Issue Home Volume 12: Issue 2

What’s Writing Got to Do with It?
Debie Lohe, Ph.D
Program Director for Teaching Enhancement
Reinert CTE

Facilitating discussion (and doing it well) can be harder than it looks, especially in a culture where speedy reaction trumps thoughtful response and those who shout are often the only ones to get air time. In class discussions, both large and small, we often find ourselves dissatisfied with the quality of students’ contributions and frustrated by those who sit quietly while their more vocal peers dominate.

One way to enhance discussion is to incorporate informal writing. There are some good reasons to do this: among other things, it allows those who need to process ideas before speaking a better chance at being heard, and it helps multilingual students record (and even translate) ideas before discussion begins. Ultimately, it slows the pace, which can elicit more deliberate responses.

Short, in-class writings are perhaps the easiest to incorporate. Students can jot down responses to discussion questions before you open the conversation. They can write down, at the beginning of class, important points from readings, or discussion questions of their own. (In small classes, students could be asked to read these aloud before discussion begins.) They can do short, focused free-writes in which they brainstorm creative solutions to complex problems. In text-based courses, they can use writing as a tool of close reading, marking passages before contributing to the conversation. Having students write a little before they begin discussion can force them to be selective, to make strategic decisions about what to say, not just rely on the first thing that occurs to them.

Writing can also capture what happens in discussion, providing organization to seeming chaos and spurring more conversation (whether in class or online). Since students can struggle to take good notes while participating in discussion, you might ask for a volunteer to document important themes and to share them with the class later. Or you might create a wiki or blog, where students collaboratively document the important points of the discussion. Check out how Dr. Monica Rankin incorporates Twitter into large class discussions at the University of Texas in Dallas. (Click here to find out more.)

Of course, the degree to which writing enhances discussion depends upon the goal of discussion in your class. However, if you find yourself dissatisfied with the quality of students’ contributions to discussion, get them to write first and see what happens. While it won’t radically transform every student’s comments, it will signal that talking first (or loudest) isn’t what matters most.

Last updated 11.24.09