Discussion Leaders

Discussions give students an opportunity to "integrate, apply, and think" (Svinicki) about the course material rather than simply receiving it through lectures. In this teaching strategy, the instructor takes the role of facilitator. 

Designing and executing successful discussions within your classroom may be more difficult than you might initially think. Like with all instructional activities, it's essential to plan for what you want students to get out of the discussion. Use that goal to map out resources students will need and prepare questions that will properly move the discussion along.

When creating questions, aim for open-ended questions to keep discussion flowing. An article by the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning at Indiana University Bloomington suggests to give your students something that ”begs for closure“:

  • an open-ended problem to solve
  • a task to complete
  • a judgment to reach
  • a decision to make
  • a list to create

Implementation Tips

Provide your students with the necessary materials prior to the discussion. This might include:

  • a reading assignment,
  • an assignment to write a certain number of questions from the text,
  • a question that they should come prepared to answer,
  • a role to assume (antagonist, protagonist, legislator, etc.), or
  • an assignment to lead the discussion (one or two students) and instructions or possible follow-up prompts for leading the discussion.
When the discussion seems to have accomplished its purposes, begin to conclude the activity by summarizing and synthesizing what had been said. A rule of thumb would be to use one-third of the total discussion time for debriefing. Debriefing is one of the most important elements of discussions because it allows for you to correct incorrect notions, mention important points that may have been neglected, or to emphasize any given point discussed that you would like your students to come away with. 

References