Michael Simmons and Gretchen Bade
ACS-Beirut
A Paideia Seminar is a
collaborative, intellectual
conversation about a text,
facilitated with
open-minded questions.
The main purpose is to
arrive at a deeper
understanding of the ideas
in the text, our
perspectives, ourselves and
of each other.
I am responsible for asking
open-ended questions, and I
will take notes on who speaks
and the flow of ideas.
I will help move discussion in
a productive direction by
asking follow-up questions
based on the conversation.
I am asking you to think, listen
and speak openly, honestly,
about your thoughts, reactions
and ideas.
Please refer to each other by
using each other’s names during
our discussion.
You are free to agree
and/or disagree in a
respectful manner.
Focus on the ideas, not the
individuals.
Seminar
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Rules
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Goals
Be Respectful
Listen Actively
No Side Conversations
Do Not Interrupt
Do Not Raise Your
Hand
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Speak 3 Times
Refer to the text
Ask a Relevant Question
Speak Out of Certainty
Build On Another
Students Comment*
NESA Conference- Bangkok 2014
PAIDEIA (py-dee-a) from Greek, pais, paidos:
The upbringing of a child. (Related to pedagogy and
pediatrics.)
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In an extended sense, the equivalent of Latin
humanitas (from which “the humanities”), signifying
the general learning that should be the possession of
all human beings.
Valuable Outcomes of Paideia
Building Community in the Classroom
 Reading and Comprehension Skills
 Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
 Civility
 Thoughtful Reflection
 Deeper Understanding of Concepts
 Meaningful Participation
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Past Seminars….
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If The World Were A Village
Red Scarf Girl
The Lorax
Ethics
The Pledge of Allegiance
With My Own Two Hands
Fight For Your Mind
Moebius Strip
Hamlet
The Paideia Seminar (PDF):
Seminar Plan
Text:
Ideas and Values:
Pre-Seminar
Content — Present relevant background information:
Process — Prepare participants to participate in seminar discussion:
Seminar
Opening — Identify main ideas from the text:
Core — Focus/analyze textual details:
Closing — Personalize and apply the textual ideas:
Post-Seminar
Process — Assess individual and group participation in seminar discussion:
Content — Extend application of textual and discussion ideas:
Generic Seminar Questions
Opening Questions
` What word or phrase is most important in _____________________________?
` What might be another good title for this?
` Do you agree or disagree with main idea or value in this text? (why or why not?)
Core Questions
According to the text, what does the term (or phrase) ____________________ mean?
` In what ways are ____________________ and ___________________alike (or different) ?
` What is the difference between _______________________and _____________________?
` How do you think ____________ was viewed by (or would be viewed by)____________?
` Does the text agree or disagree with this statement: ________________________?
Closing Questions
` What are the consequences or implications of this text or this discussion?
` How do the ideas in the text relate to today?
` What if _____________________ happened (or were true) instead of________?
Sample Text in PDF
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Elements of Chemistry (1789), Antoine
Laurent Lavouisier from the Introduction
Ain’t I a Woman, Sojourner Truth
“Staircase” Problem (Math)
The World of MC Escher (Art)
Any Human to Another, by Countee Cullen
Traveling through the Dark, by William
Stafford
Tao te Ching, by Lao Tzu
Of Studies, by Francis Bacon
On the Liberty of Thought and Discussion,
by John Stuart Mill
Sample Seminar Plans
“How Flowers Changed the World”
from The Immense Journey (1946)
Loren Eiseley
 “The Gettysburg Address” (1863)
Abraham Lincoln
 Sacrament of the Last Supper (1955)
Salvador Dali
 Hamlet’s Soliloquy (~1599)
William Shakespeare
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