Managing discussion

1. Managing discussion

2. Aims of the session This session is intended to help us to: • experience discussion of mathematics; • reflect on how discussion can be used to promote learning; • explore the characteristics of purposeful discussion; • explore the management skills that are needed to implement purposeful discussion.

3. A group activity • Decide whether each statement on the cards you have been given is always, sometimes or never true. • Stick your statement on a poster and write your explanation next to it. • If you think a statement is ‘always true’ or ‘never true’, then explain how you can be sure. • If you think a statement is ‘sometimes true’, describe all the cases when it is true and all the cases when it is false. • Make up a statement that your learners could discuss in a similar way.

4. Always, sometimes or never true?

5. Always, sometimes or never true? (contd.)

6. Reflect on your discussion • Who talked the most? Who spoke the least? • What was their role in the group? • Did everyone feel that all views were taken into account? • Did anyone feel threatened? If so, why? How could this have been avoided? • Did people tend to support their own views, or did anyone take up and improve someone else's suggestion? • Has anyone learnt anything? If so, how did this happen?

7. Why is discussion rare in mathematics?

8. What kind of talk is most helpful?

9. Ground rules for learners • Talk one at a time. • Share ideas and listen to each other. • Make sure people listen to you. • Follow on. • Challenge. • Respect each other’s opinions. • Enjoy mistakes. • Share responsibility. • Try to agree in the end.

10. Managing a discussion • How might we help learners to discuss constructively? • What is the teacher’s role during small group discussion? • What is the purpose of a whole group discussion? • What is the teacher’s role during a whole group discussion?

11. Teacher’s role in small group discussion • Make the purpose of the task clear. • Keep reinforcing the ‘ground rules’. • Listen before intervening. • Join in, don’t judge. • Ask learners to describe, explain and interpret. • Do not do the thinking for learners. • Don’t be afraid of leaving discussions unresolved.

12. Purposes of whole group discussion • Learners present and report on the work they have done. • The teacher recognises ‘big ideas’ and gives them status and value. • The learning is generalised and linked to other ideas and the wider context.

13. Teacher’s role in whole group discussion • Mainly chair or facilitate. • Direct the flow and give everyone a say. • Do not interrupt or allow others to interrupt. • Help learners to clarify their own ideas. • Occasionally be a questioner or challenger. • Introduce a new idea when the discussion is flagging. • Follow up a point of view. • Play devil’s advocate; ask provocative questions. • Don’t be a judge who: • assesses every response with ‘yes’, ‘good’ etc; • sums up prematurely.

14. Planning a discussion session How should you: • organise the furniture? • introduce the task? • introduce the ways of working on the task? • allocate learners to groups? • organise the rhythm of the session? • conclude the session?

15. Follow up task • Plan and try out a discussion based activity with your class • Come to the next session ready to share you experiences and reflect on the quality of the discussion