Yes, discussion is the primary means of increasing active student involvement in the classroom ... but interaction doesn't guarantee learning.
Yes, students gain useful skills in clarifying goals, planning, and being sensitive to others ... but a lot of class time must be spent just to maintain the group.
Yes, discussion offers the opportunity for widening student views and perceptions ... but it is not good for dispensing information.
Yes, students say they prefer discussions to lectures ... but they often will not "do the homework" necessary to be prepared for a discussion.
And so the battle goes!
Certainly, discussion as a method of instruction has strengths and limitations, advantages and disadvantages, pros and cons...which simply means that a teacher's decisions on whether and how to use it in the classroom must be carefully considered. The focus must always be on the aims and goals of instruction and how discussion can help achieve them.
In "Research on College Teaching," Wilbert McKeachie has concluded that other things being equal, discussions are more effective for the goals of retention, application, problem-solving, attitude change, and motivation for future learning. It is the nature of the learning task more than the discipline or the subject matter that relates to the effectiveness of discussion in the college classroom.
Consider what you want your students to accomplish or learn. Are your objectives similar to any on this list?
The student will:If your objectives are represented in this group of instructional goals, then group discussion has much to offer as a teaching technique.
Now...you're right, of course...there are other concerns which will influence your decisions regarding the use of discussion in the classroom.
Maybe. Rules-of-thumb regarding effective group size for discussions have been offered -- seven plus or minus two; four to six; no more than ten. You may have formulated your own rule after some experiences with discussion.
However, good discussions have been held in classes of all sizes. There are obvious differences in what can be accomplished in a class of sixty as opposed to a class of ten; but skillful, creative teachers have found ways to involve large classes in meaningful discussion. We have to remember that students who are listening, thinking, formulating their own questions, making decisions are often just as involved as the students who are actually talking.
Select a small group of students to conduct the discussion. Ask the others to watch, listen carefully, formulate answers to questions specifically posed to them, prepare for a vote on the issue being discussed, etc.
Right...that will make discussion more difficult since people are more likely to interact when they can see each other. When the "furniture" can't be rearranged, that basic precept of good discussion has to be ignored.
But don't despair immediately! There are other possibilities. For example, use small groups for short periods of time (5-10 minutes). Student bones will bend and twist for a little while.
Make sure that you move around the room during the discussion. Your movements will help to shift the focus of attention to other parts of the group.
Absolutely. Probably the greatest shortcoming of group discussion is that other teaching techniques can cover more material in the same amount of time. Even assuming ideal group progress, it simply takes longer to discuss a topic than, for example, it would take the teacher to lecture about that topic.
The important consideration is whether or not the time is well spent. Will the method of discussion help students to achieve the instructional goals better than another choice? Perhaps "covering the material" isn't the end objective, after all.
That's a disappointing fact that we all face at one time or another. But it's not really so surprising that students don't participate if we consider the little experience they may have had with the method. Discussion requires student skills as well as teacher skills. They must be able to state ideas or feelings clearly, to summarize, to analyze, to clarify, to accept others' disagreements, to derive generalizations, etc. Discussions always get better as the semester goes along . . . because the students have learned more about the process of discussing.
It's also important that the students be prepared for the topic of the discussion session...not only with what will be covered but why it is important. Students will be more inclined to participate when they see what the discussion is all about.
Keep in mind that all too many students have learned that it is much better to be "right" than "wrong" in class...and that if they can't be right, it is wiser to be quiet. Patience and encouragement on your part may wear away this barrier to good discussions.