Real Dictionary

Socratic method in American English
a method of teaching or discussion, like that used by Socrates, in which by means of a series of questions and answers the logical soundness of a definition is tested, the meaning of a concept examined, etc.
noun: the use of questions, as employed by Socrates, to develop a latent idea, as in the mind of a pupil, or to elicit admissions, as from an opponent, tending to establish a proposition

Socratic method in British English
noun: the method of instruction by question and answer used by Socrates in order to elicit from his pupils truths he considered to be implicitly known by all rational beings