A primary responsibility many of us share as graduate teaching assistants is to lead in-class discussions. Although we may have a lot of experience as students in discussion-oriented classes, many of us find leading discussions to be challenging. There are many reasons why students might not participate in class discussions, including lack of experience in discussion recitations, overwhelming authority of the teacher, confusion about the topic, and fear of appearing foolish. Here are some guidelines to help you prepare for and lead effective discussions in the classroom.
Lay the groundwork for active student participation:
- Get all students involved on the first day of class, learn their names, and make it clear that everybody will participate. Work from the outset to establish a classroom environment where students will feel comfortable participating.
- Clearly communicate your expectations for the class and each student’s responsibilities so that there is no confusion over what the requirements are and what students are expected to do.
- Offer students a safety net. Student anxiety is real and must be respected; therefore, offer them a dodge if they don’t want to answer when called upon, for example, “I’ll pass, but will answer a question later.” This permits shy or anxious students to freely choose to participate when they feel most comfortable.
Come to class prepared:
- This does NOT mean that you have a long list of questions for students to answer. Rather, you should have a clear outline of the day’s learning objectives and have prepared discussion questions that will lead students to achieving those objectives.
- Ask genuine questions. Develop questions that ask students to explain, argue, interpret, define, illustrate, or paraphrase. The questions you ask should not always have a definite, correct or incorrect answer.
- Take yourself out of the center. Rather than asking an individual student a question, and then responding to that answer, try getting students to respond to one another. Think of yourself as the conductor of an orchestra. You want all students to contribute to the discussion and to interact with their classmates. It is your job to orchestrate the dialog into a coherent structure and steer the discussion toward the day’s learning objectives.
- Vary the format. Using the same discussion format class after class can be boring and result in poor participation. Alternate the format between whole-class discussions, small group work, and working in pairs. Also, use a variety of course materials. On some days discuss pre-assigned articles or book chapters; on others, have organized in-class activities that do not require preparation outside the classroom.
Other suggestions on how to improve in-class discussions:
- Consider the physical setup of the room. One obvious yet frequently overlooked thing you can do is to change the way the classroom is configured. If students cannot see one another, try arranging desks in a semicircle to facilitate student interaction.
- Make sure students know in advance what the discussion topic will be. For example, if you expect students to discuss an article, tell them what particular aspects of the article to focus on. It’s also a good idea to provide a few preliminary questions or observations about the article that will lead students to think about the points you want to discuss.
- Assign a grade for participation. The pros include increased frequency of participation and assurance that students will come prepared. The cons are that students may feel coerced, thereby stifling rapport and, ironically, actually inhibiting student responses. Obviously this creates quite a balancing act. However, you can avoid these pitfalls by utilizing the strategies provided above to create a classroom environment where students feel comfortable participating.
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