Socratic Method

As a pre-law student I know that I will get more than my share of the socratic method of teaching in the near future. However, I was quite surprised when Dr. Fleisher announced that today's Comparative Economic Systems (Econ 508) would be a class discussion in the Socratic Method.

I know the key to any good class discussion, particularly a socratic discussion, is preparation. Even though I had been warned and given a list of readings, I failed to do more than collect them in one place for the last two days. I am still waiting for one of the books to arrive by mail. Over lunch I burned through the readings and bought the missing book for $30 more than my mail order copy.

I am pleased to report that I enjoyed the lecture very much. The socratic method seems to be a superior form of discussion and very effective for these topics.

I certainly will make an effort to be better prepared next time. I feared that I would be embarrased in lecture and would be caught without an answer when adressed by Dr. Fleisher. Fortunately, I understood the material, particularly the Hayek reading, well. Also, the undergraduate students set such a low bar and have really brought down the professor's expectations.

I am looking forward to more socratic discussions.

Reference
Good descriptions on the socratic method:
http://www.greatbooksacademy.org/html/what_is_the_socratic_method_.html
http://lonestar.texas.net/~mseifert/crit3.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socrates#Socratic_method

The Princeton Review has posted this scathing review of the Socratic Method. What do they have against people thinking for themselves?