Socrates was an astute Greek philosopher of his time. He was born is 470 BC and died in 399 BC. He father was a sculptor and his mother, a mid wife. After his father passed away, Socrates inherited a large sum of money and used his inheritance to further his interest in philosophy. He dedicated his life to expanding the minds of young adults and furthering their education. He often argued with the Sophists, who promoted the idea that all things are relative and teaching styles revolving around self-centered beliefs. Socrates promoted a different belief, however, the Socratic Method. This method focuses on asking questions so that students may learn at a higher level. .
Socrates questioned his students endlessly so that their mind would learn to think logically as opposed to mechanically. He applied his new method to many areas of study, including justice and the human nature of "the good." The Socratic Method worked by asking a series of extensive questions. Each question would uncover a new layer that would eventually cause the student to arrive at the true answer. His philosophical breakthrough has paved the way for much influence in our current world, the most well known being the scientific method. When students are performing an experiment in a field of science, for example, a hypothesis is the first to be formed. The student then proceeds to answer the question based on their general knowledge of the matter and then performs an experiment to confirm or reject their answer. The Socratic Method works in a similar fashion. .
The Socratic Method follows four major standards. It uses questions to uncover the beliefs and values of the students. The Socratic Method is not a typical depiction of a classroom discussion. It is not often utilized by a teacher that governs over a large classroom. There are no lectures and class discussions in which the teacher seems to be superior but instead a helper.
