Emily's Reading Notes #2

Davis and Lang present many good ideas for leading discussion. Their suggestions for facilitating and developing discussion are helpful, and are great ideas for creating a discussion oriented class. I was surprised by the large amount of attention Davis (2009) spent discussing the need for allowing students time to prepare for discussion and allowing them to play a role in starting the discussion. This notion is contrasted by Lang (2008) focusing on the teacher preparing the discussion. I find it interesting to note this difference, and the impact this format may have on the discussion. Though Lang (2008) provides many different techniques for starting discussion, I feel the focus on preparation provided by Davis (2009) is very important, and merits further attention from the class. Though Lang (2008) addresses giving students time to prepare in class the day of a discussion, Davis (2009)’s suggestion of assigning preparation activities to complete before class can give students more time to think, especially for those who have issues with anxiety. Communication educators tend to focus on anxiety in the context of public speaking, which I agree is the biggest fear people have. However, many students may also experience issues with group anxiety. Allowing students time to prepare outside of class, mentally and emotionally, could help build students confidence and encourage them to speak up in the discussion, where being put on the spot in class could present more of a challenge.

The other concern I have about leading discussion is how to evaluate discussion. I feel that if students are not evaluated in some way, they are going to choose to clock out and not participate in the discussion. Both Davis (2009) and Lang (2008) address grading as an important consideration, and it is an issue I am concerned about. In one sense, it is important to grade. However, it can go over the top. During a graduate class I took, the professor sat every night with a class list (24 students) and a chart to track our contributions to the discussion. The sheet had columns corresponding to types of contributions we made (i.e. pose question, ask question of classmate, clarify point, etc.). This seems over the top to me. How have others graded discussion in the past? Is there a better way to keep track of student contributions to discussion? If you decide to grade on participation, how important is it to try to pull people into the discussion and when do you decide to let students take charge of their grade? It is important to allow students the opportunity to participate, especially if you have certain students dominating the discussion. However, students deserve the chance to participate by choice (this may also be the side of me that views students as adults that need to figure out life). Also, how successful is discussion in introductory classes (such as COMM 110)? Freshmen students seem reluctant to jump into discussion, and I am concerned about the success of discussion, regardless of how much preparation is assigned.

Finally, I have a question about Davis (2009)’s recommendation to “be patient with students who ask questions you have already answered”. This is an issue I have struggled with in the past. I would answer a student question about due dates for an assignment, and then I would have three or four more students ask later (I know this is not Davis’ exact situation, but it crossed my mind when reading about questions). I always thought that “I’ve already addressed that topic so please check with a classmate” was an appropriate response for that situation. However, based on the reading in Davis, I wonder if that is appropriate. I agree for course material it is important to clarify whenever you can and address student concerns, but I find it frustrating to be answering the same question over and over, especially if students are not paying attention to the discussion. What do you all think? How do you handle this type of situation where students keep asking the same question again and again (about due dates or course material)? Also, I think (in the situation Davis (2009) mentioned), it would be important to also make a note of this issue in your lecture notes. If many students have questions about certain topics or areas, it would be important to make a note of this in your notes to revise your lesson plans for future teaching situations.