Socratic Instruction in the Classroom
Classroom Instruction Watch the faces of the students. They light up with excitement - about mathematics! Project SEED classroom instruction shows students what there is to be excited about in mathematics. Students discover concepts from high-level mathematics topics including abstract algebra, number theory, and calculus. The whole class is involved in the process of discovery which generates a shared success experience rather than a single successful individual. Working together to create mathematical ideas, the class develops academic teamwork and builds their communication skills.
The Project SEED specialist works to make the class the arbiters of knowledge so that they feel a sense of ownership in the material. This is in opposition to the traditional focus of teacher as expert. By teaching with a questioning, interactive, Socratic style, 
the specialist models for the students how to become effective learners as they learn to ask questions for themselves. The use of silent feedback hand signals allows students to constantly interact and provide feedback to one another in a non-disruptive, polite and yet very clear fashion. The constant feedback also allows all students to participate without risk. This risk-free environment then makes it easier for students to take academic risks without fear of embarassment or humiliation. This provides a setting for social growth along with the development of critical thinking abilities.
Project SEED's Socratic style and intellectual challenges stimulate students. This is easy to see in the students as they actively participate in the classroom, as they confidently tackle advanced conceptual mathematics, and even as they use their creativity and enthusiasm to express their feeings about Project SEED in skits, songs, and dances at SEED family events such as a Project SEED Gala or a demonstration at a parent-teacher meeting.
Project SEED classroom instruction develops the whole student intellectually and socially. Project SEED lessons are drawn from mathematics but throughout the lessons, specialists and students use precise mathematical vocabulary and have discourse about the reasoning behind various answers and problems. Thus communication skills are also practiced.
In the classroom, Project SEED uses a defined set of instructional techniques to keep high levels of feedback, participation, and focus in the classroom. These techniques, along with Socratic, interactive questioning and a carefully planned flow of mathematics, combine to create an environment that provides opportunities for all students to have academic self-confidence, mathematical success, and intellectual FUN!
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