In-class Socratic Seminar Rubric
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” –Socrates
Course Socratic Seminar sessions will take place in-class and online (through a web 2.0 tool called Edmodo). Participants are expected to be prepared for and actively engage in both Socratic Seminars. Therefore, students’ earned grades will be a reflection of the quality of participation in both of these forums. However, separate grading rubrics are used for each. (See the Edmodo Assignment & Rubric for the online version.)
Level A Participant (28-30 Points)
Participant is prepared with fully completed assignments
Participant offers enough solid analysis, almost always without prompting, to move the conversation forward
Participant, through comments, demonstrates a deep knowledge of the text and the question(s)
Participant demonstrates high levels of critical thinking and critical reading
Participant, through nonverbal and verbal communication, demonstrates quality activelistening to other participants
Participant offers clarification and/or follow-up that extends the conversation
Participant always/almost always refers back to specific parts of the text for support
Participant actively takes notes in the Cornell Note-taking method
Participant is able to summarize the Socratic Seminar session with ease while using specific details from the dialogue
Level B Participant (26-27 Points)
Participant is prepared with fully/mostly completed assignments.
Participant frequently offers analysis to move the conversation forward; some prompting may be needed.
Participant, through comments, demonstrates a good knowledge of the text and the question(s).
Participant demonstrates proficient levels of critical thinking and critical reading.
Participant, through nonverbal and verbal communication,demonstrates active listening to others participants
Participant may/may not offer clarification and/or follow-up. It sometimes extends the conversation.
Participant often refers back to specific parts of the text for support. Some reliance is on personal opinion lacking full support.
Participant actively takes notes in the Cornell Note-taking method.
Participant is able to summarize the Socratic Seminar session with relative ease with using several specific details from the dialogue.
Level C Participant (24-25 Points)
Participant is sometimes/partially prepared with assignments.
Participant offers some analysis, but tends to need prompting; sometimes will help move the conversation forward.
Participant, through comments, demonstrates a general knowledge of the text and question(s).
Participant demonstrates basic to proficient levels of critical thinking and critical reading.
Participant, through nonverbal and/or verbal communication, demonstrates some actively listening to others, but does not necessarily offer clarification and/or follow-up to others’ comments.
Participant relies more on his/her opinion/ideas and less on the text to drive comments.
Participant actively takes notes in the Cornell Note-taking method.
Participant is able to give a brief summary of the Socratic Seminar session with relative ease. May or may not use several specific details from the dialogue.
Level D Participant (21-23 Points)
Participant is sometimes/partially prepared with assignments. Assignments often reflect low quality work.
Participant offers little to no analysis, tends to rely on prompting for contribution, and rarely works to move the conversation forward.
Participant, through comments, demonstrates a basic/limited knowledge of the text and the question(s)
Participant demonstrates basic levels of critical thinking and critical reading.
Participant, through nonverbal and/or verbal communication, demonstrates minimal active listening.
Participant relies mostly on his/her opinions/ideas and less on the text to drive comments.
Participant takes minimal notes in the Cornell Note-taking method.
Participant is able to give portions of a summary of the Socratic Seminar session. May or may not use specific details from the dialogue.
Level F Participant (0-20 Points)
Participant is rarely/never prepared with assignments. Assignments, when completed, often reflect low quality work.
Participant offers little to no analysis, tends to rely on prompting for contribution, and rarely, if ever, moves the conversation forward.
Participant, through comments, demonstrates limited to no knowledge of the text and the question(s)
Participant demonstrates below basic levels of critical thinking and critical reading.
Participant, through nonverbal and/or verbal communication, demonstrates minimal to no active listening.
Participant relies mostly on his/her opinions/ideas and less on the text to drive comments.
Participant takes minimal to no notes in the Cornell Note-taking method.
Participant may or may not be able to give portions of a summary of the Socratic Seminar session. May or may not use details from the dialogue.
Name______Class Pd______Date______
In-class Socratic Seminar
Topic: ______
______/ 30 Total Points
______%
Participant Level ______
Instructor Comments: