Here is the reflection prompt and a link to summaries of the other two plays in the trilogy-Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone. They are pretty comprehensive summaries, so I hope you take the time to read them!
Socratic Seminar Reflection
Socratic Seminar Reflection
Format: Typed, double-spaced, 1-2 pages, 12 pt. Times News Roman, 1” margins
In your reflection, you should discuss the following categories:
1. Specific ideas you found particularly interesting and why. Give specific examples and explain your reasoning. Please include who said the idea (this shows me you were listening carefully).
For example, “I found Brad’s speculation that not wearing white after Labor Day is connected to the Puritan’s dress code for wearing somber outfit interesting because I had not made that connection myself. However, I am not sure I agree with this connection because I am wondering whether those arbitrary color rules have more to do with Southern etiquette and Emily Post rather than Puritanism. I need more information on this; however, Brad’s comment jump started my thinking on the ways in which we dress in America today and how they might be connected to Puritanism.”
2. Unanswered questions or ideas you are still grappling with regarding the topic. Explain why you still have these questions or intellectual tensions.
For example, “I question George Will’s argument that Puritan asceticism has led to the gross accumulation of “material delights” in our society today. Were people truly rebelling against the Puritan way of life or was capitalism in and of itself a driving force? Can we really link the two? I am not convinced by Will’s reasoning. I need more evidence suggesting that people’s extravagant spending is a response to Puritanical austerity.”
3. Discussion of why you scored yourself on the rubric for each category the way you did and specific examples supporting your self-score.
For example, “I responded to Oscar V’s question regarding whether President Bush is a modern-day Puritan. I referred to the Puritan Moral Code’s rule that all sins should be punished and connected this code to Bush’s references to evil in the Middle East needing to be crushed. This example reflects how I was listening intently to the conversation, following the ideas, and extending them by providing a relevant example that pushed the discussion forward, which is why I gave myself an “Excellent” in listening and speaking and reasoning.”
4. The class’s overall participation and assessment of your chosen person– strengths and areas of improvement. Please provide specific examples supporting your point.
For example, don’t say: “Everyone was nice.” Instead say, “Generally, everyone listened carefully to the speaker. For example, I noticed that when Luis was speaking, every student was looking at him and taking notes. This also happened when Stephanie talked about Edwards’s simile about God’s wrath being bent like a bow. However, when Garrett was talking, I saw two people whispering. This happened several other times. Due to our class’s inconsistent listening, I would say it was a strength at times as well as an area of improvement. Additionally, I observed [student’s name]. She was prepared because…”
Also, here is a link to our class-created rubric for you to self-assess on:
https://docs.google.com/a/cpsed.net/document/d/151vVSWXZpOmK3_BNr7a080HU3aafa35oFzQAWhMQupg/edit?usp=sharing
Also, here is a link to our class-created rubric for you to self-assess on:
https://docs.google.com/a/cpsed.net/document/d/151vVSWXZpOmK3_BNr7a080HU3aafa35oFzQAWhMQupg/edit?usp=sharing
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteRene Richardson
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
8 May 2016
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
The Oedipus socratic seminar had several topics for us to discuss, this socratic seminar helped me to further my knowledge. One thing I found interesting was when Leah said, “It was Oedipus’ free will and determination to find the truth, which ruined him.” This was interesting because many can argue that it was Oedipus’ fate to find the truth out, and he was bound to fall. I believe that Oedipus’ fate was bound to happen, but it was his free will to find out. Another thing I found interesting was when Sarah said “Oedipus calls the blind prophet weak and knows nothing, even though he doesn’t know anything about himself or the truth.” This is very ironic, and this is one of the things that make the story what it is. I did not have an unanswered question, but one question that got some people thinking was, “What is the significance of the irony in Oedipus?”. I scored myself a 4 for speaking and listening, because I believe I exceeded the standards. I spoke really clearly, and I made sure to listen and respond to people on topic. I asked many questions that kept the conversation move along as well. Also, I scored myself a 3 for using textual evidence because I used my double sided journal with the quotes for back up, but I did not use evidence every time. I scored myself a 3 because I prepared for all the topics and made sure I had enough information to keep the conversation moving, but it was not at an exceeding amount. Also, I scored myself a 4 in leadership because tried to move the conversation many times, and I also asked questions to keep people thinking. Overall, the class participation was outstanding. This is true because the groups where a lot smaller than usual, and the conversations were moving and had little awkward silence. Not only that, but people responded educatedly to others, listened, and had eye contact. My partners where all leaders in the conversations and they kept it moving. In conclusion, this socratic seminar was a major success, and it helped to further our knowledge on Oedipus.
Thank you for your comments Rene. Do you think the smaller groups work better for Socratic seminar??
DeleteI personally prefer the larger groups, but then again, the smaller groups allowed more participation and engagement.
DeleteHannah Torres
ReplyDeleteMrs.Colando
English 9 Honors
5/5/16
Oedipus Socratic Seminar
A few days ago, I participated in a socratic seminar. The topic of the Socratic Seminar that I was in during the inner circle was the importance of the sight/ blindness motifs throughout the play. One comment that I found was interesting was a thought by Virak. He was talking about how Oedipus already “connected the dots,” about his parents, but not wanting to face the truth he instead avoided it at all costs. I agree with this connection and also had this written on my preparation sheet. When Oedipus talks about having a faint memory of the killing of Laios, it seems that he knows the truth but does not want his faith to be true. One question I still have is when did Iocaste realize that Oedipus was her son? She must have known before the shepherd had told them. Although this question came up in the discussion it was not given a direct answer.
On the rubric, I gave myself a four on Speaking and Listening. I believe that I asked questions that prompted other questions and discussions. Before responding or saying something, I would make sure that nobody said the same thing before me. I made eye contact with the group and used a loud, clear speaking voice. For the Using Textual Evidence box, I gave myself a three. For most of the thing I said I would back it up with textual evidence, but I did not refer back to the text for everything I said. For Preparation, I gave myself a four. Prior to coming into the seminar, I filled my notebook pages with direct quotes from the text, as well as answering every question. I reviewed the quotes beforehand and used them effectively during the seminar. For leadership, I gave myself a four. Although there were many awkward silences, when I found something to discuss I would bring it up right away. I also think that the silences were due to the smaller groups.
Overall, I believe that both the first and second Socratic Seminars were successful and thorough. In both the first and second seminars, everyone seemed to listen to each other and base what they said off of that. All of the people that I followed seemed to play an effective role in their seminars and helped the conversation to keep moving.
Thank you for your comments. How did you feel about the smaller groups this time??
DeleteI do not think that the smaller groups worked as well.
DeleteLeah Ragosta
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
11 May 2016
Reflecting on the Tragedy of Oedipus
After reading Oedipus, our class was involved in various Socratic Seminars. I was part of the group that discussed whether Oedipus was a victim of fate or free will. Some topics I found interesting that were talked about in the discussion were about how Oedipus was a victim of both fate and free will. I believe Sarah brought up how Oedipus’ fate was already set before the conflict of him finding his origin even began. Others agreed and added how he couldn’t do anything about his actual fate, but the prophecy did not say he had to know. It was Oedipus’ free will and stubbornness that was his ultimate downfall. Another thing that I found interest was the Jake’s resource that talked more about the ancient Greek culture. This gave the class further information on the setting and the beliefs of the people to get a different perspective on the play. A question I still have relates to today’s society. My question is “What do the majority of people believe control their life; fate or free will?”. Many people have different views on how both play a role in everyday life which is what I find interesting. In the speaking and listening category, I rated myself a 4. My voice was clear and concise and I made eye contact with other group members as I spoke and as they spoke. Also when others spoke I was polite and thoroughly listened and thought about what they had to say. I asked various questions to keep the conversation going as well. For textual evidence I rated myself a 3 because I used direct quotes from my double sided journals to backup my claims. However I did not do this for every point I made. For preparation, I believe I deserve a 4 because along with my double sided journals, I took notes and gathered textual evidence for all 5 topics. Also I found outside resources for all 5 as well. Finally, for leadership i rated myself a 4 because I effectively moved the conversation along by asking questions and trying to find deeper meanings on the different ideas and topics in Oedipus. Overall, participation in my group was great. There was always ideas and questions being given so we didn’t have to stretch to keep the conversation going. Many different points were brought up. Everyone was respectful and went off the ideas of others showing we payed clear attention to our peers. I followed Sarah S., Anahid, Alicia, and Medha. All were great leaders in the discussion and frequently asked questions that sparked conversation in their groups. Some topics mentioned by my partners were how Choragos influenced the characters but at the same time was unbiased, how Oedipus and people today are stubborn and blind themselves to the truth to only hear what they want to hear, and how fate maybe somewhat plans out your life.
Good job on honestly self-assessing. Do you think the smaller groups worked better??
DeleteThank you. I think that smaller groups did work better because it encouraged everyone to speak and thoroughly respond to each other.
DeleteHannah DiLullo
ReplyDeleteMrs.Colando
English 9 Honors
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
My class held a socratic seminar about the play Oedipus, we were divided into five groups that each focused on a different question. My group focused on Irony and the play, I felt that the members in my group had many interesting questions and statements such as asking how if the play didn’t have all the irony would it be the same, and giving input on how the irony made the play more entertaining. I found these ideas so interesting because it really helped me make a connection between irony and the play. I did not leave the socratic seminar with any unanswered questions because any questions that I had were answered in the seminar. I scored myself a 3 in speaking and listening because I felt that although I did put in an effort to add my opinion on things I didn't ask as many questions as I could have, or helped move the conversation along. For using textual evidence I gave myself a 4 because I felt like I related back to the play and went back to my double sided journals to back up any claims that I made. I scored myself a 3 in preparation because I felt that I did not have all the materials that I needed and I could have been much more prepared than I was. I scored myself a 3 in leadership because I did not carry the conversation along or expand on ideas as much as I could have. Overall I felt that my class did a great job with the seminars, I think that the group I was in did a great job with preparation and were very engaged in the discussion.
How did you feel about the smaller groups this time??
DeleteAlicia Francis
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
10 May, 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
I’d like to start off by saying that everyone that participated in the socratic seminars did an amazing job and were able to give insightful answers and gave citing from the text to back it up. All the while pulling out new questions for the rest of the group to ponder. I participated and was asked the question of how does Choragos and the chorus function in the play? And whether or not the play could function without them. I thought what Zari said was interesting, how Choragos is the voice of reason and is to guide the characters to make the right choices and stated that today kids television shows have narrators like Choragos that point out the wrong from the right when the children don’t know any better. I also like how Katie said that if the chorus were to function in plays today they wouldn’t be needed because during those times all opinions had to be the same and no one could differ, but now we have the right to state our opinions whether they agree with another or not. This socratic seminar was especially interesting with all the different points brought up in various questions such as how Virak pointed out that fate is like a magician where it makes you believe that you have the power to choose what you may, but as it turns out it’s just the choice he wanted you to pick. I had a question upon the topic of fate that is opinion based and that is do you believe that fate controls your choices? As in, it makes you believe that you are the one making your decisions, but do you think all the bad decisions you have made and may have regretted is fate’s way of getting you to learn from mistakes in hopes of becoming a better person? I would just like to see where others may stand on the fate vs. free will debate with this question. For speaking and listening I scored myself a two because even though I listened I did not speak that often in the group discussion. I graded myself as a one in using textual evidence because I didn’t use any evidence to support my claims. In preparation I graded myself as a two because I answered the questions and annotated but did not use those annotations to support my claims and I had very few questions. In leadership I believe it is a one because as I said I barely talked nor did I ask questions. I believe everyone participating in these socratic seminars did a nice job on asking insightful question and building upon each other’s ideas and thoughts many came prepared with text to support their claims, but I noticed that not many could find examples of anything today that could connect to fate vs. free will or other topics within Oedipus.
I think you sometimes rate yourself too harshly. I actually wrote down all of your comments in the discussion and it filled up half a page! I have definitely seen much improvement in your seminar discussions!
DeleteZari Apodaca
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9H, Per 4
11 May 2016
Socratic Seminar: Oedipus Rex
Oedipus Rex is a Greek tragedy (one of three) that tells the story of King Oedipus and the awful fate he would face and his coming to realization of it. Our class read Oedipus and analyzed it in its entirety. All of the Socratic seminars had a good discussion throughout and thought well about the topics. I found a lot of ideas in each seminar interesting and thoughtful. In the first seminar when the topic question was “Was Oedipus a victim of fate, or a victim of his own free will? Did Oedipus have any control over what was going to happen to him? Or was it always meant to be? Could Oedipus have controlled his fate? Is this a more complicated argument than fate v. free will?”. I followed Rachel and when she said that “If Oedipus was so paranoid about his fate coming true, he should have avoided leaving and getting married even if he didn't know”, I find this intriguing that she made it very simple, putting it into an “if then” statement bluntly. If Oedipus didn't want that to happen, then he should've found every way to avoid doing it. In the second group the focus question was, “What were the importance of the sight/blindness motifs throughout play?” and I followed Sarah Sylvia. This question is based off the biggest theme in the play that Oedipus was blind to his truths and when he found them out, and then gouged out his eyes so he was really blind. Sarah added to the discussion an outside comparison about a woman who has predicted things like Barack Obama’s presidency and other major events and that this may be a conspiracy. If I was in the group, I would've responded that we all face a certain fate and are blind to it. I think that we all have many fates that we are not aware of, yet our free will choices lead us to one of the given fates. The only thing I don't understand is why the words “swollen foot” is verbal irony to Oedipus’ tragic abandonment. I understand the ankles being bound together but not the swollen feet. On the rubric, I graded myself a 4 in Speaking and Listening, 3 in Using Textual Evidence, 4 in Preparation, and 4 in Leadership. For speaking and listening, I listened to my peers respectfully when they talked in the group discussion and spoke clearly. For textual evidence, I had tried to find quotes for the discussion about the importance of Choragos however, most of the discussion about him was insight. For preparation, I was prepared with answers for all of the questions. However, my topic didn't provide enough questions to talk about and I was comfortable enough with the topic to find questions on the spot about the topic. For leadership, I moved along the conversation as there were numerous awkward silences and proposed thoughtful questions to the group so that we would have something to discuss. Everyone participated and did a very good job. I enjoyed doing a smaller group because it encourages people who have a harder time speaking to contribute more.
Nice job on this reflection and nice job in the seminar! I like the way you specifically reference people's comments and then offer additional insight. Really good work!
DeleteI liked the smaller groups better because it felt as though people felt more comfortable to share their ideas. Whereas when there is a larger group, dominant students take over and shyer ones feel as though they can't get a word in edgewise.
DeleteMelissa Murphy
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
10 May 2016
These socratic seminars about the great story Oedipus were very productive, and a lot of great ideas came up. The first group to go had to discuss fate vs. free will theme in Oedipus. I chose to follow Sarah Hobin. A very interesting point she brought up and the group evaluated is, Oedipus’ fate was to kill his father and marry his mother, however, it was his own free will to find out the truth and punish himself for it. This was very interesting because it shows how Oedipus cannot blame his fate for the way he turned out (exiled) because it was his own choice to do that. One thing I would have added if I was apart of the discussion is connecting Oedipus with modern day christianity. Jesus was given a fate, and he chose to live it out. I wonder, does this relate to Oedipus in any way? Overall, the group kept the discussion flowing very nicely. The second group was given the task of talking about the theme of people being blind to the truth. The group brought up different ways in which people in the play were blind to the truth, and the irony that went along with it. One example of this is that Tiresias, who can see everyone's’ fate is ironically physically blind. There is also irony in the fact that Oedipus is blind to the truth, and then once he sees it, he physically blinds himself. The group focused heavily on how Oedipus was blind to the truth, so I found it interesting that Holly questioned, “Do you think anyone else in the story is blind to the truth?” The group thought about this question, then talked about how characters such as Iocasta are also blind to the truth. Although the group did talk a lot about Oedipus being blind, if i was apart of the discussion I would have just focused a bit more in the irony of Oedipus gouging his eyes out. The last group I got to witness recieve the topic of all types of irony in the story. This group struggled a bit with finding new things to talk about to keep the discussion going, but did a good job working through the awkward silence. I myself had trouble finding verbal irony in the story. However, Steven Amaral opened by eyes to one very good example and that is Oedipus’ name is verbal irony in itself. His name literally means swollen foot, but he was named this because he was tied up as a kid. However, he really did not die as planned. This group got off topic a bit and started to talk about fate vs. free will, so if I was to be apart of the discussion I would just add how the fate vs. free will is connected to the irony in the story. The groups that talked about the various of topics regarding Oedipus answered nearly all my questions, however one question that I still wish to be answered is, are Odeipus and all the other characters in the story symbolic of something? Could Iocaste represent the big mistake, Oedipus a “blind man”, etc.
I like your connection and question to modern christianity. This would have been an interesting topic to further our discussion.
Deletept2.
ReplyDeleteI scored myself 3’s and 4s on the rubric. For speaking and listening, I scored myself a 4 because I felt as though I had a good speaking voice and listen to my other classmates. I asked well over 3 questions and made eye contact. In the category “using textual evidence” I rated myself a three. I did not use a lot of specific quotes in my story, however in my defense, the question I was given was hard to support with specific lines from the play. For preparation I scored myself a 4 because I spent a lot of time thinking about the question given to me and trying to think of example and relate it to the 21st century. Lastly, I scored myself a 4 in leadership. I thought I definitely stepped up and asked questions, brought others into the conversation, and kept the conversation going. As a whole, both the class and my partners did a very good job doing these socratic seminars. I saw no one engaging in side conversations while a group was going, and everyone inside the group were respectful of each other. However, no one’s perfect. I think each of my partners could have prepared a little bit more making it easier to keep the discussion flowing, and Holly could have spoken/ questioned more in her seminar.
Do you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones??
DeleteOne idea that I found particularly interesting with this topic was the idea of how Oedipus’ trying to determine his own fate is what made the fate come true. This idea was one that was discussed in many various times in the seminar, said by pretty much everyone in the group. I found this interesting because it helped to show how fate work in the minds of the ancient greeks, and how it is unavoidable. Another interesting topic in the discussion was brought up by me at the beginning of the seminar, where I discussed how important that fate was to the Greeks. I felt that this helped to show where the theme had come from.
ReplyDeleteOne question that I am still grappling with is the question of whether or not being more careful would have changed Oedipus’ fate. Of course, we discussed ways in which Oedipus could have tried to avoid his fate, but we still have no proof as to whether or not this would have changed anything. With the recurring theme of fate evident in the story, it would only make sense that Oedipus could not avoid his fate no matter how hard he tried. That is at least my opinion on the matter.
I would rate myself at a “4” in Speaking and listening, because I feel as though I paid attention to the seminar at all times, and I answered with my thinking and philosophy appropriately. I would rate myself at a “4” in using textual evidence because I used evidence from the text in most of my arguments, if not a direct quote, then at least a mention of something that happened in the story. I would give myself a “4” in preparation because I did research on my given topic, and highlighted quotes that I believed were important. I would rate myself a “3” in leadership, because I only moved the conversation forward occasionally, and I started the conversation and would sometimes introduce a new topic.
I believe that our class participation has risen dramatically in this socratic seminar. This is because most of the people that I observed in this seminar I have observed before, and they have all had a significant increase in participation. This is for the obvious reason of a decrease in group size while maintaining a similar length of seminar. This made the entire class participate more and go deeper into a discussion. I highly enjoyed this system, and I hope that it is used in later socratic seminars.
Nice job on this reflection. So, it looks like you think that the smaller groups are more effective?
DeleteAnahid Donoyan
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 honors
11 May 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection: Oedipus Rex
I thought that the five socratic seminars that the class had discussing Oedipus Rex were all a success. As a class we did a good job of going into detail and really discussing what the questions had asked. Throughout the seminars there were certain things that were said that really stood out to me as I watched on the outer circle. One of the interesting points I heard was during the first socratic seminar when my partner Rachel brought up how that Oedipus tried too hard to run away from his fate, but instead he ran right into it. This was later interpreted into how no matter how far you run your destiny will catch up to you. I agree with Rachel’s comment, it made me think what would have happened if Oedipus just stayed where he was and he did not try to move away from his fate. I believe that if Oedipus really wanted to avoid his fate he should have just isolated himself from everyone and he should not have gotten married at all. Another interesting point brought up was during the second seminar when Sarah S. was talking about how Oedipus was so egotistical that he did not want to believe what Tiresias was saying about his life. I think that this statement was valid Oedipus thought that no one could tell him what to do or think because he was the king and also the only one who could solve the riddle of the Sphinx. I do not have any questions that are still unanswered because all of the questions i had were brought up during the seminars and were answered then. When scoring, I gave myself threes and fours. In the first category of speaking and listening I gave myself a four for all of the bullets, and a three for one of them. The three on the part that says “asks three questions”, I thought that my questions were minor and I asked only three regarding my topic. For the rest of the listening and speaking category I gave myself a four. I spoke so everyone could hear, I responded to others questions and most importantly, I made eye contact with other members of the group while I was speaking. The second category on the rubric was using textual evidence. I gave myself a 3.5 for this category because when I made a claim I used a quote to back it up and to validate it when I could. I could not give myself a four because it was hard to use textual evidence during my topic. However, I did add a few quotes during the discussion in attempt to relate the discussion back to the text. I also graded myself with a four on the third category of the rubric which was about preparation. I came to class with my notes and was ready to participate in the discussion. I even had an online source which showed how Oedipus was relevant in the 21st century, today. In the leadership category, I gave myself a four. I think I did well summarizing others’ ideas and linking these ideas to what I thought. I listened very closely to other people in the inner circle and added to what they had to say. I thought that my ideas made some of the group members change their opinion and what they had to say. Overall as a class I think that this set of discussions was a success. The class did a good job of backing up their claims with textual evidence. I saw this the most in group four. I also think that we did a good job discussing the topics that were more difficult and keeping the conversation moving. The questions that were asked throughout the seminars really made everyone think of things in a new way and they brought new ideas into the discussions.
Here are the links to websites I used to prepare for the seminar: http://brainstorm-services.com/wcu-lit/oedipus.html
http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/how-oedipus-rex-still-significant-21st-century-303518
Nice job reflecting. Do you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones??
DeleteI do think the smaller groups worked better because I had more of a chance to say what I had prepared. However, I think the seminar was a bit lengthy. Sometimes everyone doesn't have a chance to speak in the larger groups so smaller ones are better.
DeleteEdwin van Renselaar
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
12 May 2016
I thought that it was interesting in the discussion about the chorus and Choragos how Zari said that the chorus acted as a foreshadower to the play. I completely agree with this thought and after she said that, I went back to look at the chorus (already knowing the upcoming events of the play) and saw that the chorus did in fact foreshadow. Another thing that she said was that Choragos could essentially be classified as a more important character in the play because he was involved with majority of the arguments. She said that the play wouldn’t function However, in this point, Choragos was constantly ignored and nobody took his advice. With or without him, the play would have functioned because he was ignored in the decision making process. In the discussion about irony, there was many interesting things said. For example, one thing that Steve had asked was, “How do you think Oedipus’ children feel after they found out about the family situation?” I thought this was an interesting question even though it did not exactly mean much to irony. I need more information to see how they feel.
I do not have any unanswered questions based on all of the seminars except for one and this was in my seminar. Something that was a hard concept to grasp and understand was the fact of relating this to the 21st century. At first I took it very literal and then throughout the discussion my mind had changed. But one question that I still need to look into personally and take thoughts of others is, how would the play differ if it were in the 21st century rather than in the olden time.
On the self-assessment rubric, I gave myself a 4 in the Speaking and Listening area. I was only there for 2 of the seminars not including my own, I listened pretty well and took good notes and questions that had been brought up in my head and in the discussion. I had also talked and asked a lot of questions within my own group that generated some new discussions and ideas. In the Using Textual Evidence I gave myself a 3 because I had referred to the text as much as I could. I had looked in the text every time a new question or thought had been brought up. Although I did not use the text for every single argument I tried with as much as I could given the hardness of our topic. In the Preparation criteria, I graded myself a 4 because I was well prepared for all of the seminars even though I only participated in one. For my own seminar, I had many ideas and questions that were brought up and that was good preparation. Lastly, in Leadership, I graded myself a a 3 because I was not leading the majority of the discussion but I did lead many conversations and discussions.
Overall I think majority of the class participated very well. Everyone had something to say about the discussion or their partner when they were on the outer circle so that showed that everyone listened well. However in the actual group, some people barely spoke and did not contribute to the discussion enough. Nobody had interrupted each other and they let everyone speak and talk.
Nice job on your self-assessment. Do you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones??
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteEthan Izzo
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
5/11/2016
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
During the socratic seminar I found many ideas that were brought up very interesting, however some truly stood out. I found it interesting when my group talked about whether or not characters like Choragos, or the chorus were still relevant in today’s shows. Our group all agreed that in today’s shows we don’t really see characters anything like either the chorus or Choragos. We don’t see people acting as a chorus because we do not really need people to voice the thoughts of the audience today because everyone can have varying opinions. However, while we agreed that we didn’t see many narrators like Choragos however, we couldn’t think of many reasons why we wouldn’t see people like Choragos.
I feel that all of my questions regarding my group’s prompt, were answered in the socratic seminar. I also feel that the other four groups did a very good job of explaining their topics, so I lack many questions to ask in that aspect as well.
On speaking and listening I gave myself a 4 because I talked much more than I normally do, and did fairly well backing up the topics that I stated. In using textual evidence I gave myself a 3 because while I backed up most of my ideas, I believe that I fell short of earning a 4. In preparation I gave myself a 4 because I felt like I was well prepared for my group’s topic. In leadership I gave myself a 3 because I did ask a few questions to keep the group moving, however I did not ask many questions and therefore did not progress the group very much.
Overall I believe that the entire class participated far more than times in the past and everyone did a good job expressing their ideas. Through the seminar I followed Jake, Jake did a very good job backing up his ideas, and he was capable a speaking clearly during his seminar, however there is room for improvement in how many times he spoke. One of the most interesting things that Jake said, in my opinion, was when He compared Oedipus’ fate to the prophecy of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars movies. Overall I feel as though we, as a class, did very well breaking down these certain focus points of Oedipus.
I see a big improvement in your seminar participation. Nice job!
DeleteSarah Hobin
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
11 May 2016
Self Reflection
During the five socratic seminars, I was able to get a better understanding of many concepts in Oedipus. In the second seminar, I thought Hannah Torres had an interesting comment when she asked why everyone trusted the blind seer. I had never thought of this question, but when she brought it up, I had the same wonder that she did. In the third seminar Katie Blake mentioned that the audience might already be thinking what the chorus is saying. I agree with this to an extent, but I also believe that that the chorus provided an explanation for the gory scenes that happened behind the scenes. In the fourth seminar, Hannah D mentioned that everything is free will. It is your free will to get up, to eat, to walk, to run, anything. I had never thought of each simple action as being free will but this comment gave me a better understanding of how free will comes into play in our daily lives. In the fifth seminar Edwin made a comment said that people today are set on an idea and they do not want anything else to happen, they want it to go the way they want it to. I agree with this. Today people, are arrogant and want things to go their way, people take fate into their own hands and try to control it with free will.
I have confusion about one of Edwin’s comments that he made during his seminar. He said that the chorus acts as an instigator. However, I was not sure what he meant by this. I assume that it is meaning that the chorus keeps the storyline going. This was the only question I was left pondering after the seminars.
For the rubric, I gave myself a 4 in speaking and listening. I feel that I met the standards and participated greatly without dominating the conversation. I was able to listen to comments from Jake, Rachel, and Leah and respond to them. I made eye contact when speaking and asked multiple questions. For using textual evidence, I gave myself a 4. I had quotes in front of me during the seminar and shared my findings with the group. In the preparation section, I also gave myself a 4. I typed out a preparation packet with preparations for each seminar. I answered the guiding questions, gathered a quote, an outside source, and wrote down any other thoughts of mine. In the category of leadership is graded myself with a 4. I kept the conversation on topic as best as I could and brought up key ideas that I had noted on my preparation sheet. I was able to question and clarify the thoughts of others.
Hannah Torres was a classmate that I followed and she was able to show a great leadership role. When she talked she made eye contact and made eye contact when another person was speaking. One general area that the class as a whole could work on is more speaking and the volume of speaking. At times there was silence and this happened frequently between all of the seminars. Voice level was also a problem in the seminars. I could barely hear students sometimes and I feel the seminar would have been better if all of the observers could hear.
Nice job thinking deeply about others' comments and writing about them here. Do you think the smaller groups worked better?
DeleteI think that the small groups opened up discussion and helped more people participate in the seminar. I think seminars worked well in small groups but 20 minutes or 15 minutes would be a better time frame.
DeleteI was also in this seminar, and when Hannah asked this question it also made me realize how everyone in the play just believed the blind man and I found it interesting
DeleteIs Life For Real?
ReplyDeleteDuring the most recent Socratic Seminars, the class discussed the play “Oedipus Rex” written by Sophocles, using several predetermined questions to guide and control the conversations. My group used the guiding question “What were the importances of the sight/blindness motifs throughout the play?” In the early stages of the discussion, the group focussed on the irony surrounding the idea that a man who was considered to be the wisest of all, could not see his own fate playing out in front of him, although the old, blind prophet Tiresias knew all along. The group also discussed the significance behind Oedipus stabbing his eyes out, and his reasoning for doing so. We began to discuss the stubbornness and ignorance of Oedipus. In a previous Socratic Seminar, another group highlighted how Oedipus was far too stubborn to piece together his own fate, despite all of the signs pointing to his tragic, predetermined life story. Our group began to question whether ignorance really is bliss, or if the truth truly is the best, even if it pains us to hear. Holly summed this topic up well by stating “Honesty is the best policy, unless you’re Oedipus.” In almost every discussion, despite whether it was a guided question or not, a conversation concerning “Fate vs. Free Will” always made itself present. Leah made an interesting point by stating that although the unfortunate destiny of Oedipus can be considered his predisposed fate, his will to find his origin was his own personal choice. This argument of Fate vs. Free Will is still relevant in today’s world, so I would like to further discuss this topic. If I participated in one of these discussions, I would ask “Is life really just a script?” in order to gather others’ insight on how they think of life, in general, and if they think that fate or free will is more dominant in today’s world. Additionally, we discussed not only if the Fate vs. Free Will argument is still relevant, but also if any underlying themes of Oedipus are relevant. Dominic made an interesting claim that with the addition of the chorus, and also in Greek society in general, everyone was taught to believe one thing. However, if the play took place in today’s society, it would be much different, considering everyone has different beliefs and morals, and has the right to these differing beliefs and morals. Alicia and Zari highlighted how the chorus talked to the audience as children, in a way to attempt to influence their beliefs, which was an interesting discussion from a historical standpoint. On the rubric, I would rate myself a 4 in Speaking and Listening because I think that I actively participated more than I usually do. I also would rate myself a 4 in both preparation and in using textual evidence because I thought that most of the arguments I made and questions I asked in the discussion I prepared for using evidence from the play. I would give myself a 3 in leadership because although I did actively participate, I would not say that I established myself as a strong leader in the discussion.
If you're interested in the blind prophet Baba Vanga:https://www.yahoo.com/news/heres-what-baba-vanga-predicted-for-2016-and-the-192833607.html?ref=gs
I like your question. "Is life just a script?" It would have been interesting to delve more deeply into that question. Did you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones?
DeleteThanks for your input. I actually asked some friends if they believed in fate, and one of them said they believed life was a script, and I was curious if this is a common belief. I thought that the smaller groups worked better, because it allowed for the discussion to be more personal, and for everyone to have an equal amount of time speaking.
DeleteAaron Ly
ReplyDeleteEnglish 9 Honors
Mrs. Colando
11 May 2016
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
After our class read the Greek tragedy Oedipus we were broken into groups for a Socratic Seminar to discuss topics. One thing that Zari A.brought up a point when she said that the chorus acted as a foreshadower in the play as they sum up what is happening after each scene and that Choragos could be an important character to the plot of the play as he was involved with many of the compromises that occurred in the play. Also, in the first Socratic Seminar Sarah H. brought up a point in which it was his fate to kill his father and marry his mother, but it was his own free will to try to find out the truth himself and punished himself in result. Soon he would exile himself in his own free will as he did not want to harm his “real parents” in Corinth. The question I asked but was not given a direct answer is how does the oracle in Oedipus’s time related to how people trust and related to the fortune-tellers today? Many people today still believe in fortune-tellers and that they tell what their fate is or what will happen in the future, but it is the person’s free will to believe in their fortunes. On the rubric I gave myself a 3 in listening and speaking because I asked a questions that was relevant to the prompt and clarified some views. In using textual evidence I gave myself a three because it was hard to find evidence to back up my answers for my question and I tried to use evidence. For preparation, I would give myself a four because I wrote quotes and my opinions for every answer as well as mine in order have questions and answer the question thoroughly. Lastly, in leadership I would give myself a 3 even though I did not lead the discussion I did participate. Overall I think majority of the class participated well in the seminars as everyone had something to say in the discussions. My partner Virak overall did a well done job speaking and making eye contact in the socratic seminars but there is always room for improvement.
Do you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones?
DeleteI believed that the smaller groups worked better because if some people wanted to speak their ideas and then explain their ideas in detail.
DeleteI believed that the smaller groups worked better because if some people wanted to speak their ideas and then explain their ideas in detail.
DeleteDominic rainone
ReplyDeleteMrs colando
English 9 honors
5/11/16
Something that i found interesting in the socratic seminar was when jake brought up how Oedipus was in denial of the fact that he was the source of the plague in the city, even after the evidence began piling up against him. I found this idea especially interesting because i had noticed it too, and i also noticed in the story how over time, his cause transformed into trying to prove himself innocent more than trying to find the killer of king Laios.
Some questions that i still have regarding Oedipus is why did Oedipus’s wife kill herself after Oedipus discovered the truth. The play hinted to her knowing of the prophecy before Oedipus found out about it by warning oedipus to not pursue the topic earlier, but she still hangs herself upon his knowing.i asked this question because it seems odd that she would do such a thing if she had known about it earlier.
I scored myself the way i did because in my opinion, i spoke clearly, and used emotion in my speech, i also believe that i made appropriate eye contact, i asked more than 3 3 questions, and i listened to the other speakers. For the next category i gave myself a 3 because not all of my arguments were backed by textual evidence, but i made references to the text and was direct with my evidence. For the third column, i gave myself a 4 because i came well prepared with an annotated text and a page of possible questions and connections. Finally, on the last column i gave myself a 3 because i thought that i did a good job of moving the conversation, and was one of the leaders of the conversation.
In general, most of the groups had a strong discussion that covered the major points of the question however, the third group to go was a little quiet. I think that this was mainly because the question did not have a much deeper way of analyzing it. I observed jake, rene, ethan and virak. They all came well prepare and had many thoughts and questions to add to their own discussions.
I agree with your question about Jocasta. It definitely makes it unclear as to whether she knew or not. Maybe it was Oedipus knowing that put her over the edge. Did you like the smaller groups better?
DeleteSteven Amaral
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9H
11 May 2016
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
The last few Socratic seminars that our class had really helped me understand the story of Oedipus. Now, I have a much better understanding of the play. There were a few ideas that I found interesting in the Socratic seminars. One idea was stated by Katie. She said that plays would be more understood by the audience if there was a character acting in a role like Choragos. I found this interesting because a character in the play that also narrates would help the audience get more background on what is happening in the story. A second idea that I found particularly interesting was said by Sarah H. She stated that Oedipus discovering the truth of his life is freewill, not part of his fate. I find this interesting because I thought finding out about his fate was part of his fate, but Sarah’s statement made me rethink this idea. After all of the socratic seminars, there was still one question I had about the play. This question was, how do the children of Oedipus and Iocaste react to their parents actions and Oedipus’s fate? I have this question because I want to know exactly what happens to them and how they feel about their parents after the information was let out. For each category, I scored myself a 3 in speaking and listening, a 4 in textual evidence, a 4 in preparation, and a 3 in leadership. First, I scored myself a 3 in speaking and listening because I felt that I spoke clearly to my classmates and made good eye contact with them while discussing the irony of Oedipus. I asked more than 3 questions and kept the conversation going by adding quotations to create more discussion. Next, I scored myself a 4 in using textual evidence because, I made direct references to specific lines from Oedipus. I also made sure that my evidence was relevant to what we were talking about. Then, I scored myself a 4 in preparation because I was well prepared to express my ideas in the Socratic seminar. I had all of my important points to bring up, written down and explained. Also, I had lots of questions prepared to ask in the discussion. Finally, I scored myself a 3 in leadership because I felt I could have done a better job with keeping the conversation going. However I felt that I did a good job with clarifying, connecting, and questioning the points that my classmates made. Overall, I believe the class did a great job in the last 5 socratic seminars. For example,there were lots of people who improved on talking in the discussion. Also the class as a whole made lots of connections to outside sources and found lots of supporting evidence for all 5 topics. I had to follow 4 specific classmates which included Katie, Sarah H, Virak, and Edwin. Everyone I followed spoken many times in the discussion, made good eye contact, asked new questions, and responded to other speakers. However, one thing I noticed was that, all 4 of these students referred to the text only a few times or not even once. I believe that everyone will improve on this next time they are in a socratic seminar.
I loved your question about Oedipus's children. Did you get a chance to read about the other two plays in the trilogy? Do you think the smaller groups worked better?
DeleteI did get a chance to read about the other 2 plays and one day I would love to read more. Also, I think bigger groups worked better because there were less silent moments, even though those are ok to have. I feel that bigger groups make students speak more and about more things
DeleteI also agree that the Socratic Seminars gave me a better understanding of the play.
DeleteRachel Blustein
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
11 May 2016
Socratic Seminar Oedipus
One of the things that stood out to me in Oedipus was the irony of sight and blindness, and how in one second your world can turn from color to black and white. I found it interesting when Hannah D. said she thought it wasn’t ironic that Oedipus removed his eyes. I completely disagree because I think that not only did Oedipus taking out his eyes bring the irony in a whole circle, it bought the whole plot together. I believe that all five of the seminars did a good job and I am left with no more questions. I wish that that the last group would have at least touched on the fact that our generation believes they are anything but blind, but it reality, they really are. We teenagers, hear what we want to, and block out what we don’t so in a sense, we are very similar to Oedipus.
I gave myself a 4 in Speaking and Listening because I listened closely to what everyone was saying and formed my responses off of that. I gave myself a 3 in Using Textual Evidence because not everything I said was backed up with text. This seminar was very hard to use textual evidence so I tried to use my double sided journal to help me. I gave myself a 4 in Preparation because I used my double sided journals in the Seminar. I also prepared a two paragraph answer to each of the five questions. Finally, I gave myself a 3 in Leadership because I did not carry the group on my shoulders. I felt as though everyone in the group held their own so there was no need for a real “leader.”
Overall, I believe the class was very into each seminar. People brought good questions to the table in each of the discussions. For example, Hannah Torres was in group 2 and she proposed the question, “Why does everyone always just believe Teiresias?” I thought this was interesting because I had never really thought of it. In group 5, Edwin Van Renselaar brought up a good point in saying, “People are told not to pursue things, but still do, much like Oedipus does.” This is interesting because it is basically the plot of the story in one sentence. In conclusion, I think all of the Seminars were very well done.
Do you think the smaller groups worked better?
DeleteI liked the smaller groups much better, but since there was less people talking, the seminar ended up being too long and got dragged out.
DeleteKatie Blake
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
11 May 2016
Reflection
One specific idea particularly interesting during the Socratic Seminars was when Hannah T. mentioned how it was ironic how everything Oedipus was searching for when asking the soothsayers was always right in front of him. He was blind to the truth when he could see but couldn’t fully know the truth until he went blind. The play constantly revolved around irony and this was just one example.Overall I think the class did an excellent job working with the topics given in such a long seminar. Some of the questions were not in depth enough to talk about for 25 minutes but the class continued the discussion primarily the whole time. I followed Hannah T., Leah, and Mourad. All three did an excellent job moving the discussion along and asked thought provoking questions. For example, on question asked was “What made them believe in the soothsayers?” If I had been in this group I would have said that their religion believed that the soothsayers knew the future and that what they said would come true. Also, if I were to grade my classmates everyone would do well. My self assessment is a four in Speaking and Listening. This is because I asked more than 3 questions, made eye contact and moved the conversation along. Also, I gave myself a 3 in Using Textual Evidence because I used some quotes and asked questions based on textual evidence. Next, I gave myself a 4 in preparation because since I did not know which Seminar to prepare for I prepared for all the groups. I found online resources for each questions and prepared thoughtfully so that I could participate. Lastly, I scored myself a 4 in leadership because even if I did not answer a question right away I always tried to summarize the points of other students and question their thoughts and ideas. Overall I believe everyone in the class did well during the seminars.
Do you think the smaller groups worked better?
DeleteMedha Reddy
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
11 May 2016
English Honors
Oedipus Socratic Seminar
The socratic seminar had five main topics for us to discuss. The socratic seminar made me look at parts of the story differently. During the seminar I observed many interesting things people said.For example I found it really interesting when Ethan connected the story Oedipus to the Great Expectations. He asked if we thought Pip could’ve escaped his fate of knowing who his benefactor was. I don’t think he could’ve have escaped it if it was part of his fate to know who his benefactor was.
I don't have any unanswered questions I asked all of mine when I was in both the inner and outer circle. For the self assessment, in the first category I scored myself a four because I spoke regularly in the seminar and responded or added onto everyone’s questions. I scored myself a four again because I referred to the text like more than 5 times. Our group was the only one that used actual quotes from Oedipus to support their answer. I scored myself another four in preparation because I was well prepared. I had my double sided journal in front of me the whole time, my phone in case I needed it for resources, and the play to the go back to it or follow along incase anyone cites from it or I need to cite from it or ask questions from it. In the last category I scored myself a four because I listened to what everyone had to say closely and I moved the conversation forward when no one said anything but asking question. I didn’t have to encourage anyone to talk because everyone participated regularly which was good.
Overall everyone was very respectful and payed attention to each other. In all of the five seminars mostly everyone participated regularly. Usually students encourage someone who’s been quiet to say something however that happened only once or twice because everyone participated. I thought Melissa dominated the seminar in the group she was in. She spoke regularly and made many very good points. I also thought how our teacher letting us make our own preparations for the seminar was good because it shows her and us how well we get ourselves prepared without having the teacher giving you the outline In conclusion, I think this is the best Socratic seminar we ever had. I enjoyed this one because like I said before it gave me a chance to look at other students perspectives on five different discussion questions. I look forward for the next one!
Do you think the smaller groups worked better than the larger ones?
DeleteVirak Pond-Tor
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
8 May 2016
Reflection of Oedipus Socratic Seminar
This socratic seminar was probably the most successful one that I have had in the whole school year. I was able to participate more in the discussion and put my ideas out since there were only four of us, but on the other hand there were a lot more moments of silence, which is to be expected when you have less people. What I found to be the most interesting in the discussions was when Sarah S. mentioned her reference, a woman who made some insane predictions which happened to be true. Another thing I found interesting was when Melissa M. said that the riddle of the sphinx was symbolism for the challenges that people are faced with everyday. This got me thinking of how lots of other things in the story are symbolic too. One question I still have is if Oedipus could have controlled his own fate. I know that the group which discussed that question agreed that Oedipus was a victim of fate, however I do not believe that Oedipus or Iocasta tried hard enough to escape their fate. If Oedipus really did not want to fall into the hands of fate he could have just isolated himself or Iocasta could have just finished off Oedipus by herself when he was a baby. On the rubric I gave myself a 4 in the speaking and listening section because I believed that I was speaking very clearly, with emotion, and I asked more than 3 questions. For textual evidence I gave myself a 3 because not all of my arguments were grounded in relevant text. While in the discussion new ideas popped up into my mind which I could not provide with any evidence to support my argument. In the preparation section I gave myself a 4 since I had lots of quotes related to the blindness/sight motifs from my double sided journals and even came up with some more ideas before the socratic seminar. Finally, in the leadership section I scored myself a 4 because I believed that I was participating regularly and moving the conversation along effectively. I feel that I asked some controversial questions which sparked discussion in our group. Overall the class did very well during the socratic seminars. Everyone had the chance to participate since the groups were so small and discussions were often very thorough and went very in depth. One of the people I followed was Mourad T. who I noticed did a very good job pulling out evidence from the text to back up his arguments. Socratic seminars are a great way to interact with your classmates and learn about their interpretations of the same thing.
I agree that it was your most successful seminar! Do you think the smaller groups were more successful?
DeleteHolley Stavnitski
ReplyDeleteMrs Colando
11 May 2016
Oedipus Socratic Seminar Reflection
The Oedipus Socratic Seminar had lots of topics to talk about that made us think deeper into the play, for example, if we thought Oedipus was a victim of fate or his own free will. Something I found interesting that Leah brought up was, “It was his own determination and thirst for truth that was his free will,’ and that ultimately sealed his fate and destroyed him. I feel like this is true, I mean he couldn't have avoided his fate happening but he never needed to know.
One unanswered question I have is, is there anyway Oedipus could have steered clear of his fate? Like, if his parents had never tried to kill him and left him in that field but instead raised him his fate could have been different, or maybe there was no way around it.
As for the self assessment, I gave myself somewhere in the middle of a two and three for speaking and listening. I did this because I didn't really speak up much but I tried to use appropriate language, make eye contact, and help move the conversation along. I gave myself a two for text evidence because I had a few notes with me but I didn't really mention the text a lot. For preparation I gave myself a three because I had quotes written and some notes with a few questions. Lastly I gave myself a three in leadership because I tried to add on to what people said and add points to keep the conversation going but I also listened to what other people were saying. So I think my strength is in the notes and preparation but I really need to work on expressing those ideas out loud.
As for the class participation I feel like everyone did nice. When Hannah or Melissa was talking everyone listened respectfully and added to the conversation. I didn't notice anyone having side conversations or getting off topic although there were a few silent pauses. I think, as a class, our strength would be listening and asking thoughtful questions but I think we could improve on going deeper into the topics to eliminate any silent periods.
Do you think the smaller groups were more effective?
DeleteYes because it felt like a normal conversation with four people.
DeleteYes because it felt like a normal conversation with four people.
Deletethe smaller group worked well because everyone got a chance to talk more than usual. However, after everyone said their thought on the subject there was nothing left to say. The seminar was too long to only have 4 people, but in the future and shorter time will allow for small groups to work well.
ReplyDeleteI liked the bigger groups because with the bigger groups there were more opinions and questions to talk about. There were a lot of awkward silences with smaller groups.
ReplyDeleteI liked the smaller groups because it gave people more opportunities to contribute to the discussion, however once everyone put out what they prepared it was hard to keep the conversation going. This might have been due to the topic we were talking about rather than the amount of people in our group. I noticed that some other groups had no trouble finding new things to talk about for the whole duration.
ReplyDeleteThe smaller groups were better than the larger groups because everyone had an opportunity to talk multiple of times.
ReplyDeleteThe smaller groups were better than the larger groups because everyone had an opportunity to talk multiple of times.
ReplyDelete