Ideas

Idea #7: Balancing Participation

“Because students respond differently to taking risks, a variety of techniques are employed to encourage participation at the level of risk that they can personally handle. This creates a mutually safe space for all students in which they can challenge their own assumptions and consider an issue beyond their first gut reaction to an intellectual place of reasoned conclusions and broadened perspectives.”³

Learning Intention

The hope is to provide a conversation space where everyone can contribute in a manner that feels safe to do so “with respect to many different issues, and when what they contribute adds depth and subtlety to the discussion... [and in ways that] contribute to others’ understanding.¹

Considerations

Clarify Expectations. Is participation mandatory? What should it look like? For some students, telling them they won’t be penalized for speaking actually “emboldens very shy students to speak."¹
Ask for other views. Politely tell students who tend to dominate the conversation that you would like to hear from someone else or simply invite other perspectives.
Protocol: Let students establish the protocol for conversation but with the contingency that any protocol must honor human rights.^{4, 5}
Change the dynamic. In classrooms, move around to encourage discussion and ideas from all corners of the room.2 Online, ask people if they would like to talk (whether their cameras are on or off), raise their virtual hands to show they are ready, or add ideas to the chat.

Practices

Norms:¹ Set norms at the beginning of the course to help establish guidelines for making space, use of silence, stepping up, and stepping back.
Assign roles:¹ Help keep the conversation balanced by giving some students roles such as summarizer, facilitator, or timekeeper.
Reflect:^1,3 Call for a period of silence every 20 minutes to give students time to reflect.
Allow for silence: “Silence often enormously enhances learning,”³ allowing time to process.

Alternative Participation

Use a polling tool such as Socrative or Mentimeter to increase whole class participation.
Create discussion in online discussion forums where students have time to think through responses and respond to one another.
Think, Pair, Share is a good option for students who are less likely to participate or for whom English is not their first language. Students can talk with a peer before sharing their ideas with the class.

References

Brookfield, S & Preskill, S. (2005). Discussion as a way of teaching: Tools and techniques for democratic classrooms.. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Howard, J. (2015). Discussion in the college classroom: Getting your students engaged and participating in person and online. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, A Wiley Brand.
Landis, K. (2008). Start Talking: A Handbook for Engaging in Difficult Dialogues in Higher Education. Anchorage, AK: University of Alaska and Alaska Pacific University.
Oleson, K.C. (2021). Promoting Inclusive Classroom Dynamics in Higher Education: A Research-Based Pedagogical Guide for Faculty. Sterling, VA: Stylus