Overview

“Socrates was one of the greatest educators who taught by asking questions and thus drawing out answers from his pupils. Here are the six types of questions that Socrates asked his pupils. The overall purpose of Socratic questioning, is to challenge accuracy and completeness of thinking in a way that acts to move people towards their ultimate goal.”

changingminds.org

Purpose: Conceptual Clarification
Get them to think more about what exactly they are asking or thinking about. Prove the concepts behind their argument. Use basic 'tell me more' questions that get them to go deeper.	Why are you saying that? What exactly does this mean? How does this relate to what we have been talking about? What do we already know about this? Can you give me an example? Are you saying ... or ... ? Can you rephrase that, please?

Purpose: Probing Assumptions
Probing their assumptions makes them think about the presuppositions and unquestioned beliefs on which they are founding their argument. This is shaking the bedrock and should get them really going!	What else could we assume? You seem to be assuming ... ? How did you choose those assumptions? Please explain why/how ... ? How can you verify or disprove that assumption? What would happen if ... ?

Purpose: Probing Rationale, Reasons and Evidence
When they give a rationale for their arguments, dig into that reasoning rather than assuming it is a given. People often use un-thought-through or weakly-understood supports for their arguments.	Why is that happening? How do you know this? Can you give me an example of that? What do you think causes ... ? Are these reasons good enough? How might it be refuted? How can I be sure of what you are saying? What evidence is there to support what you are saying? On what authority are you basing your argument?

Purpose: Questioning Viewpoints and Perspectives
Most arguments are given from a particular position. So guide them to explore their position. Show that there are other, equally valid, viewpoints.	Another way of looking at this is ..., does this seem reasonable? What alternative ways of looking at this are there? Why is x necessary? Who benefits from this? What is the difference between... and...? What are the strengths and weaknesses of...? How are ... and ... similar? What if you compared ... and ... ? How could you look another way at this?

Purpose: Probe Implications and Consequences
The argument that they give may have logical implications that can be forecast. Do these make sense? Are they desirable?	Then what would happen? What are the consequences of that assumption? How could ... be used to ... ? What are the implications of ... ? How does ... affect ... ? How does ... fit with what we learned before? Why is ... important?

Purpose: Questions about the Question
And you can also get reflexive about the whole thing, turning the question in on itself. Bounce the ball back into their court, etc.	What was the point of asking that question? Why do you think I asked this question? Am I making sense? Why not? What else might I ask? What does that mean?

Overview

Purpose: Conceptual Clarification

Purpose: Probing Assumptions

Purpose: Probing Rationale, Reasons and Evidence

Purpose: Questioning Viewpoints and Perspectives

Purpose: Probe Implications and Consequences

Purpose: Questions about the Question