Learning Science Lab | Facilitating discussion

Facilitating classroom discussion is both an art and a science. In the classroom, diverse viewpoints and real-world scenarios often converge. To create an environment conducive to meaningful discussion, you’ll need to balance structure and spontaneity, ensuring conversations are relevant while also encouraging exploration. You may need to prompt students to respond, but they also need autonomy when they contribute.

Creating an environment for discussion

When facilitating discussions, you'll want to take care to create a space where students feel comfortable contributing and remain actively engaged in the learning process. There are several steps you can take to create the conditions for successful discussion.

Setting student expectations

Like many teaching techniques, facilitating effective student discussion begins before you meet in the classroom. Before class begins, tell students what they can expect from your class and prepare them to contribute.
You can include language in your syllabus and your introductory sessions emphasizing the role discussion plays in your class. Not all students will be outgoing initially, and it’s important to let them know that classroom discussion is not about assessing them, but about leveraging the collective perspectives of the class to explore concepts and identify answers. It is okay to be “wrong,” and in some cases, it’s even necessary to move a discussion forward and test ideas.
Besides setting communication norms, prepare students for individual discussions as well. Let them know what topics will be covered and give them an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the material.

Connect discussions to student interests

Discussions that lead to deeper understanding often have a clear purpose, such as applying theoretical concepts to practical business scenarios. Instructors can frame discussions by providing context or a specific problem to solve, which gives students a clear direction. Structuring discussions around case studies or real-life examples relevant to the business world can help students make connections between abstract ideas and their practical applications, thus enhancing understanding.

Give questions room to breathe

Another strategy to enhance both attention and understanding during discussions is the use of wait time. Many instructors may feel an instinct to bridge silences. In a busy classroom, even brief pauses can seem longer than they really are.

But when you are facilitating discussion, the consequences of silence are very different than they are for a one-way presentation. Strategically allowing pauses after posing a question gives students time to think and formulate more thoughtful responses.
Extending wait time, even by a few seconds, can significantly improve the quality of student responses, as it allows students the mental space to engage more deeply with the material. And as we'll see below when we discuss warm calling, lengthier wait times—when paired with the right structure—can also play a role.

Balance guidance with student autonomy

The balance between guidance and autonomy is key. While providing a structure—such as an agenda, key questions, or a framework for group work—keeps the discussion on track, it is equally vital to allow students some flexibility to foster a sense of ownership over the learning process.
You may want to allow additional time for students to explore—and hopefully work through—erroneous arguments and assumptions before intervening. And when you do want to guide students to a specific answer, do so by prompting them with follow-up questions and arguments, rather than presenting the answer directly.

Monitor classroom dynamics

You'll need to be attentive to the dynamics in the classroom—some students may dominate discussions, while others may hesitate to speak. Many of the strategies in our Activities section, such as "Think-Pair-Share," are structured to encourage more introverted students to articulate their thoughts in smaller groups before sharing with the larger class, thereby leveling the playing field.

Frameworks for discussion

Facilitating student discussion will always require some level of dynamic, active moderation. But there are frameworks you can use to help you structure your classroom discussion.
These range from quick engagements with students that you can thread throughout your instruction to more formal, structured exercises that require a greater commitment in planning, organization, and class time.

1. The Socratic Method

Consider employing a questioning strategy such as the Socratic method, which involves asking open-ended questions that invite critical thinking. By involving students in answering important questions, rather than simply providing the answers yourself, you can pique students' interest and ensure they are mentally present in the discussion. Open-ended questions can lead to higher levels of student participation, as they require more than simple factual recall.

“Open-ended,” in this case, means there’s room for students to synthesize their own answers, but you’ll want to offer questions that have a meaningful connection to your class’s learning outcomes and which provide room for follow-up. You still serve an important role moderating the discussion, guiding it, keeping it on topic, and modeling the curiosity and critical thinking you expect from your students.

However, there are nuances to how you may want to pose questions to students. That’s where the concepts of cold calling and warm calling can be useful.

2. Cold calling and warm calling

Calling on students is a common—and seemingly straightforward—means of engaging them in the classroom. But there are, in fact, multiple ways to approach it. Two of the most common methods are cold calling and warm calling, and as their names would suggest, each plays to a distinct set of priorities.

Cold calling

Cold calling involves calling on students unannounced. It’s what many people will think of when they hear “calling on a student.” This approach has some advantages.

• It encourages students to pay attention because they do not know when they may be called upon.
• It helps involve students who may be less likely to volunteer answers to questions.

But the cold calling approach can also provoke anxiety and leave students unprepared to present fully thought-through answers. For those reasons, it is useful to replace or mix cold calling with warm calling.

Warm calling

In warm calling, the teacher still solicits responses from students, but with some amount of advance warning. Individual students or the class in general are told to expect a question. Or they are given a prompt with some time to consider it and formulate an answer before they are called on.

There are several significant advantages to this approach over cold calling.

• It can reduce student anxiety.
• The added time can lead to more considered answers.
• All students are asked to think through a response, even if a small number are ultimately called on.
• Because every student has been given time to consider a response, it is easier to call on multiple students in succession for follow-ups, or to pivot from direct questioning to classroom discussion.

The amount of advance notice students are given before being called upon can vary depending on the scope of the question. Even thirty seconds is enough time for students to process a question more thoughtfully, especially without the urgency imposed by a classroom full of their peers waiting for their response. For more involved questions you hope to explore thoroughly, you may consider granting several minutes.

Since the techniques are not mutually exclusive, you can use them in tandem to leverage both of their benefits. It is a good idea to communicate which strategies you intend to use with your class, so your students are aware of your expectations for in-class discussion.

You can watch our video on Cold & Warm Calling to see a demonstration of the technique in action.

3. Small group discussion

Breaking into groups for peer-led discussion can give students additional opportunities to develop ideas and explore more detailed scenarios. Group discussions can go deeper, but they also require more planning and class time, so you’ll want to use them strategically.

There are a variety of frameworks you can use to facilitate group discussions. For more information about facilitating group discussion, check out our Groups page.

Conclusion

Ultimately, facilitating effective classroom discussions requires careful planning, a solid understanding of group dynamics, and a willingness to adapt as conversations unfold. By employing strategies that balance structure with autonomy, instructors can help maintain student attention and promote deeper understanding, leading to richer learning experiences. Discussions that are well-facilitated not only enhance comprehension but also prepare students for the collaborative, problem-solving environments they will encounter in their professional lives.