How to Run a Class Discussion

Actual footage of my students trying to earn points for class participation.

Who doesn't love a good class discussion? The students are learning, excited, engaged, and, best of all, they're doing all the work! No lecture for you on discussion day!

But good discussions don't happen by accident. Unless you deliberately plan and structure your class discussion, you're not going to get the depth of learning and engagement that you want. It's far more likely that one or two kids will do all the talking (and a good deal of that talking will be off-topic), and the rest of the class will just watch - or check out completely. Let me give you three quick tips for avoiding these pitfalls and running a successful class discussion.

Tip #1: Actually Run the Discussion.

We've all heard the hype for "student-led learning", an approach to education -currently quite trendy- which allegedly promotes student engagement and critical thinking. However, the term "student-led" is a little misleading. As any teacher knows, YOU are the leader of your class, not the students, no matter how independent you want them to be. Now a discussion CAN be a great example of student-led learning, but only if you remember that in practical terms, "student-led learning" really means "teacher-led activity." You need to guide them through a discussion which requires their involvement and initiative. That means having specific things to talk about, and being ready to jumpstart the conversation whenever things die down. You might not be doing as much work as you would do on a lecture day, but don't think that means your role in the discussion is passive. You are in charge, and that means you're running the thing.

Tip #2: Actually talk about something.

Never expect your students to make bricks without straw. If you spend 5 minutes reading an article, you're not going to get 45 minutes of discussion out of it. In my own classes, I do discussions on specific chapters of literature, sometimes several chapters at once. The point is that students must have something substantial, something that took work and time to read, which you are planning to discuss with them. Such discussions naturally go well when preceded by reading homework: read the chapter on Monday night, come in Tuesday ready to discuss. Such a method is a great way to provide accountability and formative assessment, which ties neatly into my final point.

Tip #3. Grade Specifically, Accurately, and Relentlessly.

Unless you have a VERY special class, you must grade class discussions. There is no way around it. Without the accountability of grades, a significant portion of your class will just check out. Fortunately, I have a tried-and-true method for grading discussions which I'm happy to share. Frist, print out a class roster or just write out a list of all your students names. On the same paper, draw five columns, creating space for 5 marks by each name. Label the first 2 columns "content" and the next 3 "engagement." (You can increase or decrease any of these numbers depending on class size. I find this system works best with 8 to 12 students). Now, this part is key so pay attention. During your class discussion, keep this checklist in your hand. Whenever a student makes a comment about the actual text (i.e. "I could really relate to chapter 4, when the author says love is never selfish") give them a checkmark for content. Whenever they make an intelligent comment in response to another student (i.e. "yeah James, but isn't love selfish because you want someone all to yourself?") give them a check for engagement. Tell your students (very clearly!) that each check is worth 20% of their grade, meaning that in order to get a 100, they need to comment on the content of the text twice, and just make generally engaged comments 3 times. You'll soon find you have no trouble getting everyone to speak - though you may get sick of kids asking "do I have 5 checks yet?" (in such a case, feel free to just tell them they'll find out when you enter their grade. But of course you can use your own discretion on this point.)

And there you have it! With these tips, you should have no trouble getting excellent discussions to happen in your high-school classroom. Discuss!