Cougar Communication: Classroom Discussions

Excellence in Education: Discussions

As a teacher and a student, I loved class discussions, but I probably didn’t make use of them enough.

First let’s look at why discussions make sense:

Because students are speaking, learning/understanding become visible
Students learn from their peers
Conversational skills (listening, speaking, body language) are real-life
Students enjoy it
Students become aware of their own understanding of the subject
Conversation provides practice and extends learning

Below are some techniques that I’ve seen teachers use to energize their classes through class discussions

Peer Instruction: After a brief presentation, teacher poses a question to the students and allows students to think about their answer individually. Teacher poses a question and allows students to respond (you could use whiteboards, BYOD, etc.). Students find a peer with a different answer and convince them why they chose their response. Have students respond again. Share the correct response.

Paired Verbal Fluency: In pairs students discuss a topic. Student A starts while B listens. After set amount of time, B begins talking but can’t repeat anything A said.

Value Lines or Corners: Have students take a stance by standing on a spectrum line (Strongly Disagree------Strongly Agree) or alternatively mark the corners of the class (Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree). Then have students pair with a neighbor (someone who shares the same beliefs). From there, you can have students share with the entire class or mix-and-match pairs with people from different opinions. It’s always interesting to see if student opinions change.

Administrative Notes

The faculty meetings scheduled for December 1^st and 2^nd have been moved to December 9^th at (2:45 pm) and 10^th at (6:45 am). These will be in the lecture hall and will not exceed 30 minutes.

Testing Calendar

Monday, December 1: Reading blocks 1 and 3

Tuesday, December 2: Reading blocks 2 and 4 (flip day)

Wednesday, December 3: History blocks 1 and 3

Thursday, December 4: History blocks 2 and 4 (flip day)

Friday, December 5: Science blocks 1 and 3

Monday, December 8: Science blocks 2 and 4 (flip day)

Tuesday, December 9: Math blocks 1 and 3

Wednesday, December 10: Math blocks 2 and 4 (flip day)

Dec 9: Choral and Orchestra Concert (night)

Dec 11: Band Concert (night)

Positive Referral Link: http://goo.gl/s0KXRB