8

TAKE
AWAYS

Developing
Questioning

Skills
Creating discussion questions on the fly can be challenging for
even the most seasoned instructor. One way to develop this skill is to
incorporate question creation into the planning process by preparing
questions ahead of time. Discussion questions should closely align with
course concepts and objectives. A few suggestions to consider when
developing discussion questions include: ask open-ended questions
that will elicit more than one answer or solution, vary the kinds and
level of questions you ask, and strive for a balance between factual
and thought-provoking questions.

http://bit.ly/developingquestioningskills

Creating
Engaging
Discussions

Assessing
Discussions

Are you concerned about quality, quantity, both? How do you provide
students with clear, fair assessment criteria? It is often difficult to evaluate
student participation during in-class discussions. Frequently, students
perceptions of their contributions to class discussions are quite different
from their instructors. One way to overcome this conflict, suggested
by Denise Knight of Faculty Focus, is to have students assess their own
participation using a brief questionnaire about their performance (see
link below), providing a space for them to explain their rationale. Then
you can respond to their rationale, detailing ways that they are both
successfully contributing and methods for improvement.

http://bit.ly/assessingdiscussions

Resources
Byrd, J., Jr. (2008). Guidebook for Student-Centered Classroom Discussions (1st ed.) [PDF]. Available at
http://bit.ly/ifdiscussionguide

A folder of articles and other documents relating to developing and managing discussions is available at
http://bit.ly/discussionsshareddocuments

Photo Credits available at http://bit.ly/discussionphotocredits

Center for Learning and Teaching

http://www.binghamton.edu/clt
clt@binghamton.edu

Think/WritePair-Share

Jigsaw

The jigsaw method is a structure for group discussion where the

general topic is discussed through small group discussions on a specific
aspect of that topic. For instance, the instructor may separate the class
into small group and assign different aspects of a book to each group
in the classroom. One group discusses the impact of The Catcher in the
Rye on society, while another discusses the novel as a coming of age
story. All groups are part of the larger topic of the novel, in general.
After small group discussion each group debriefs with the entire class,
thereby putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

Need a great warm-up activity for discussions? Try think-pairshare or write-pair-share. Introduce a problem/question/concept to
your learners and ask them to spend a few minutes thinking or writing
about it on their own. Then, have them pair with a partner to discuss
answers/solutions. Lastly, debrief by pairs or as an entire class to
discuss answers/solutions. Think/write-pair-share activities also
help to promote better classroom discussions, overall; this method
of discussion empowers individual learners to participate in larger
classroom activities and discussions.

http://bit.ly/jigsawmethod

http://bit.ly/thinkpairshare

Discussing

Student-Led
Discussions

Controversial

Issues

Most often, instructors are the ones leading and guiding a

classroom discussion. Consider an alternate method that puts students
in charge of the process. One variation of a student-led discussion is to
have students select a certain topic from the syllabus at the beginning
of the semester. Prior to their chosen day, students select a reading
to assign to the class and submit that reading and guiding questions
for the discussion to the instructor. As the discussion is taking place,
the student-leader facilitates the discussion and is evaluated by the
instructor and their classmates.

http://bit.ly/studentleddiscussions

http://bit.ly/discusscontroversy

Student
Response
Systems

Online
Discussions

Student Response Systems (SRS) are one method of initiating a

discussion or gathering real-time information about student learning
and opinions to help guide a discussion as it is occurring. Poll the class
before, during, and after a discussion and discuss changes. Instructors
can use the poll results to change how they manage the discussion
based on the responses. Twenty-nine classrooms at Binghamton have
a built-in SRS called i>clickers. Other cellphone and computer-based
systems, such as REEF Polling or TopHat, can be used in classrooms
with sufficient Wi-fi density.

http://bit.ly/srsclickers
1

Sometimes controversy in the classroom escalates into a crisis.

People can become so emotional and conflicted about such topics
as race, politics, religion, sexual orientation, class and gender as to
express opinions in a highly charged manner. 1 Guidelines for managing
discussions of controversial topics include: (1) creating a framework for the
discussion by establishing ground rules, setting the tone, and anticipating
problem areas, (2) preparing students for the discussion by providing
adequate information sources and a common basis of understanding,
and (3) including all students perspectives and equal participation.

The discussion board is one of the most popular tools used in online
and blended instruction. Unlike a traditional classroom discussion,
online discussion is more asynchronous, where students are responding
at different times and rates. Online discussions have many benefits,
including: providing a method for students to apply course concepts
in a space in which all students can speak and respond, allowing for
statements to be directly linked to supporting evidence, and furnishing
another avenue for writing practice beyond the traditional paper
assignment. It is important that if you use online discussions, that you
make participation requirements explicit and set due dates.

Committee for Cultural Diversity and Equity, Humber College. (n.d.). Handling Hot Topics in the Classroom [Pamphlet]. Toronto, Ontario.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0
International License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/