Discussions for the Deep Thinkers

Vital Learning Components of Classroom Discussions

Classroom discussions in an English Language Arts classroom is a wonderful and effective way for middle school students to actively participate in class. Discussions improve students social skills. They are able to speak to one another about a book and if they have questions, peers are able to help them. Their cognitive skills are also enhanced. Students bring up different views of passages in a book and discussions provide other students with new perspectives of a character or a specific passage in a text. Talking about the book helps students express their own point of view and they also improve their listening skills. Even if some students do not say anything in a discussion, that does not mean that they are not learning. Many introverted students learn by listening to others and taking in their perspectives, which can enhance their learning experience. I think discussions are most important when discussing a literary text that the students are reading or for talking about their own writing.

Classroom Discussions Can Be Scary For Teachers

Discussions can be hard for teachers because discussions mean that students have control of what is being talked about. In Beers' book When Kids Can't Read, Kate is debriefing a discussion she had with her middle school classroom, and she says, "sometimes it got harder to...keep them in control...It's just easier to, you know, just tell them what the story is about. With this, (the discussion) I had to be thinking, and trying to put it all together" (55). Beers says that sometimes it is easier to tell the students what a story is about, but Kate says when teachers do this, "then they (the students) don't get any better at figuring out how to figure out a story" (55). If teachers merely stand in front of the classroom and tell the students what each piece of literature is about and the significance it has, then students do not have any time to think about it for themselves. Students need to be active in this process, even if it is harder to "control" where the discussion is going. In Atwell's book In the Middle, she discusses writing and reading workshops where the students are constantly responding to one another about their own writing and they discuss various texts and readings. I think peer discussions and peer feedback is vital for middle school students and they learn much more when they think for themselves and form their own opinions, than if the teacher tells them.

Hope for Classroom Discussions

When I shadowed a high school English classroom last year, the students were discussing the book Jane Eyre. Very rarely did the students get off task or talk about something other than the book. I think this would be different in a middle school classroom, but it gave me hope that learning can happen when students lead the discussions and I was extremely impressed at the connections they made by themselves. If they missed a significant point in the book, the teacher brought it up and the students immediately remembered the passage and began discussing it. In discussions, teachers are there to help guide the students and facilitate the discussion if they need to. When I was looking for resources that would help teachers with classroom management for discussions, I found a website that provided a workshop guide for teachers. There is a DVD available to watch and there was also information provided on how to teach specific workshops, like poetry workshops and teaching persuasive writing. I think these tools could be especially useful for English Language Arts teachers.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Overall, I do not think discussions will work for every single lesson or activity in an English Language Arts classroom, but I do think it is an important activity for students to actively participate in discussions when they are reading literature and discussing their own writing. Students are able to say what they think and teachers can get a better understanding of where the students are in their comprehension level of the texts. Students also learn from their peers, which is a necessary tool for them to possess. Although having classroom discussions may not be the easiest thing a teacher can do, with practice, I think it will become more natural for both the teacher and the students.