Discussion Benefits

Like many have said already, the readings this week focused on teaching strategies that deal with discussion based methods. Rather than having lessons that focus on learning material through answering questions correctly, discussions and other lessons that deal with having in depth sharing of ideas have many benefits of their own. Students can reach on their prior knowledge and add to a discussion this way. Students can connect readings they are assigned with everyday situations and past experiences. This is similar to what we do with our readings in TE 402. Much of what we read, we are able to connect with our field work and discuss this with others in the class. This leads to a more stirring and thought provoking conversation during class.
In learning methods of discussion, we have come across many options to stimulate conversation that enable students to learn in the process. One of these methods, as mentioned before, is the think-pair-share method. This allows students to pry upon knowledge they have or thoughts that arise from a question presented during the think portion of this method. When pairing up with another student or small group within the class, theses ideas can aid others in their thought process and can also help one add to their thoughts as well. Sharing then allows all students in the classroom get out ideas and allow others to hear different perspectives and ideas they may not have thought of before.
Other methods that we have discussed before can all be used to develop units based on a series of lessons using discussion methods. The first lesson can be one that is similar to our "science talk" or "seeing student thinking" assignments in TE 401. This type of lesson can be a pre-assessment to gage what students know about a topic and what they will need to learn during a unit. The next type of lesson that can be used is an open discussion or debate about the topic. As the teacher, we can serve the role of facilitator and get the discussion up and running by posi9ng thought provoking questions or situations. One can also use another type of discussion based method we learned which was the case study method. Here our students can learn through actual cases that have been documented. This can dwell on the prior knowledge of the students, change opinions during the discussion, and also spark new discussions based on the results of the case. In doing so, the most important thing to convey to students before doing any kind of discussion is set rules and guidelines on how to conduct a proper discussion without offending or hurting anyone in the classroom. Ideas such as respect, open-mindedness and willingness to learn from others are all ideas that can and should be stressed.