Question

Conversation on topic teacher's importance

Answer 1

Answer:

A classroom that’s alive with debate is one of the most enjoyable places to learn. It’s also the perfect environment for promoting students’ understanding: children are much better equipped to write their ideas down once they have discussed them. Talking helps students to gather their thoughts, process information and remember it.

But there’s an art to holding a successful student discussion. Unless you want your classroom to descend into mayhem, you’ll need to think carefully about how to structure your debate, pose effective questions and keep students on track. Here are some ideas for getting started.

Kick off with a question

At the beginning of the lesson, ask a question that provokes discussion but isn’t heading towards a single, correct answer. For example, what is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world? How would you describe an elephant? Who is the most important scientist in the world?

Try posing an either/or question, such as: would you rather travel to the past or the future? Avoid leading questions or ones that might limit discussion, for example: I think Charles Dickens is brilliant, don’t you?

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This strategy ensures that you can begin the class with 100% participation. You can encourage two or three of the more passive students to explain their answers. A well-posed question can turn the lights on in students’ heads – but badly-formulated ones will bore them.