Effective Class Discussion

Because class discussion can be less controlled, instructors should have clear expectations for themselves and for students about topics to cover. Instructors might develop several key big-picture questions to ask at the beginning of class and have groups answer by the end of class. Part of a solid discussion structure also includes explicit details defining participation and grading.

Instructors should feel free to insert themselves into conversation in order to keep conversation on track. Students especially appreciate this tactic when a few students tend to monopolize conversation. After ensuring that groups are functioning well, instructors can invite especially talkative students to continue conversation after class or in office hours.

Instructors should be aware when students of particular gender, races, classes, or abilities are systematically marginalized in class. Instructors can refer to our equity-minded framework for strategies to ensure that all students are able to participate. To this end, instructors can set ground rules for discussion in the syllabus or invite students to help formulate class rules. In addition, instructors can consider strategies for ensuring that students have time to formulate answers and that quieter students have alternative opportunities to enter discussion. 

The behavior of an instructor plays a huge role in the tone of a class. Instructors should regularly show appreciation for student comments, substantively responding to them by fleshing out good ideas and pushing back on flawed arguments. Additionally, instructors can encourage students to build on each other’s ideas.

While discussion is a form of active learning, instructors can consider other activities and tools like note cards and surveys, role playing and performance, or debate that engage all students in their given groups.

In a Socratic seminar, the instructor asks open-ended questions that encourage students to think critically about the course material, often a particular text, image, video, sound clip, or reading.

In this modified Socratic seminar, students take turns actively participating in the discussion and serving in the role of listener. The inner circle consists of the active participants in the discussion. The outer circle consists of observers. All class members (whether in the inner or outer circle) are assigned a particular task such as the completion of a worksheet. The instructor does not participate in the discussion and only interjects when necessary. 

A jigsaw helps students become experts on a particular topic and share their knowledge with fellow students.  Students are first divided into small groups. Each group discusses and learns more on a particular topic. These students are then re-shuffled to create new groups with representatives from each previous group. In these new groups, each student is responsible for sharing key aspects of their original discussion.  The second group must synthesize and use all of the ideas in order to complete a new or more advanced task. Instructors can refer to The Jigsaw Classroom, an online site with practical steps and strategies for implementing jigsaw activities.

Think-Pair-Share is also a useful way to generate discussion. Students work individually on an active learning assignment or formative assessment activity such as a one-minute paper, example problem, or other topic (Think). Students then compare their responses with a partner and synthesize a joint solution (Pair). Some pairs share with the entire class (Share). This method helps increase the frequency of responses from quiet members of the class.