EDU381 Week 3 Discussion (dq1+dq2)

EDU381 Week 3 Discussion 

Dq1The Quest for Knowledge. One of the problem-centered inquiry models discussed in your text is the WebQuest model of inquiry. First, explore WebQuest.org (www.webquest.org). You will find a variety of sample WebQuests to view. Examine several samples and select one that you might find useful in your own classroom. Then identify the model of instruction used in your selected WebQuest. How is it different from and/or similar to the other two models described in Chapter 7 in your text? Discuss how the WebQuest model you selected meets the needs of a diverse group of learners. How are standards, assessment and evaluation addressed? Discuss your impressions and feelings about this model of instruction. Refer to Chapter 7 of your text, additional resources and your own insights/experiences. Respond to at least two classmates’ postings.

DQ 2 Socrates and Strategies. According to your text, the idea of a Socratic seminar stems from one of the dialogues of Plato in which Socrates suggests that no idea can be taught directly and “all that we know must be extracted from us through a series of questions and a process of inquiry. This is the foundation of the Socratic seminar” (Estes et al, 2011). View the video “Intro to the Socratic Seminar (http://www.youtube.com/watch?&)”. Then reflect on what you have observed in the video and what you have read in your text. Briefly describe the Socratic seminar model. Then respond to the following questions:

§ What role does questioning play in this model?

§ This model is designed to encourage multiple answers to open-ended questions that are in competition and may all be “winners.” Do you think this approach will be difficult or easy to adopt? Why or why not?

§ Discussions may be lively and might lean toward debate rather than dialogue. What strategies can you use to create a setting in which every opinion and perspective is honored?

§ What is your role as a teacher in this model?