Incorporating readings that lead to discussion

Step 1: Select appropriate readings

Taking time to select appropriate readings is a critical first step to using those readings well to enhance learning.

There are many options for readings in introductory courses beyond traditional textbooks, which can be expensive and difficult to access after they finish your class. Using a learning management system allows you to link to readings from a range of reliable resources while also promoting their ongoing use of those resources beyond your course.

Examples

The TIDeS materials make use of readings from Visionlearning, an open educational resource with peer-reviewed content in the sciences that includes modules in both English and Spanish, audio recordings of the modules, and an integrated, interactive glossary.

Show the topics of Visionlearning readings and which units they are used in

Hide

The materials also make use of readings from other reliable and freely available sources, such as topical resources from NASA and NOAA.

Step 2: Assign a few thought-provoking questions that are due just before class

Using a just-in-time approach intentionally links the work that students do outside of class with activities that happen in class. You can ask students respond to questions online "just" before class so that you can build on their responses to have a discussion in class. These questions are most effective when they are open-ended and allow students to reveal their thinking without penalty. Using your learning management system, assign a few low-stakes questions that ask students to reflect, activate their prior knowledge, apply a concept to a local setting or personal context, or apply a concept to a new problem, and set the due date and time for 1 to 4 hours before class starts. To make the grading process quick and to reduce student anxiety, let students know that they will not be graded on correctness, but on the completeness of their responses.

Types of questions

A key to the success of this approach is carefully designing questions that address key learning outcomes, common misconceptions and alternative conceptions, and the application of critical thinking skills, rather than focusing on recall of facts or vocabulary. You can think about types of questions as having different purposes, such as:

• Reveal and/or activate prior knowledge (e.g., In this module, you read about X. Was this a new concept to you, or have you heard about it before? What have you learned about X prior to this class?)
• Apply a concept to a familiar setting or situation (e.g., The module you read described the albedo of different planets. Around campus, which surfaces do you think would have a relatively high albedo? Which surfaces would have a low albedo?)
• Cultivate curiosity (e.g., What did you find most surprising or interesting in this reading?)
• Apply a concept or skill to a personal context (e.g., Describe a way that you use graphs or visual data in your everyday life - could be something in school, at work, recreation, anything. Describe what you use and how you use it.)

All of these question types lend themselves to authentic responses from students that can then lead to identification of themes and productive discussions in class. You may want to emphasize that you are looking for their own thoughts in their own words rather than what they can generate using AI.

Examples

Show the set of pre-class questions for a reading about scientific practices

Hide

Show the set of pre-class questions for a reading about atmospheric processes

Hide

Step 3: Read, assess, and collate student responses before class

It might seem overwhelming to read through all of your students' responses and grade them prior to class, but it doesn't have to be. You don't need to give feedback to individual students on their responses, and can grade them quickly on a two- or three-point scale that you share with students ahead of time. Your primary goal is to look for themes and to collate responses in a way that you can prompt discussion in class.

Assess for completeness, not correctness

You don't need to spend time individually responding or addressing each alternative conception. Assess quickly for completeness, looking for themes and variability. Use a point system that works within your course - here are two examples:

Prepare to share responses with students

Now you have all of these open-ended responses from your students. What do you do with them? It can depend on what you asked.

You asked about their prior knowledge: What have you learned about this before? How does this fit with what you already know?

In this case, the goal is not to disparage students for what they have or have not learned previously, but to meet them where they are and show them that they are not alone. You can:

• Do a quick count or overview: How many say they've never heard of it before? How many knew something from a high school class? How many know they learned about it but don't remember anything? How many feel confident in this concept?
• Identify common alternative conceptions

You asked them to apply a concept: What would X look like on our campus?

In this case, you are gauging their initial understanding of a concept and their intuition about how to apply it, not if they did it correctly. You can:

• Compile a list of the cases/examples that students gave
• Identify themes: what students are most/least likely to consider

You asked what they were most interested in: What did you find interesting or surprising?

In this case, you are trying to get to know your students and learn what sparks their curiosity and motivation. You can:

• Compile a list of what students found interesting or surprising
• Identify themes: what are your students most interested in?

Step 4: Start class with a discussion based on student responses

Getting responses from your students before class is an excellent formative assessment method, and it is also a great way to launch a discussion. That involves sharing with students your birds-eye view of their responses in a non-threatening way that helps them see how they fit in with their classmates. Often, this helps them see that they are not alone.

Facilitating discussion

Getting started by sharing the responses

Different types of questions or responses are better suited to different formats. You might make a slide or handout with compiled anonymous responses,  hand it out or project it and ask students to take a few minutes to read through the responses. To start the discussion, you can ask, "What observations do you have?" or "What themes do you see?"

If the responses are single words or categorical, you can put a list on the board or create a quick graph. Your learning management system likely allows you to export this kind of graph as well.

Allowing for "think time"

An important part of getting a discussion started is allowing for "think time." You might be more familiar with the concept of "wait time," and that may be what you are doing as an instructor, but you are waiting to allow students to think. This might seem uncomfortable at first, but consider your own response when someone asks you a thoughtful question that requires analysis. You might say, "Hmm... let me think about that for a sec." That's exactly what you want students to do, so give them that moment to think.

Choose a strategy that allows everyone to contribute

Allowing think time also relieves the pressure you might feel to call on the first student who raises their hand. Students process information at different rates, so giving everyone think time means that more students will be prepared to respond. You might ask for a response from each table group, if students are sitting in groups, or call on individuals using a random generator (they know their name will come up eventually). As you continue to facilitate the discussion, you can call on others and ask them what they think or if they want to add to what has been said.

Example

Applying a concept they read about to a local setting

This video shows an instructor facilitating a discussion using a question asked about the reading Factors that Control Earth's Temperature: Energy from the sun and greenhouse gases

Step 5: Repeat regularly to provide structure and transparency

Starting every class (or most classes) with a discussion based on students' responses to readings builds a structure that students will come to expect and grow comfortable with. It shows that you value their knowledge and perspective and adapt your instruction to their needs.

An important component of repeating this practice regularly is including it in your syllabus and asking for responses prior to class at regularly scheduled times so students can plan ahead for this work and become accustomed to reading, responding, and participating in discussions.