Leading Discussion Self-Assessment

Leading discussions requires time and careful planning. Lack of sufficient preparation or simply “winging it” can result in confusion, low participation, student disengagement, and a missed opportunity for learning. Go through the checklist below to see what you might be missing.

Download the fillable PDF here

Resources

Brown University (n.d.). Tips on Facilitating Effective Group Discussions. The Harriet W. Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.brown.edu/sheridan/teaching-learning-resources/teaching-res…

Carnegie Mellon University. (n.d.). Discussions. Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation. Retrieved September 20, 2022, from https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/design/instructionalstrategies…

Carnegie Mellon University. (n.d.). One student monopolizes class. Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/solveproblem/strat-monopolizes/index.html

Christensen, C.R. (1991). Questioning, Listening and Responding. The Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning, Harvard Business School. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.hbs.edu/teaching/case-method/leading-in-the-classroom/Pages…

Duke University. (n.d.). Leading Effective Class Discussions. Duke Learning Innovation. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://learninginnovation.duke.edu/resources/art-and-science-of-teachi…

Grover, N. (2007). How to create successful discussions in science classrooms. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, 35(6), 397-403.

Harvard University. (n.d.). The Art of Discussion Leading: A Class with Chris Christensen. Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://vpal.harvard.edu/artofdiscussionleading

Harvard Business School. (n.d.). In-Class Assessment of Discussion-Based Teaching. The Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.hbs.edu/teaching/Documents/In-Class-Assessment.pdf

Harvard Business School. (n.d.). Questions for Class Discussions. The Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.hbs.edu/teaching/Documents/Questions_for_Class_Discussions_rev.pdf

Harvard Business School. (n.d.). Strategies and Tactics for Managing Challenging Moments in the Classroom Related to Sensitive Topics. The Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.hbs.edu/teaching/Documents/Strategies%20and%20Tactics%20for%20Managing%20Challenging%20Moments%20in%20the%20Classroom.pdf

Henning, J. E. (2005). Leading discussions: Opening up the conversation. College Teaching, 53(3), 90-94.

McKeachie, W. J., & Svinicki, M. (2014). Teaching tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Mejia, S. (n.d.). Leading Effective Discussions. Chicago Center for Teaching and Learning, University of Chicago. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://teaching.uchicago.edu/resources/teaching-strategies/leading-effective-discussions/

Saville, B. K., Zinn, T. E., & Jakobsen, K. V. (2012). Leading discussions. Effective college and university teaching: Strategies and tactics for the new professoriate, 107-114.

University of Connecticut. (n.d.). Leading Effective Discussions. Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://cetl.uconn.edu/resources/teaching-your-course/leading-effective-discussions/#

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (n.d.). Leading Discussions. Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://citl.illinois.edu/citl-101/teaching-learning/resources/teaching-in-specific-contexts/leading-discussions

Vanderbilt University. (n.d.). Discussions. Center for Teaching. Retrieved September 20, 2022, from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/discussions/

Yale University. (n.d.). Leading Discussion. Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://poorvucenter.yale.edu/teaching/teaching-how/chapter-2-teaching-successful-section/leading-discussion