Perceptions on the Differences Between the Socratic and Experiential Teaching Methodologies

There are numerous technological advances which are readily available for us in the university classroom. While the use of computers, on-line data bases, video networking, etc. will serve to greatly enhance the understanding and dissemination of information to the students, the instructor must not neglect a fundamental necessity for any class the delivery system. This research focused on two of the common delivery methodologies utilized in higher education, the Socratic and Experiential delivery systems. The research hypothesis stated that there will be a significant difference in the perceptions of students when evaluating the Socratic and Experiential teaching delivery methodologies. Students, especially at the graduate level, will perceive the need to become more involved in their educational experience. Because of this students will be significantly more receptive to the Experiential than the Socratic methology. The null hypothesis stated that there will be no significant differences in the perceptions of students when evaluating the Socratic and Experiential teaching delivery system when evaluated at the a= .05 level of significance. The results revealed the students significantly preferred the Experiential methodology when compared to · the Socratic approach. The data revealed that 82.5 % favored the Experiential methodology, while only 17.5 % favored the Socratic approach. While the results of the Chi Square tests supported the research hypothesis, it should not be assumed that the Socratic methodology is not a useful highly successful delivery system. However for these particular courses, which were highly behavioral in design and content, the Experiential approach, as perceived by the students was significantly favored over the Socratic method. Page 68 Third Annual College of Career Education Faculty Symposium on Teaching Effectiveness November 1995 Perceptions on the Differences Between the Socratic and Experiential Teaching Methodologies Pereeptions on the Differences Between the Socratic and Experiential Teaching Methodologies There are numerous technological advances which are readily available for use in the university classroom. While the use of computers, on-line data bases, video networking, etc. will serve to greatly enhance the understanding and dissemination of information to the students, the instructor must not neglect a fundamental necessity for. any class the delivery system. This research focuses on two of the common delivery methodologies utilized in higher education, the Socratic and Experiential delivery systems. The Socratic Methodology Prior to the Fifth Century BC, education was available solely to that strata of society that enjoyed wealth. The curriculum included subjects focused upon developing good tastes, judgement, and " ... suitable moral qualities" (Lewis, 1965, p. 1). The Athenians considered the entire city their school, and everything they encountered was seen as an opportunity for learning. The city-state was the dominant political entity and Athens was considered to be the most influential. The city was stratified with an aristocratic ruling class. As an extension of the divine right of kings, the aristocrats were believed to have inherent tendencies for good judgement and high moral qualities. During the Fifty Century, democracy became the prevailing form of government. The resulting expansion of commerce subsequently gave rise to a wellto-do middle class. So emerged a new class of society that had both the time and the Third Annual College of Career Education Faculty Symposium on Teaching Effectiveness November 1995 resources to take advantage of educational opportunities. The proud Athenian citizens considered the preparation for the participation in self-governance a high priority. This new affluent class sought training in public speaking and the art of argumentation (Lewis, 1965). This education demand was filled by teachers called sophists who focused on the dimensions of argumentation and rhetoric. The course of study was based on the belief that the ordinary Athenian citizen needed to catch up with the Aristocrats' God-given abilities. Protagoras, a well-known sophist, was noted as saying: ... The student would ... only learn what he has come to learn. What is that subject? The proper care of his personal affairs, so that he may best manage his own household, and also the State's affairs, so as to become a real power in the city, both as speaker and man of action. (Lewis, 1965, p. 1) By contrast, Socrates taught for the sake of the educational process itself. Along with Plato and Aristotle, he sought to develop the desire to pursue education as a life-long endeavor (Klein, 1993). Education was undertaken for more than the sole purpose of learning specific skills applicable to a particular career field, and then dismissed once that demand had been met. Socrates advocated the never-ending search for self-knowledge--the continual process of searching for the limits of one's knowledge and abilities.