In this article, we have covered the Symposium method of teaching with definitions, advantages, limitations, Examples, and the purpose of the symposium method of teaching.
What is SYMPOSIUM?
The word “symposium” could mean more than one thing. To begin, Plato used this phrase for “good dialogue” to talk about his ideas about God. Another sense of the word is intellectual fun or relaxation. Recently, the word has come to mean a gathering of people to talk about a problem or theme. The points of view on a theme are shown in a certain order. Each part of a theme is talked about by an expert on that subject.
Symposium used to mean a drinking party (the Greek verb sympotein means “to drink together”), but now it can mean any academic conference or a type of university class where students talk to each other instead of listening to a lesson and answering questions. This is what en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symposium_(Plato) says.
A gathering of several experts in a certain field where papers from experts on specific topics are given and talked about in order to make suggestions about the issues being talked about.
In this sense, a symposium is a public meeting or gathering where people talk about a subject. Usually, the participants sit in an audience and give presentations.
Symposium is a way to learn at a better level. It’s a way to teach that helps students reach better cognitive and emotional goals.”The symposium technique or forum is a great way to educate an audience, make opinions clear, and get people ready to make decisions about policies, values, judgments, or understanding.”
Example of Symposium Method of Teaching
For example, a symposium can be set up so that entries are only reviewed by other experts.
In this case, a submission group, which is a group of researchers working on a project together, sent their work to a conference so that their peers could look it over.
The judges can talk about the results, make suggestions for how to make things better, and tell the authors what the next step in their work on the project should be.
Objective or Purpose of Symposium Method of Teaching
The symposium’s main goal is to help students and listeners understand a certain theme or problem in order to form certain ideals and feelings.
The main goals of the discussion method are the following:
- To find and understand different parts of the theme and problems.
- To get better at making choices and judgments about problems.
- To figure out what you think and feel about a problem.
- To give people the information they need to make decisions about a problem or theme.
Advantages of Symposium Method of Teaching
The symposium method of teaching has several advantages, including:
- Interactive learning: The symposium method encourages active participation and sharing of thoughts from everyone in the class.
- Large groups: The symposium method can be used to address a large group or class.
- Broad topics: The symposium method can be used to present broad topics for discussion.
- Specific topics: The symposium method can be better suited for in-depth discussions of specific topics.
- Expert presenters: The presenters are experts on the topic and may have done extensive research.
- Panel discussion: The event can switch to a panel discussion after the presentations are completed.
Mechanism of Symposium Teaching Method
A symposium is a type of meeting in which two or more speakers talk for ten to twenty minutes about different ways to solve a problem or show parts of a policy, process, or program. Like in a panel forum, questions or comments from the crowd come after the speeches. The talks could be convincing, argumentative, educational, or moving.
Each speech goes on without a break. The chairman of the symposium presents the subject, talks about how important it is, and sometimes points out the main ways to go about it. The symposium platform is a great way to educate an audience, solidify an opinion, and generally get people ready to make decisions, policies, value judgments, or understandings. Participants in a symposium don’t need to do anything but listen carefully unless they want to talk about the topic after the speeches.
After the speeches, everyone in the performing group can sit in a straight line behind a table or chairs next to it, with the chairman in the middle or to one side of the speakers. The seating arrangement can be based on opinion or to keep the peace if the meeting has two points of view that are at odds with each other.
Characteristics of Symposium
- It gives you a general idea of what a problem or theme is about.
- The listeners are given a chance to decide what to do about the problem.
- It is used for more advanced lessons to work on specific issues and themes.
- It helps people feel like they can work together and fit in.
- The symposium method is used to achieve the creativity goals of synthesis and evaluation.
- It gives different points of view on a theme or subject.
Considerations to Take When Planning a Symposium
- To begin.
The person in charge of the discussion should make sure that the guests are ready, or make sure that they are.They should know how the forum will be run, the rules of process, and the order in which people will speak. They should know what the other artists are thinking and where they come from.Like the panelists, they might do well with a short warm-up.
- Next up.
The chairman or whoever is in charge of training the agents shouldn’t try to stack the deck by leaving out or ignoring important parts of the problem when choosing or delegating his speakers. Misunderstandings or omissions that were made by accident should not be taken up.It is dangerous to purposely change or leave out an important point of view.
- Finally
. In every forum situation, the chairman needs to carefully plan for the questioning time that comes after the planned speeches, unless he wants to risk people getting bored or shutting down.
Some Ideas for a Symposium
It is possible to reach higher cognitive and effective goals with the symposium methods. The following are some ideas for education symposiums:1. Making use of TV to learn2.What role does online learning play in our education?3. The use of both essay and quantitative tests.4.The school semester system5.The reasons why kids are upset6.Ensuring the quality of study in education.7. The use of microteaching to train teachers.8. School teams that teach together.9. Action study used in the classroom10.What role does teaching technology play in our schools?
Limitations of Symposium Method
The chairman doesn’t have any say over the speakers; they choose the topic for the talk on their own. They can talk about any part of the problem or theme.
- A lot of the same thing is said because each person prepares the theme as a whole. Not each part of the theme is made separately. It makes it hard for the listener to understand.
- The listeners can’t understand the theme right because different parts of it are being shown at the same time.
- The viewers don’t do anything because they aren’t given the chance to ask questions or get more information.
- The theme’s talk and presentation are not summed up at the end. People take part and come to their own conclusions.
- The method is used to reach the more important cognitive domain goals, but the affective domain goals aren’t stressed enough.
What is the difference between a symposium and a conference?
A symposium is a smaller, more focused event that focuses on one topic. A conference, on the other hand, is bigger and covers a wider range of topics.
Conferences and symposiums are similar events where speakers discuss a topic. A symposia is a one-day conference with fewer delegates. Symposiums are relaxed.
Symposiums feature lectures by experts, while conferences cover many topics. A conference can contain hundreds or a few. A symposium might be a one-time event or a major scientific society convention. Conferences may review applications in pairs. Sometimes symposia evaluate them alone.
Sometimes conference materials treat symposia as another session type. Unlike symposia, a conference may focus on presentations and lectures. Workshops are usually more hands-on and specific.
Similarities Between A Symposium And A Conference
Even though symposiums and conferences are not the same, they do share some traits! Two groups of people are getting together to share knowledge with those who are there. Scholarly events of both types leave people with something to think about after the event is over. Certain people share information with the group, even if they don’t know much about it. At both workshops and symposiums, there should be time for networking. You never know who you might meet!
Read Also: What is Research: Definition, Research Methods, Types