the socratic method or the case method christoffer wong, faculty of law, lund university...
TRANSCRIPT
Socratic and other Methods
• Socratic Method (as shown in the writings of Plato)
• Case Method (associated with Christopher Columbus Langdell of the Harvard Law School)
• Case Study Method (associated with Harvard Business School)
Elenchus
1. (Logic) refutation of an argument by proving the contrary of its conclusion, especially syllogistically
2. (Logic) Socratic elenchus the drawing out of the consequences of a position in order to show them to be contrary to some accepted position.
Collins English Dictionary
Socratic Elenchus
‘Elenchus’ in the wider sense means examining a person with regard to a statement he has made, by putting to him questions calling for further statements, in the hope that they will determine the meaning and the truth-value of his first statement. Most often the truth-value expected is falsehood; and so ‘elenchus’ in the narrower sense is a form of cross-examination or refutation.
Richard Robinson, Plato’s Earlier Dialectic (Oxford, 1953)
Michael Sandel’s Justice Class
• ‘The Moral Side of Murder’, part of Michael Sandel’s course on justice at Harvard University
• http://www.justiceharvard.org/2011/03/episode-01/#watch
• http://youtu.be/2cGvxH-KlFI?t=33s (sample lecture with Vietnamese subtitles)
The Classical Case Method
• To learn ‘how to think like a lawyer’• Philosophical commitment to the case method
as the best method to learn the law• Focus on the law• The teacher at the centre, directing and
managing questions and answers• Individual responses, Socratic method• Students must be well-prepared
The Case Study Method
• http://casestudies.law.harvard.edu/the-case-study-teaching-method/
Teaching a Case
• The teacher must know the case and has good reason for choosing a particular case
• Guidelines for the students’ preparation; what is expected of the students
• Supplementary material• What legal principles to focus• What the case decides and not decides (read
between the lines)• How to encourage student participation?