Action:
- Assign students to lead class discussions to provide leadership opportunity for students and to more fully engage all students in the discussion.
- Ask students to share their plan for the discussion either in-person or in writing.
- Provide resources to students for leading effective discussions.
- Pomona faculty member Jon Moore has shared syllabus excerpts describing requirements for student-led discussions. Syllabus Excerpts.docx
- Assign students to summarize the key points from the previous class
- At the beginning of each class assign a student to summarize the key points from this class at the beginning of the next class.
- Require that students make reference in the summary to at least one student comment or question from that previous class
- Ask students to present one question that arose for them while thinking about the key points
- Ask students to present a contemporary comparison
- Ask students to prepare a comparison between the class material and something from contemporary life (e.g., from a newspaper, blog, video, song, book, etc.) that strikes them as in line with or contrary to one of the key points discussed in previous class.
- Assign students to critique any point they wish from the previous class
- Student pick a claim that came up in the previous class or in the reading (stating and explaining the claim).
- Students present an original objection to the claim, explaining and defending their reasons.
- Ask student to consider how one might reply to their critique.
- Create a debate
- Team A has 5 minutes to present their position and the reasons for it
- Team B has 1 minute to consider how they wish to object and then 3 minutes to present their objection.
- Team A has 1 minute to consider how they wish to reply and then 3 minutes to present their reply.
- Then Team B has 5 minutes to present its position and so on.
- The rest of the class can then ask questions of each team.
- Pomona faculty member Julie Tannenbaum has shared homework excerpts describing requirements for class debates. DebateJT.docx
Reason:
- Varying the structure of discussion can increase students’ engagement.
Action:
-
Ask presentation attendees to summarize the key points of the presentation. Use this as feedback and/or evaluation of the presentation.
- Or have attendees fill out a rubric. You can create a rubric for attendees to complete based upon the example rubrics provided in a related tip.
Reason:
-
Discovering whether or not attendees understood the key points of the talk is a good form of concrete feedback for the presenter.
Action:
- Complete a rubric while listening to students’ oral presentations. Examples:
Reason:
- Rubrics can help you increase consistency when evaluating many presentations.
- Rubrics can provide students clearer feedback and the rubric can be shared with students in advance to help articulate your expectations.
Action:
- Assign students to record a practice talk for a peer. Students can use software on a phone, tablet, or computer to record the talk.
- Ask students to write-up what they can improve in their presentation. This can be based upon watching the video by themselves, with you, or with a peer.
- Have students complete the rubric such as one of the oral communication rubrics provided here.
Reason:
- This can enable students to take an audience perspective on their presentation.
Action:
- Share advice for students to help them understand how to prepare and structure their presentation. Examples:
Reason:
- This can ensure students meet your expectations in terms of content, style, and visual aids.
Action:
Reason:
- This transparency is helpful as students prepare their presentation.
Action:
- Meet with students one-on-one after a presentation to provide your feedback.
- Ask them what they think went well and didn’t go well.
- Provide students concrete examples of things what they should continue doing and what needs to change.
- Ensure that students make notes to record your feedback and help students prioritize the most important changes to focus on for future presentations.
Reason:
- Students may be able to identify things to improve without help, but your feedback can help identify unexpected challenges and help the student prioritize what needs to change.
Action:
-
During students’ presentations, take notes about what they can improve.
- Ask students to write a reflection after their presentation. If you record student presentations they can write this reflection based upon the video.
- Return students’ reflection with additional annotations.
Reason:
-
This allows you to provide feedback only for the aspects of the presentation that the student could not self-diagnose as problems.
Action:
-
Tell students that you want them to improve their oral communication during in-class discussions.
- Encourage students to ask each other for clarification or additional information to help provide students feedback about their oral communication.
Reason:
-
This sets the expectation that even in informal class discussions the goal is to clearly, concisely, and respectfully communicate your ideas.
Action:
-
Give a presentation that can serve as a model for students’ class presentations.
- After the presentation ask students to describe what they thought went well and what they would suggest for improvement.
- Draw students attention to the structure, content, and/or professional style.
Reason:
-
Expectations for formality and polish vary. Providing an example is likely more helpful than mere descriptions of your expectations.
