Reading Notes 3

I found Lang’s writing on discussions to be particularly helpful this week. When reading about the Think-Pair-Share model, I found looking back that this was something done in my undergraduate courses without me ever noticing. For my Organic Chemistry class the professor would have an individual quiz that students worked on for five minutes. After that the students got into groups of four and filled out the same quiz. This part of the discussion was especially helpful whenever I didn’t fully understand a problem. Three other students had the opportunity to help me decipher it. Finally after ten minutes of group work, the professor would randomly select students to write and solve the problem on the board.  Most people question the effectiveness of group quizzes because they think that one person will be relied upon for all the work and answers, but by randomly selecting a student to present it on the board, this ensures that the students need to know for themselves how to solve the problem.

            Going off of this subject it is also nice to present ideas to a few other students before being thrown into a ring with 20 other students. Class last week for instance, it was nice to have two people to help write and form my objectives instead of getting feedback from 20 students and feeling like I did a horrible job. I think small group discussions help boost students confidence and understanding before presenting to a large group.

            Another point that Lang brought up was leading group discussions and when to help out. Usually it is noted that professors do not give students long enough to decipher a question or concept before either answering the question themselves or calling on someone mid-thought. However, I have a huge worry about pauses. Lang suggests waiting ten seconds for someone to bravely raise their hand or start the discussion. However, whenever we were giving our mini-lectures, I was afraid to pause for even two seconds for the thought that someone might have thought I lost my train of thought or didn’t know what I talking about. Something for further discussion would be How long should I wait for a concept to sink in and how often should I stop during a lecture to let material sink in?

            The other interesting point I think Lang made was the fact that students who go longer without having to speak will eventually withdrawal themselves from ever speaking in the class at all. I never really thought about this concept. But the truth is that students will eventually rely on those other students who always talk for a way out. I think integration of having to make a student talk at least once a week is a very good idea so that student could make a contribution to class and not feel left out. However a problem also poses, How do I make a student contribute to the class without sending him/her into an anxiety attack and make them feel uncomfortable? How far can I push students outside their comfort zone before they hide forever?