Planning a Seminar
Although a seminar is less formally structured than a lecture, it helps to have an underlying
plan, even if you decide to abandon this partway through to allow a particularly fruitful
discussion more time to develop. (If you are leading a seminar designed to follow up
someone else’s lecture, remember to ask them in advance for their outline notes and any
suggested areas or readings you should focus on.)
What is the purpose of the seminar?
Is it an opportunity for students to (for example):
 clarify or explore in depth a topic previously introduced through the lecture and/or
set readings
 identify and sort out any misunderstandings
 develop their critical and analytic skills
 relate theoretical material to real-life examples including their own experience
 present the results of their research to each other
 improve their general skill and confidence in group discussion (including listening)
You may want to achieve all this and more, but try to identify what is essential to this
particular session as well as desirable generic outcomes developed throughout the course.
For instance, a specific aim might be “to explore how theory X (introduced in this week’s
lecture) is relevant to understanding the causes of social inequality”, where students could
be asked to bring along topical examples gathered from the week’s news to discuss in small
subgroups using the new theoretical lens. A generic aim might be “to develop understanding
and communication skills through sharing different experiences and perspectives”.
Share these intended aims with students, and consider how you and they will check whether
they have been achieved by the end of the session.
Timing and structure
Include at least five minutes at the start to introduce the topic (and yourselves if this is the
first meeting). Share the basic session aims and outline as bullet points on whiteboard or
Powerpoint or as a handout, and help locate these within the overall shape of the module by
referring to what was discussed in the previous session and how it will relate to the next.
Similarly allow time at the end for summary, feedback and forward planning.
Most seminars last for one or two hours so divide the time into shorter sections of around
15-20 minutes (see sample session plan on next page). For each section, ask yourself:
 what is the main aim of this part of the session?
 what will I be doing? what will the students be doing?
 what resources will I need? (eg handouts, audio-visual materials, objects or examples
for them to discuss, flip-chart, whiteboard markers.....). If you don’t think about these
now, it’s all too easy to forget something until you are in the middle of teaching.
Don’t be tempted to try to fit too much in or allow one or two confident students to
dominate the discussion. Whatever else happens, a seminar should be designed to provide
maximum opportunities for all students to interact with the material and each other.
See http://www.brighton.ac.uk/clt/resources/seminars/ for general advice on seminars and
practical tips to encourage discussion and solve common problems reported by colleagues.
University of Brighton Centre for Learning and Teaching
Seminar Planning
Seminar Planning Pro-forma
Title/topic of session
Approximately how many students? Most seminar groups are between 10-25, and will need to divide into
subgroups as in the example below for some activities so everyone gets a chance to contribute
Context (eg a one-off event or part of a course, linked to a lecture and/or incorporating student presentations, team
teaching or on your own, level and type of students, any limitations on space or equipment etc)
Aims (what are the 3 most important things you want students to learn/achieve by the end of this session?)
What types of activities might you include in the session that would help students to achieve these aims?
Evaluation How might you and the students check at the end whether these aims have been achieved?
How long have you got? The example below is for a one hour seminar designed to follow up and build on a
previous lecture but each of the activities would benefit from more time if you have it
Minutes
What will you be doing?
What will students be doing?
Resources needed
from start
0-5
Remind them of topic and
Settling down, getting out lecture notes
PPT slides with outline,
Intro
show session aims and outline
activity instructions etc
Whiteboard & pens
5-15
Give instructions, check
In small sub-groups (2-3 people):
Post it notes, flipcharts
Overview of
groups are on task
Identify what they consider 3 main
pens
lecture
points from the lecture + 3 questions or
Gather feedback but resist
aspects they are unsure about. Write
temptation to launch into
these points on flip charts or post-its to
explanatory mini-lecture!
set the agenda for next stage.
Help group to produce
collaborative mind-map of the Plenary discussion – share key points
lecture on whiteboard with
and questions; construct joint mind-map
problem areas highlighted
15-35
Allocate the most common
In small sub-groups (4-6 people):
Flip chart sheets,
Clarifying
questions to subgroups
Each group to discuss their allocated
markers, blutack
key concepts Circulate groups to check
question/topic then produce a flip chart
working OK but encourage
poster using diagrams/ bullet points etc
them to problem solve
to clarify for others
Camera or phone to
difficult areas for themselves,
capture mind-map etc
relate lecture concepts to
Plenary discussion: share posters and
to upload to VLE later
their own experience or other
debate most difficult concepts. Explore
(do also encourage the
‘real world’ examples
how each subtopic or question relates to students to take
Chair group discussion, take
own experiences or other parts of course photos to help them
photos of mindmap
Amend mind-map as necessary
‘own’ the discussion)
35-50
Shuffle group membership for In new sub-groups (3-5 people) discuss
Spare copies of set
Engaging
next task which builds on set
the set reading and/or the examples
reading
with set
readings or materials they’ve
they have brought in to class.
readings
been asked to bring.
Encourage them to explore
Identify areas for debate, difficult
multiple and competing
concepts, link to the lecture topics and
viewpoints
own experiences. Summarise
50-60
Chair plenary discussion and
Plenary discussion and review of what
Handout or slides with
Review and
summarise key points. Help
they have learnt, identifying new
reminder of
evaluate
them evaluate what they have understandings, outstanding issues.
independent study
learnt – has the session
tasks for next week
achieved its intended aims? If
not how could it be better
Individual students: make a note of
next time? Look ahead to
areas for further study and tasks to be
next weeks session
carried out before next session
University of Brighton Centre for Learning and Teaching
Seminar Planning