After you lecture for several minutes, do you continue teaching or start classroom discussions after each topic? Some instructors have found classroom discussion benefit them and their students. In this week’s post, we’ll discuss the advantages of classroom discussions and see how this could keep your students motivated and engaged in class.
Classroom discussion is a practice in which the instructor and students share views on a specific topic previously lectured. Promoting and facilitating classroom discussions can not only help students learn from one another but also help students understand and retain the lecture better.
Usually, during classroom discussions, the instructor will first lecture for a certain amount of time. After the lecture ends, the instructor asks students questions requiring them to answer with concrete examples and reflect on their understanding of the topic. So why should instructors include classroom discussions during the lecture?
Implementing classroom discussions during a class has many benefits. The advantages include:
It’s difficult to have a collaborative exchange with 200+ students over Zoom. With COVID-19, students have missed the engagement and connections from discussions in the classroom. When entirely online, a sense of community is lost. Further, many courses are pre-recorded making discussions impossible.
That’s not to say that it’s impossible to promote discussion with remote instruction. Instructors can use Zoom pooling to ask students multiple-choice questions, which could drive engagement and provide feedback. Faculty can also encourage online chat and forums after class to promote collaboration.
Overall, classroom discussions can engage, prepare, and motivate students more. Incorporating discourse during lectures are not only helpful for students, but it can also keep class times more interesting for instructors.
Tweet us at @GradeHub and share how you facilitate discussions in class!
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Lea from GradeHub
Lea Ibalio is a senior majoring in business at the University of California, Irvine and this year’s marketing intern at GradeHub.
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