'It started on a warm summer's evening in ancient Greece circa 434 BC'
Meet Socrates - the man who taught Plato and Xenophon and was mentioned in plays by Aristophanes and works by Aristotle. He was a thinker and not a writer so remains an enigma. What we do know about him was that he enjoyed thinking about thinking and how we could challenge ourselves to think better and he was sentenced to death by drinking a fatal concoction having been convicted of corrupting the minds of Athenians.
His final words during his trial were:
"The hour of departure has arrived, and we go our ways — I to die, and you to live. Which is better God only knows."
What does this have to do with your exam and revision?
Socrates challenged students to think in deeper ways. I've asked you to look at various methods of electronic communication as part of your revision. Now for you to move from Uni-structural (Level 3) thought to Extended Abstract (Level 7+) thought (see the diagram and remember Thursday's lessons) you need to question yourself so that you can develop deeper thinking and please Socrates!
I've asked you to look at the electronic communication your partake in during this week and consider how and why the person is using language in this way. Here are a series of questions (Socrates created these and loved using them with the young people he came into contact with) to help you extend your thinking.
So first of all:
Consider whether the language used is formal or informal then go through the series of questions to help you think in a deeper way.
1) Why is the person using the language they are using? (Think Context, Audience, Platform, Person)
2) Is this always the case? (Do they always communicate this way? Does a young person always use slang? Is an older person always formal? etc etc)
3) What is your evidence for this? (What has helped you answer the previous questions? Are there certain words that stand out and back up your ideas? Can you link this to a wider point or wider evidence relating to communication?)
4) Is there another way of looking at this? (What are the counter-arguments to your point? Could someone else look at this and see it in a different way?)
5) What are the consequences of this? (Do you think the reception of the communication is as the person writing intended it? What effect does it have on the audience?)
6) Why was it important to consider all of the above? (Has our deeper thinking brought out information that wouldn't necessarily be apparent in our first answer to the question? Is there anything particularly interesting that has come out because of your questioning?)
If you are effectively answering each of these questions then you are achieving Extended Abstract thought!
Choose a piece of communication you've received recently (Twitter, Facebook, Kik, Text, Instant Messenger, WhatsApp etc) and have a go - post your answers below and I can rate your thinking!
Good luck
Meet Socrates - the man who taught Plato and Xenophon and was mentioned in plays by Aristophanes and works by Aristotle. He was a thinker and not a writer so remains an enigma. What we do know about him was that he enjoyed thinking about thinking and how we could challenge ourselves to think better and he was sentenced to death by drinking a fatal concoction having been convicted of corrupting the minds of Athenians.
His final words during his trial were:
"The hour of departure has arrived, and we go our ways — I to die, and you to live. Which is better God only knows."
What does this have to do with your exam and revision?
Socrates challenged students to think in deeper ways. I've asked you to look at various methods of electronic communication as part of your revision. Now for you to move from Uni-structural (Level 3) thought to Extended Abstract (Level 7+) thought (see the diagram and remember Thursday's lessons) you need to question yourself so that you can develop deeper thinking and please Socrates!
I've asked you to look at the electronic communication your partake in during this week and consider how and why the person is using language in this way. Here are a series of questions (Socrates created these and loved using them with the young people he came into contact with) to help you extend your thinking.
So first of all:
Consider whether the language used is formal or informal then go through the series of questions to help you think in a deeper way.
1) Why is the person using the language they are using? (Think Context, Audience, Platform, Person)
2) Is this always the case? (Do they always communicate this way? Does a young person always use slang? Is an older person always formal? etc etc)
3) What is your evidence for this? (What has helped you answer the previous questions? Are there certain words that stand out and back up your ideas? Can you link this to a wider point or wider evidence relating to communication?)
4) Is there another way of looking at this? (What are the counter-arguments to your point? Could someone else look at this and see it in a different way?)
5) What are the consequences of this? (Do you think the reception of the communication is as the person writing intended it? What effect does it have on the audience?)
6) Why was it important to consider all of the above? (Has our deeper thinking brought out information that wouldn't necessarily be apparent in our first answer to the question? Is there anything particularly interesting that has come out because of your questioning?)
If you are effectively answering each of these questions then you are achieving Extended Abstract thought!
Choose a piece of communication you've received recently (Twitter, Facebook, Kik, Text, Instant Messenger, WhatsApp etc) and have a go - post your answers below and I can rate your thinking!
Good luck
