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AVID Philosophical Chairs
Support Hub Cohort 1
Created on February 19, 2025
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Transcript
Faculty PD Offering Summary: This session explores Philosophical Chairs as a powerful strategy for fostering academic discourse. Participants will experience the strategy firsthand, analyze key planning considerations for effective implementation, and identify support structures to ensure all students can engage meaningfully in debate and discussion. The provided debate topic is AI and Education, though schools may adapt it to fit their specific needs. Program/Initiative Alignment: AVID, Collaborative Strategies Content Creator: Tanner DeFrancisco, Professional Learning and Growth Coach tanner.defrancisco@mnps.org
faculty Pd offering overview
Presentation Links: Philosophical Chairs OneDrive Folder Needed Materials: - Pencils/pens
- Sticky Notes (3 for each person)
- Labels for Four Corners (Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- Session: Participant Session Handout (print for all), AI and Education Articles (print or share digitally) to build background knowledge or upload a different topic to best fit your school's needs.
Facilitation Notes: - Label four corners for Welcoming Ritual
- Set up online folder for handouts and resources for this session to share with participants.
- Session topic is set up for AI & Education. This can be changed to meet the specific needs of your school. A blank slide has been included to change the topic.
facilitator notes
Faculty PD 2024-2025
PHILOSOPHICAL CHAIRS
The Art of Persuasive Discourse
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Strongly Agree
Agree
Listen to the statement and walk to the side that best represents your answer based your opinion. Discuss your reasons with your group.
Welcoming Ritual
Four Corners
Collaborative AVID Strategy
Binge-watching a TV show is better than watching it weekly.
Four Corners Statement
Morning people are more productive than night owls.
Four Corners Statement
This is an AVID strategy!
Welcoming Ritual Debrief
- How did hearing opposing viewpoints impact your understanding of the topic?
- How did the physical movement affect your level of engagement?
- How might using Four Corners in your classroom support student engagement?
- What adjustments might you make to ensure all students feel safe and confident in sharing their perspectives?
Enjoy the work and have fun
Learning Commitments
In every chair a learner, in every chair a leader Listen to understand, speak to be understood Return to being present, work to stay engaged Maintain a safe space for meaningful conversation Take care of yourself, take care of each other Expect and embrace experiences of non-closure
Define Philosophical Chairs and analyze its four-part structure.
Learning Outcomes
Experience each element of Philosophical Chairs to understand the planning considerations for effective implementation.
Define Philosophical Chairs and analyze its four-part structure.
Learning Outcomes
Engage in a Philosophical Chairs debate and identify key supports to ensure all students can participate in academic discourse.
Experience each element of Philosophical Chairs to understand the planning considerations for effective implementation.
Define Philosophical Chairs and analyze its four-part structure.
Learning Outcomes
- A structured form of academic discourse.
- A discussion and informed debate, which relies on a prompt as the foundation.
Philosophical Chairs
How does this connect to the AVID College & Career Readiness Framework?
Develop:- inquiry
- oral-language
- argumentation skills, while considering various points of view.
Improve:- verbal capability and fluency
- academic language
- critical-thinking
- listening and perspective taking skills
Why incorporate it?
What moves us from exploring ideas to standing behind them?
Philosophical Chairs Structure
Reflection
Discourse
Stance
Prompt
Recent Developments in AI and Education Read over the provided articles to build your background knowledge and form an opinion on the topic.
Philosophical Chairs Topic
The prompt must be:
- engaging
- easily understood
- clearly divided into (atleast) two sides.
Philosophical Chairs Structure
Prompt
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Subject + Action Verb + Specific Issue + Alternative Choice
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_______
_______________
___________
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_________
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________________
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Educators should use AI to assess student work instead of relying solely on human grading.
Students should learn how to ethically use AI in research instead of being prohibited from using it.
Prompt Structure
______________
____________
_____________
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Subject + Action Verb + Specific Issue + Alternative Choice
Prompt Structure
fill in the blanks and share with a table partner.
Pair & Share:
Schools should prioritize _____ rather than _____. Administrators should focus on _____ instead of _____. Students benefit more from _____ than from _____.
(Subject) (Verb) (Specific Issue) (Alternative choice)
Create the Perfect Prompt
Using the provided structure, create a prompt to debate over or create your own!
_______ should ______ _________ instead of _________.
[Subject + Action Verb + Specific Issue + Alternative Choice]
Reflection QuestionHow does statement phrasing impact participation?
Prompt Reflection
Prompt
Solidify stance by:
- Brainstorming all supporting and opposing points
- Summarizing current personal position
Philosophical Chairs Protocol
Stance
Prompt
Using the 'Pre-discussion Organizer', brainstorm as many supporting and opposing points.
Each participant must choose a side to defend.
Solidify Your Stance
Reflection QuestionHow does taking a stance affect thinking?
Stance Reflection
Stance
Prompt
Prepare for discourse:
- Use sentence starters to build and challenge ideas.
- Support arguments with specific evidence
Philosophical Chairs Protocol
Discourse
Stance
Prompt
Continue passing notes back and forth, building on reasoning until all sticky notes are exchanged.
Pair with someone holding the opposite view and sit facing each other with 3 sticky notes each.
One partner starts by passing a sticky note that supports their argument. The other reads and responds with a new sticky note, using evidence.
Silent Philosophical Chairs
Reflection QuestionWhat was the opposing sides’ strongest argument?What might make someone shift their stance?
Discourse Reflection
Discourse
Stance
Prompt
Reflection questions should steer participants toward your intended outcomes.
Philosophical Chairs Protocol
Reflection
Discourse
Stance
Prompt
What was the opposing sides’ strongest argument?What might make someone shift their stance?
How does taking a stance affect thinking?
How does statement phrasing impact participation?
Reflection
Review previous reflection statements. What were the intended learning outcomes for each component?
Reflection QuestionWhy is reflection a critical part of Philosophical Chairs? How can it extend learning beyond the conversation?
Reflecting on Reflection
Reflection
Discourse
Stance
Prompt
- Which element was most challenging for you? Why?
- What role does each component (Prompt, Stance, Discourse, Reflection) play in Philosophical Chairs
- What adaptations might be needed for different learners?
Protocol Debrief
Start simple - pick familiar topics Set clear expectations Teacher-led to Student-led discussions Choose the right variation of Philosophical Chairs for you
Facilitating Philosophical Chairs
Mic drop one key takeaway from today's sessions in 5 words or less. Get ready to mic drop it!
Optimistic Closure
After participating in this learning, I can confidently.......
- envision what Philosophical Chairs structures look like in practice.
Affirming Outcomes
After participating in this learning, I can confidently.......
- envision what Philosophical Chairs structures look like in practice.
- plan for and implement Philosophical Chairs structure.
Affirming Outcomes
After participating in this learning, I can confidently.......
- envision what Philosophical Chairs structures look like in practice.
- plan for and implement Philosophical Chairs structure.
- leverage structures to support all students in engaging in academic discourse.
Affirming Outcomes
Utilize resources from this session and my.avid.org
Make a support partner from this session to keep each other accountable.