ABSTRACT
This chapter examines six effective types of discussion: taking a stand, issues/values continuum, futures wheel discussion, fishbowl discussion, structured academic, and online threaded discussion. During discussions, students and teacher interact with one another by listening, thinking, and sharing. As the participants discuss a topic, they think about different points of view and new information. Classroom discussion serves several educational purposes because it is a unique form of classroom talk. Discussion requires students and teacher to talk back-and-forth at a highly cognitive and affective level. Inadequate student preparation inhibits well-informed classroom discussions. While techniques abound for informing students, the process advocated by the inquiry design model emphasizes key tools such as gathering, evaluating, and using data. By strictly timing a debate and establishing a sequence for who speaks when, one can ensure wide participation in classroom debates.
