Academic Classroom Discussions
Generating in-class discussion can be an incredibly useful process that helps information transition into knowledge. Unfortunately, in many cases it can be underused or even entirely misused. For a proper conversion to take place, discussions need to be able to ebb and flow organically, rather than follow a rigid, linear structure. What can educators help promote this kind of productive discussion and avoid the pitfalls of surface-level discussion?
Display questions are used to prompt simply confirmations of understanding. Although they are used with great frequency, they do not promote deeper learning, especially for those who aren’t typically prompted. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it has been shown that the ones who would benefit most from this kind of check-in questions are the ones who are most often overlooked in the classroom. In my own practice, I hope to minimize relying on display questions whenever possible. I believe that by regularly using display question, we lower the learning expectations and teach students to focus on ‘surviving’ these randomized check-in questions rather than continuously engaging with the material.
Open-ended questions call for more than observation or basic processing but actually necessitate some amount of independent critical thought. Follow-up questions may lead to further development, requiring students to justify and articulate their rationale. In other cases, they might be used to prompt students to clarify and organize their thoughts. Hopefully this kind of questioning leads to a natural discussion amongst students. A gentle influence must be adopted in order to direct an enriching dialogue without overtaking and limiting it.