centered learning appear to share a great deal
with the Socratic method as both views reject the lecture as an appropriate mode of education.
8 The Courage of the Socratic
Method
Jordon B. Barkalow
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