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Facilitating Effective Discussions - Coggle Diagram
Facilitating Effective Discussions
Preparing for a discussion
Plan how to conduct the discussion
Do a thorough planning
The discussion needs to have a clear goal/objective
Ways to be "present" and to "participate"
Reevaluate the course participation and attendance policies
Help students prepare for the discussion
Distribute a list of questions for the discussion
Create ground rules for participation in a discussion
Students need to understand the value of actively listening to their peers, bear with opposing viewpoints, and being open-minded.
Students also need to recognise the importance of staying focused and expressing themselves clearly.
Starting a discussion
Refer to questions that are distributed
Start the discussion by asking one of the study questions or by asking group members which of the questions they found hardest.
Make a list of key points
Identify and list down the important points from the reading
Use the points as a starting point for discussion.
Guiding the discussion
Keep the discussion focused
Have a clear agenda for the discussion and list questions/issues on the board to inform and remind everyone of where the discussion is heading.
Take notes
Jot down key points that appear from the discussion and use the points for summarising the session.
Prevent the discussion from deteriorating into a heated argument
Remind students of the ground rules for discussion which the students need to practice active listening, remain open-minded, and focus on ideas and content rather than on people and personal issues.
Encouraging student participation
Allow students to ask questions or share ideas in class anonymously
Encourage students to ask questions in the learning management system.
Give students low-stakes opportunities to think and discuss the content
Students sometimes need to get the idea wrong, take risks, or try out different ideas to learn.
Facilitate smaller discussions among students
Most students need some time and space to try ideas out with one another first before voicing out publicly.
Facilitate smaller activities before the discussion
To help the students prepare for discussion, give them the opportunity to write or solve problems quietly for a few minutes.
Use online resources and content management systems to extend class discussions
Students will be given many different opportunities and spaces in which to participate.
Positively reinforce student contributions
Maintain eye contact and use non-verbal gestures such as smiling and head nodding to indicate your attention and interest in students' responses.
Balance students' voices during the discussion
Discourage students who take over the discussion by implementing a structured activity that requires each group member to be involved.
Draw quiet students into the discussion by asking non-threatening questions that don't require a detailed or correct response.
Examples of phrases to take part in academic discussions
To give opinions
In my opinion/view,...
My poin of view is that ...
The point I'm trying to make is ...
To give others the chance to speak
What do you think about/of ...?
May I ask you ...?
What's your opinion about ...?
To invite others to contribute
Could you explain to me ...?
Could someone please tell me ...?
To agree
I could not agree more
That's right
Yes, indeed
To disagree
I disagree
I don't think so
I would not think so
To set aims
In order to ...
To set the timetable
to clear things out ...
To sum up
In conlcusion, ...
To summarise ...