The type of
discussion I have seen in my classroom is I-R-E (initiate, response, evaluate).
This consists of the teacher initiating a topic by asking a question and the
students respond to the question followed by the teacher evaluating the
response and initiating another question. While reading the article, A New View of Discussion, I learned that
this type of traditional discussion is often called recitation. This is due to
the fact that there is no collaborative attempt to construct meaning.
In contrast, response-centered
talk allows students to set the agenda for the discussion and become more
engaged in a conversation with their peers. It consists of a combination of
student’s responses/ thinking and the teacher’s responses/guidance. This is
different compared to the type of discussion I have observed in my classroom
because the teacher actually steps back and let the students talk about what is
on their minds. In addition, the teacher guides the discussion when needed
rather than construct the entire discussion.
In order for
response-centered talk to take place in my classroom the teacher should step
back and allow the students to create their own questions and talk about what
they think. I believe this would work well because all students have their own
opinion and different views. In addition, they interpret stories differently.
If they were able to participate in a response-centered talk I think they would
be more engaged in the conversation because they would be able to discuss
things that they noticed or have questions about.
Response-centered
talk would also be a great way to include students who do not participate
actively. This could be done by creating small groups of no more than 4
students and setting requirements such as each student must contribute 2 things
to the discussion. Also, some students do not actively participate because they
are shy when it comes to speaking up in front of the whole group so using
response-centered talk with small groups would not only allow students to
interpret the meaning of the story on their own, but also make them feel
comfortable within their small group of peers.
Brandi,
ReplyDeleteMy classroom is similar to yours, as my teacher seems to only initiate IRE discussions. Just as you mentioned, my teacher asks questions, the students respond, and the teacher evaluates their responses. I agree with you that this can be problematic if it is the only discussion method because the students do not collaborate to make sense of text and they are not always engaged. Next, you brought up “response-centered” talk and noted that teachers play the role of a guide rather than the main constructor of the discussion. I agree that both our classrooms could benefit from implementing “response-centered” discussion!
To do this, you suggested the teacher stepping back and allowing students to create their own questions and talk about what they think. You also mentioned that this can be done by dividing the class into small groups and encouraging each student to talk by requiring that they contribute a certain amount of ideas to the conversation. I think both of these ideas would work in an elementary setting.
In addition to your ideas, I think that teaching students how to actively contribute to a discussion would be helpful. For example, Almasi’s article indicated many specific roles that students fulfill in active discussions. These roles include acting as an inquisitor (asking questions), facilitator of interaction (encouraging each other to engage, stick to the topic, and take turns), facilitator of interpretation (restating or questioning statements that are unclear, relating topics to personal experiences, making comparisons, etc.), respondent (answering/responding to questions), and evaluator (critically challenging ideas). I think that by teaching students these roles in a lesson, students will be challenged to step up and participate in discussions by being leaders, facilitators, and responders. Furthermore, these active discussion skills do not only apply to the classroom but to the real world as well, so in teaching our students be critical leaders in discussion, we are preparing them for the future!
In addition to teaching them how to engage in discussions, we can guide the discussions by asking a few general questions to elicit ideas, bringing up certain topics, and challenging students to think deeply into their claims. In considering these ideas, I think we could facilitate some great discussions in our future classrooms!
Brandi, I don't think I have ever heard of IRE, but have a heard it referred to as recitation. I think that IRE in the elementary class would be a great way to hear what the students have to say and to really hear their opinions, because there is no attempt to construct meaning. I really wish my mentor teacher used more of this type of discussion in her class.
ReplyDeleteSara, although I think IRE would be helpful in certain types of discussions, I think you are right when you said that it is vital to teach and scaffold children in learning how to contribute to discussion in a more meaningful way.
Response centered talk does seem like a great way to include those shy students who may not want to talk in a larger group. I also agree with Sara, that by including specific roles for each student would help in the students becoming more engaged. If students were in a group discussion and the teacher was the facilitator the children may be less inclined to talk as they may feel like the need to answer "correctly". However if you have a peer be the facilitator the children may be more open to discussing their thoughts and opinions and not focusing so much on making mistakes.
In my classroom my teacher has the children split up in to groups. the children will read their books and then she (or I) will go from group to group and ask them insightful questions about the texts. I appreciate that my mentor teacher does this as it does open up small group discussion for the kids. However it may be helpful if we assigned the students roles and they facilitated the discussions on their own.
Not only would the children be more open to discuss answers without having to give the "right" answer, but this also gives the students a sense of responsibility that they are in charge. When students know that you trust them they will perform to please (in my opinion).