Priming Class Discussion

This is one of the simplest and most effective tools I used to develop meaningful conversations in my history classes.

When I first began to intentionally craft my classes around discussion, I discovered pretty quickly that many students, even my best ones, would not initiate or contribute to discussion of the question at hand for two reasons:

• They could not remember many of the points they had developed when reading or reviewing the night before.
• They were nervous being the first student to offer a response.

In short, they just weren't ready. So the objective became getting them ready to discuss well. I call it priming, because it reminded me of painting: if you want the paint to look good, you have to coat the wall with a layer of primer first. You have to get the wall ready for a good paint job. 

Here is what I learned:

1. Deliberate preparation the night before is key. The students need to gather and process the information from their text (or other material) that will help them make good contributions to the discussion. As a result, when assigning homework or preparatory class work, be sure to:

• Provide the question to be discussed clearly and concisely. Ensure that they understand it. Say it aloud at least twice as you review directions for them. 
• Provide reference to specific locations in specific resources (such as page numbers in a text) for where to find the relevant information. 
• Require evidence of close reading and preparation. This could be underlining, highlighting, taking notes or making a summary. (Choices here are important to accommodate different learning styles.) However students do it, the point is that they know they are preparing for the discussion. At the beginning of the discussion, they will know what to say because they have it right there in front of them, ready to go.

2. A few minutes to get organized and on task is key. Allow the students 1-3 minutes to get their "evidence" together and to review it in silence so that their brains are fully refreshed. It is hard transitioning to a history discussion if you have just completed a chemistry lab or if you have just finished a quiz. Transition time is important. 

3. Small group processing makes a big difference. Students are much more willing to talk in a large group if they do it first in a small group because the stakes of making a mistake or speaking awkwardly there are much lower, and they often sit next to friends. Pairs or trios based on proximity work best. Allow them 5-10 minutes to "get the ball rolling" and flesh out some ideas in a less threatening context. 

4. Set the tone of the large group discussion. Take a few minutes to remind the students why the question under consideration is important, especially how it ties into previous and future classes or content. Underscore that there may not be one answer, but that exploring the question together helps to better understand whatever larger topic or theme you are studying. 

In conclusion, it's all about staging the experience. Adolescent brains learn best in discrete, digestible chunks. In this way, you consciously build the conversation by laying a stronger foundation for it.