Socratic Thinking vs Collaborative Thinking
I recently attended a workshop on learning to facilitate conversations around racial justice. Having had a chance to lead similar workshops under different methodologies I knew what to expect around the approach to the workshop. What I didnt except was my reaction to the material. During the workshop I had a chance to engage in dialogue with the group and presentators around the material. I went home to reflect on what exactly was I reacting to and why. I came to realize, one of the frustrating elements of the workshops for me was the binary between Process driven facilitation and Content driven facilitation. Coming from an academic background, that binary isnt as smooth as was presented largely in part because the two are every present in your ability to facilitate conversation on topic of the day. For me the training that has been passed on to me aligns me in the Socratic camp of the best way I can be of help to you is helping you wrestle with your knowledge until you get to a comfort level of building up curiosity to unlearn certain presumptions about what you think you know. In that sense Socratic thinking is focused on the how (process) do I get you to see what you know and is what you see (content) enough or not? based on the stance you take. In that sense Socratic thinking is a fluid dialogue and thinking practice of learning and unlearning through each turn the discussants add to the conversation. The hopefully result is a shift in attitude and understanding that none of us have a monopoly on truth. Workshops around social justice work around a similar concept, the difference being the work eminments around group dynamics and group thinking. How do we get a group of people from different economic, gender, race, religious backgrounds to be able to work together. Some of the assumptions here are the awareness of the politically charged nature of living in a country were politics is always at play. Given that information, since we experience different levels of oppressions' on a personal level, those experiences also tie us to a community of others who may have experienced similar things. The reality of these experiences is we belong to "tribes" that experience these things in surroundings beyond particular tribal locales. So in this sense since a majority of our lives play out in groups (work life, social etc) group thinking methodology that highlights individuals experiences linked to tribal experiences comes handy. The question becomes how can we collective reason together knowing our unique experiences are shaped by tribal experiences by how other groups react to us? Collaborative thinking is the method ascribed. Its roots eminent from the Profit world on ways to get workers, managers, ceos, board of directors on one page. The hope here is knowledge shift happens best for individuals when the see, hear others point of view or unlearn certain presumptuous ideas based on the class, gender, race, religion they came from. The more cross thinking happens the better understanding of the political forces that shape individuals responses are shown. Its the unmasking of the Leviathan social contract we make with society when we become citizens at birth that collaborative thinking aims us. The differences between Socratic thinking and Collaborative thinking become apparent when you realize change cant happen unless one becomes familiar with the importance of both techniques. Their is a reason Socrates has had an enduring impact on Western thinking, you cant get to collaborative thinking without understanding the Socratic nature of collaborative thinking albeit its dumbed down. Collaborative thinking has its place in addressing the fact that more and more we are a global village, experiencing thinkings together in REEL TIME. Our current situation is one where group thinking and ways of formatting oppression around group identity happen as a mode of being. Which is the irony of a nation which displaces race into a social construct to settle around issues of "identity politics" thinking that eliminates race. Overall, the experience was enlightening and gave me more feedback on ways I can learn to coexist as a Socratic thinker, collaborative learning as well as being a collaborative thinker and a Socratic learner.
