1. Leadership and Integrity: Are they Compatible?--The Role of Socratic Dialogue in Learning from Our Own and Others' Experience
- Author
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Moir, Dorothy
- Abstract
In response to those whose evaluations of a BELMAS conference suggest a more active role for conference participants, Rene Saran and the author, as trustees of the Society for the Furtherance of the Critical Philosophy (SFCP), discussed with Harry Tomlinson the possibility of offering an introductory form of Socratic Dialogue at the 2003 conference which had as its the theme: "Exploring the Lives of Leaders: Creativity and the Emotional Dimension." They agreed that the question: "Leadership and Integrity: are they compatible?" would complement the conference theme and reflect some of the dilemmas faced by education and other managers, and could be offered over the equivalent of two paper sessions. A participative activity invites those members involved to outline a real-life example drawn from their own experience, and group members reflect on its significance in relation to the particular topic or question. As a dynamic form of structured group facilitation, Socratic Dialogue offers the educator a powerful tool to engage both children and adults in critical thinking and the discovery of ethical principles. Pioneered in Germany and with a more commercial following in the Netherlands, it is a practical method that draws on participants' own life experiences and focuses directly on key current educational priorities, such as the development of thinking skills, listening, reasoned argument and reflection on shared values and beliefs. Those who participate in Socratic Dialogue comment favorably on the process as a means of thinking both individually and in a group about issues which may have many facets and where philosophical and ethical concerns merit close examination in a structured and supportive setting. (Contains 2 online resources and 14 resources.)
- Published
- 2004
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