EDUC 350 Field Notes - Chapter 9: Building Ratio Through

Discussion

Technique Evidence from Your Teacher

Habits of Mrs. Simpsons class is designed to be very informal. This
Discussion was done purposefully to help ideas flow between
students as they work. It helps students feel freer to
share ideas. Though while the norm is to be able to speak
with peers during sixth period the students know that
when Mrs. Simpson or another student is speaking that
they are expected to give their full attention to the
speaker.

Turn and Talk Students are expected to get into groups or pairs in the
beginning of class so they already have their discussion
partners. Earlier in the semester when Mrs. Simpson was
still teaching different knitting techniques she would have
the students turn to their classmates and try to recreate
the stitches. Though during this time Mrs. Simpson was
very diligent when walking around the class to give
students the chance to ask her questions and give herself
the chance to listen in on the students to make sure
theyre on the right track.

Batch Process In Mrs. Simpsons classroom the norm is for students to

ask other students before they ask Mrs. Simpson for
clarification. Generally the students sit in small groups or
pairs on the floor, so its easy for them to ask each other
about the different techniques. Since the beginning of the
semester when this norm was established Mrs. Simpson
doesnt even need to tell her students specifically to get
into groups or pairs, they automatically do it. During class
time you can hear the students make comments and ask
questions about one anothers work. Since the 6th period
classes have a limited number of students its easy for
Mrs. Simpson to listen to what the students are
discussing and making sure that they stay on track.
Explain how each of the three techniques promotes students doing
the talking instead of the teacher Whoever does the talking does
the learning

When a teacher is just giving the students information in the form of a

lecture its difficult for the lesson to stick for most students. However when
the students have to take the learning process into their own hands and work
for the information it tends to stay with them longer. By having creating
habits of discussion in a classroom it normalizes the idea of speaking in front
of a classroom or with a partner. As the year progresses even the students
who were initially shy begin to feel comfortable talking because the class has
created a culture of support for those who are speaking. Turn and talks give
students the opportunity to check in with a partner, sometimes students can
help catch each other up to speed or sometimes they both end up confused.
However this also offers an opportunity for pairs that are confused to match
up with other groups that seem to understand the material or ask their
questions to their teacher. The Batch process allows for students to really
search for their own information, this is done by the teacher stepping back
and allowing the students to work on their own. Sometimes having a student
explain a concept to another student helps with understanding because they
have fresh ways of approaching the information.