Discussion as a Way
of Teaching
STEPHEN BROOKFIELD
MORE INFORMATION
Details
of all exercises in this
powerpoint are available via
my home page
 WWW.STEPHENBROOKFIELD.COM
Why Discussions Fail
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Unprepared Students
Unrealistic Expectations
No Ground Rules
Reward Systems Askew
No Teacher Modeling
Critical Incident Questionnaire
 Moment
most engaged as a learner
 Moment most distanced as a learner
 Most affirming/helpful action
 Most puzzling/confusing action
 What surprised you most
These are anonymously completed - the instructor reads
these & reports main findings at start of next class with
time for discussion (if needed)
Creating Ground Rules
• Individuals reflect on features of best & worst
discussions they’ve experienced
• Groups discuss commonly agreed features of best
& worst discussions
• For each feature group asks how can this be
encouraged &/or eliminated
• Class creates ground rules with teacher assistance
(the 3 person rule, rotating roles, building on
others’ contributions, providing evidence)
Circle of Voices
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Individuals reflect on the discussion topic (1-3 minutes)
Participants go round the circle in order - each person has
up to 1 minute of uninterrupted air time to give their
viewpoint on the topic. No interruptions are allowed.
Move into free discussion with the ground rule that every
comment offered must somehow refer back to a comment
made by someone else in the opening circle of voices.
This need NOT be agreement - it can be a disagreement, a
question, an elaboration or extension, an illustration, and
so on.
3 PERSON RULE
ONCE YOU HAVE SPOKEN YOU
MAY NOT MAKE ANOTHER
COMNTRIBUTION UNTIL AT
LEAST 3 OTHERS HAVE
SPOKEN - UNLESS SOMEONE
ASKS YOU DIRECTLY TO
EXPAND ON YOUR COMMENT
Snowballing

People spend time individually reflecting on
the topic
 Form into pairs & share reflections
 Pairs form into quartets
 Quartets form into octets
AND SO ON & SO ON!!
(An alternative way to move from small to
whole group discussion)
STRUCTURED SILENCE
 Every 15 minutes students write
individually on 3x5 cards ONE of the
following - most important point, most
puzzling point, question they’d most like
to discuss, something new they’ve
learned - in the discussion so far.
 Cards shuffled & responses read out by
different students
SPIRAL CONVERSATION
 ONCE
YOU HAVE SPOKEN YOU
DO NOT SPEAK AGAIN UNTIL
EVERYONE IN THE GROUP HAS
CONTRIBUTED. FACILITATOR
MONITORS THIS PROCESS LATER CONTRIBUTORS CAN
AGREE, DISAGREE OR PASS
Conversational Moves
Bring 3x5 cards to class with moves typed on each of them.
Participants choose 1 of these cards randomly.
EXAMPLES OF SPECIFIC MOVES
Ask a question or make a comment that shows you are interested
in another’s comments
Make a comment that underscores the link between 2 previous
contributions
Make a comment clearly building on what someone else has said make this link explicit
Make a summary observation on a recurring theme in the
discussion
Express appreciation for how another’s comments have helped
your understanding
Disagree with someone in a respectful way
Conversational Roles
 Problem
Poser
 Reflective
Analyst
 Scrounger
 Umpire
 Detective
 Devil’s
Advocate
 Theme Spotter
 Textual
Focuser
 Evidential
Assessor
Critical Debate
Motion is framed & participants volunteer
to work on teams to draft arguments that
either support or oppose the motion
Facilitator switches teams!
Teams conduct debate w/rebuttal time
Debrief the debate - assumptions that were
confirmed & challenged, new viewpoints,
overlooked evidence
Circular Response
(Eduard Lindeman)
Individuals reflect on a topic for discussion
Form into circles of 6-8
One person starts by giving her reflections on the topic.
Up to 1 minute allowed - no interruptions
Person to left of 1st speaker goes next - whatever she
says MUST somehow refer to/build on previous
speaker’s comments (can be a disagreement or
express confusion). Up to 1 minute allowed - no
interruptions
Process continues leftwards around the circle with
people speaking in order until all have participated
Group moves into open conversation with no particular
ground rules in force
Mutual Invitation
(Eric Law - The Wolf Shall dwell with the Lamb)
Facilitator begins by sharing her views on the
topic
Facilitator chooses who will speak next - this
person can pass but then chooses who will
speak in their turn
No-one can interrupt the chosen speaker
Once all have spoken participants move into
open discussion with no ground rules
Critical Conversation Protocol
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Storyteller tells the tale - no interruptions
Detectives ask questions about story
Detectives report out assumptions they hear
Detectives offer alternative interpretations
Participants do an experiential audit (what
have we learned, would do differently etc.)
Umpire enforces ground rules throughout
Discussion Inventory
Tell students you reserve 5-10 minutes at the end of
the discussion to offer your thoughts
On a notepad record:- clear errors of fact or understanding,
- perspectives that are ignored,
- oppositional views that are smothered
Articulate these for 5-10 minutes before giving
participants ‘the last word’ & the CIQ
Hatful of Quotes
Type out 5-6 provocative quotes from
assigned reading on a 3x5 card (each
quote will be on several cards)
Put these in a hat & have participants
choose a card at random
Participants take turns (at their
choosing) to respond to these quotes
- or to earlier comments on these
quotes
Quotes to Affirm & Challenge
Each participant brings in a quote she wishes to affirm, & one she
wishes to challenge, from the assigned reading
Quotes to affirm - resonate with experience, explain difficult concepts
clearly, add significant new information, are cogently expressed,
are rhetorically powerful etc.
Quotes to challenge - immoral/unethical, poorly expressed, factually
wrong, contradict experience
Quotes are shared in small groups & each group chooses ONE to
affirm & ONE to challenge
In large group conversation the small group communicates rationales
for each of these choices
NOMINATING QUESTIONS
Small groups come up with 1-2
questions they want to discuss further
 Groups post questions on posters or
black/white board
 Students individually put a check
against 2 questions they would like to
discuss more
 Whole class discussion is structured
around questions with most votes

Newsprint Dialogue
• Small groups put their deliberations on newsprint
sheets - no reporter is chosen to report these out
• Newsprint sheets are then posted around the room &
blank sheets posted next to each sheet
• Each participant takes a marker & wanders by
herself around the room - she writes her questions,
reactions, agreements etc. directly onto the sheets or
on the blanks posted next to them
• Groups reassemble at their postings to see what
others have written
Rotating Stations
Small groups record their deliberations on newsprint
sheets and hang these on the wall - a blank sheet
hangs next to each group’s posting
Staying in their small groups, each group visits the
posting next to theirs - as a group they post their
reactions to the posting on the blank sheets
Group’s rotate until they arrive at their own posting.
They review all the previous groups’ comments
Whole class discussion follows on how groups reacted
to other groups’ postings
GRADING FOR PARTICIPATION:
BEHAVIORAL INDICATORS
Ask a question of a peer that draws out
their thinking
Bring in a resource not covered in the
syllabus that adds new info. or ideas
Make a comment that underscores the
link between 2 people’s comments
Use body language to show interest in a
person’s contribution
PARTICIPATION (II)
Post an online comment that summarizes our
discussion or suggests a new direction
Make a comment (online is ok) about how
you found another’s comments useful or
interesting. Be as specific as possible.
Contribute something that builds on what
another has said - be explicit about how you
are doing this
PARTICIPATION (III)
• Make a comment on the CIQ or online that
helps us examine discussion dynamics
• Ask a cause and effect question
• Express appreciation for how the discussion
has helped you understand something better
(online is OK). Be specific about exactly
what was helpful.
• Summarize several people’s comments
PARTICIPATION AUDIT
HOW DID YOU? …
Express Appreciation for a Contribution
Connect 2 or 3 previous comments
Point out differences
Draw out another’s thinking
Ask a helpful question
Contribute a new idea
Discussion Learning Audit
• As a result of today’s discussion …
What do you know that you didn’t know
this time last week?
What can you do that you couldn’t do this
time last week?
What could you teach someone else to know
or do that you couldn’t teach them this time
last week?
What Would it Take?
• Former resisters
testified to its utility
• Faculty modeled their
own participation
• My silence was not
misconstrued
• Open - not a guessing
game of ‘what the
teacher thinks’
• Group developed &
observed ground rules
• Participation was
assessed by multiple
indicators
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Discussion as a Way of
Teaching: Tools &
Techniques for
Democratic
Classrooms
Brookfield & Preskill
(2006)

Education, Democracy
& Discussion
Bridges (1988)

Active Talk: The
Effective Use of
Discussion in Learning
Van Ments (1990)

Discussion-Based
Online Teaching to
Enhance Student
Learning
Bender (2003)