How to Improve Student-Led Discussions

Have you ever wondered if the way you lead classroom discussions is off putting? Do your students focus on compliance rather than pure engagement? Here are some tips to get the classroom discussion flowing.

Avoid Teacher Centric Language - Do you ever start class conversations with these phrases:

“ I want to hear about…”.

“Show me what you’re thinking about…”

“I can’t wait to hear your ideas…”

“I’m looking for people to…”

Statements like these show that the class conversation is really directed towards the teacher rather than with students. Participation becomes an act of compliance and can decrease student motivation to share with the whole class.

Make students the Focus of Discussion - Try instead to say things like:

“I want to hear your ideas.”

“What are some of your ideas?”

“Here’s a question to consider…”

“If a variety of you share ideas, we will have a richer class discussion.”

The ways these discussion starters are phrased indicate that students are the focus of the conversation, not the teacher. This should make more students feel more comfortable to discuss their ideas because it is not being judged or directed to the teacher.

Avoid Teacher Pleasing: Also, try not to say thank you after students respond because some students shy away from teacher pleasing to keep from getting teased by their classmates outside of class. Instead, try nonverbal cues like head nodding, eye contact, and listening with interest. Also, instead of the teacher calling on students, have students call on each other or don’t have students raise their hands, rather they just talk when they want to.

Reduce Echo Talk: Repeating back what students say in a discussion increases the focus on teacher participation, and it sends the message that the class doesn’t need to listen to each other. Also, what happens if the teacher only echos some of the students? Not good. I know that teachers often will do this unconsciously or to let students know that they heard them or when someone speaks softly. If a student is too quiet, ask him/her to speak up instead. It sends a better message to nod, make eye contact, smile, and use other nonverbal clues to let students know that you were listening instead of echoing.

Check out this article for more idea about this topic.