Managing Classroom Discussion: Balancing the Voices and Integrating Contributions

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Managing Classroom Discussion Balancing the
Voices and Integrating Contributions

• Roben Torosyan, Ph.D.
• Assistant Director, Center for Academic
  Excellence
• Fairfield University (CT)

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Root Causes of Student Discussion Behaviors

• Introversion / Extraversion
• Culture of dichotomous debate
• Fear of looking stupid or being trapped by
  teacher
• Feeling unprepared, or unwelcome / intimidated
• Bad past experiences
• Maintaining ones cool
• Reliance on the teacher
• Lack of reward
• Brookfield, S. D., Preskill, S. (1999).
  Discussion as a way of teaching. San Francisco
  Jossey-Bass 182-183.

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Teacher Discussion Behaviors

• Assuming one style of engagement
• Ignoring icebreakers, namecards
• Asking closed questions
• Overteaching
• Failing to reward
• Discomfort with silence

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Average wait time after a question

• a) 5 seconds
• b) 3 seconds
• c) 1 second
• d) less than 1 second
• Rowe, M.B. (1974) Wait time and rewards as
  variables. Journal of Research in Science
  Teaching, 11(2), 81-97.

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After allowing 3 5 seconds

• Number of questions students ask increases
• Length of responses students give increases
• Number of less able students responding
  increases
• Number of unsolicited but appropriate responses
  increases
• Number of responses using evidence to make
  inferences increases
• Number of students failing to respond when
  called decreases
• Rowe, M.B. (1974) Wait time and rewards as
  variables. Journal of Research in Science
  Teaching, 11(2), 81-97.

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To increase wait time and use the power of
silence

• 1. Repeat the question. Assume silence may mean
  people have not understood.
• 2. Actually wonder about the question with your
  students, rather than focus the wait on them.
  That is, ask and give yourself the wait time to
  ponder again, anew.
• 3. Count off in your mind 1-1,000, 2-1,1000, or
  say the alphabet, to counter the common tendency
  to overestimate how we long wait.

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Controlled Controversy

• Find a controversial topic. Quickly. Ask how
  many for, and how many against.
• Breakout into Pros and Cons members express
  opinions (no spokespersons).
• One side shares other listens and
  acknowledges. All regroup and Pros express their
  reasons one person at a time. Cons listen and
  only afterwards say back what they heard in
  their own words. Pros correct misunderstandings
  and Cons Acknowledge what they missed, until
  Pros feel heard and understood.
• Pause to reflect. All reflect critically upon
  feelings and challenges during the process.
• Reverse roles and repeat Step 3. Cons share
  opinions Pros listen and acknowledge.
• Reflect and sum up (or continue discussion).
• Cf. Related exercise, Structured controversy,
  in Johnson, D. W., Johnson, R. T., Holubec, E.
  J. (1993). Circles of learning Cooperation in
  the classroom (4th ed.). Edina, MN Interaction.

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Find Controversial Topic, Quickly

• Which matters more in good teaching and learning
  foundational knowledge (facts, concepts) or
  application and integration (use of facts or
  concepts in life situations)?
• Should spirituality have a strong place in
  teaching?
• Which matters more, leading discussions
  (directively) or facilitating (nondirectively)?
• Other topics?

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Controversy and Collaborative Discourse

• Assume misunderstanding Rather than assume you
  know what someone means, find out.
• The greatest barrier to communication is the
  tendency to evaluate and therefore to
  misunderstand or to not really hear (Gabarro,
  in Rogers Roethlisberger, p. 108).
• Rather than assume the other has exhausted their
  vocabulary or feelings, assume there is probably
  more, and that the other may mean not just one
  thing but several things (RR, p. 110).
• Avoid the illusion that what will happen will be
  a purely logical exchange rather, expect
  primarily an interaction of feelings (RR, p.
  110).
• You should not ignore meta-messages (Bateson,
  289) you give, about yourself, about the other,
  and about the relationship between you. For
  example, my saying You should do something can
  also say, in effect, I know this, you probably
  dont, and you need me to tell you.
• Emphases mine. Cf. Rogers, C. R.
  Roethlisberger, F. J. (1991, Nov.-Dec.). Barriers
  and gateways to communication. Harvard Business
  Review 105-111.
• Cf. also Bateson, G. (1972). The logical
  categories of learning and communication, in
  Steps to an ecology of mind Collected essays in
  anthropology, psychiatry, evolution, and
  epistemology. San Francisco Chandler Publishing
  Company, 1972.

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Use short, ungraded writing to deepen thinking
(and to let people prepare before speaking up)

• Have students write for 5 minutes, then read
  their writing aloud (and/or put on board)
• For homework, have students write what questions
  they have about reading
• What are you wondering about? What does this
  make you think about?
• Have a volunteer note questions on the board or
  flipchart (number them for reference)
• Use helpers free yourself up to notice more
  discussion dynamics
• Offer a question you wonder about, one you dont
  know the answer to, to model thoughtful inquiry,
  and the vulnerable stance of an ignorant
  questioner

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Slow the flow, probe deeper

• Use questions to get at meaning
• What did you say, Melanie? Hmm, interestingwhy
  do you think that?
• Good. Can you say what your reasoning is?
• Transfer responsibility away from you to class
• Mmmhmm. What is John getting at?
• OK you didnt hear something. What can you do?
• Others, what does that mean to you?

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Balance students voices

• Others weve heard from less?
• If its already been said, how would you say
  it?
• Repeat the policy No question is stupid. (Say
  it so much you as teacher sound stupid.)
• Email students by midterm about their
  participation If this were end of term, youd
  be failing

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Track themes to bring discussion back on track or
reframe it

• Nudge a group to move on Why dont we look at
  the fourth question you put on the board now?
• Prompt for links Wait, what was the connection
  between this and Jacks question?
• Use evidence to support or challenge ideas Do
  these lines answer Kanishas question?
• Offer your own dawning discoveries to encourage
  reframing
• Oh, I just realized! Maybe Hector is the real
  hero of the poem.
• What if we solved the problem this way?
• (Model the life attitude of vulnerably asking
  questions, wondering aloud, not knowing.)

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Comment explicitly on group dynamics as they go
on

• Please folks, I cant hear her. Let her
  finish. One at a time.
• How are you going to notice who had their hand
  up first?
• How could we make this discussion better?
• Should we have some ground rules?

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Summarize what was learned (while valuing
uncertainty, depending upon the discipline)

• At end of class, give a Minute Paper or ask for
  the Muddiest Point and go over next session
• In general, use open questions (What and Why)
  rather than closed questions (Is this clear? or
  Does that make sense?), to give practice at
  putting complex ideas into language
• What struck you? What do you want to
  remember?
• What did you learn, or what are you left
  wondering about?