FIGs Faculty Meet to Explore Small Group Discussion Techniques

In this discussion group held October 15^th, and led by Harry Brighouse, FIGs faculty focused on small group discussion as a pedagogical strategy: what works/what doesn’t, how to facilitate it, and what approaches are appropriate for FIGs students.

Compiled below are many of the ideas/techniques shared in the discussion

1. Force students to think about tradeoffs - choices force students to think about what they value.
2. Developmentally, students often see in black and white, and are looking for the “right” answer.
3. Open discussions of small groups up at the end to help facilitate even further discussion.
4. Put students in uncomfortable situations!  This will help the learning process.
   Give students a creative activity without a product.  Failure produces knowledge!
5. Discussion can take more forms than dialogue or even talking.  Grappling with issues can be physically embodied in movement, acting, or other non-traditional classroom discourse modalities.
6. Students often come up with their own good discussion prompts.
7. Students learn from, and enjoy discussing and posing potential exam questions.
8. Drop the lecture style of teaching.  Lecture teaching creates students waiting for the answers.  Make students create their own hypothesis, create their own questions, and give their own examples.
1. Participating faculty noted that their “lecture” time has been reduced to less than 1/3 of the class.

Other topics that were touched upon:

• Talked at end of session about if it's okay for faculty to use their own work, papers, or texts in the class assignments.
• Recognizing that it takes considerable energy to restrain oneself and not jump in while students are “hashing it out.” 
• Trying not to jump into the discussion too quickly to clear it all up
• Considering and navigating teacher identity in the post-lecture classroom.
• Attempting to step back into a moderator/facilitator role…taking on the role of critic in a discussion, not the source of information or content.

The discussion was robust and informative, and the exchange of ideas was beneficial to all.

The next planned discussion is November 5^th at 1:00 pm location TBA.

Peer Mentoring

Well, I'll kick things off then.
I taught my first FIG in Fall 2007. The topic was Children Marriage and the Family, and in the previous semester a student in Human Development and Family Studies had asked if she could write a thesis on family policy with me. I struck a deal in which she would attend many of my FIG sessions (having both the companion courses previously) and get to know the students. She was happy to do this, although as it turned out there was less interaction between her and the others than I'd have liked.

Fast forward to early this summer, when I am preparing to teach a FIG (with the same topic) for the second time. I am still in touch with most of the students from the FIG of 2007, and in quite close touch with several of them (ie correspond or see them once a month or so). While having coffee with one former Figger (lets call her EM) she asked me whether I had anyone that was going to play the role that said senior played in the first FIG. I hadn't really thought about it, but after a couple of minutes we both realised that she was interested in doing it. What I really wanted was something that only a few students (but including EM) could do -- watch me teach, watch the students, and tell me afterward what is and is not working. So I found some money to pay her to attend one class a week and discuss it with me.

We've been going three weeks now. EM is superb at telling me what I am doing right and wrong. It is mainly a credit to her (but I'd like to think it says something about my approachability and relationship with her) that she feels entirely comfortable chiding me for having failed to act on her (always good) good advice given the previous week. She keeps a careful eye on who is engaged and who isn't. tells me if the reading is too hard, gives advice on how to adjust in-class discussion prompts, and told me off (rightly) for cold-calling without warning them in advance that I was planning to do that. Because one of my central aims is to prompt them to disagree with one another quite a bit, she suggested that she talk to the class next week about the experience she had in the first few weeks of the class as a freshman of learning that it is ok to disagree, quite strongly, with other people in the class and not feel that there is anything personal going on.

So she's an asset to me. But the bigger, and for me unforeseen, role she is playing is as a participant in the classroom. At least once a week (and always, now, on the days EM is present) I have a discussion prompt for groups of 5, which then reconvene to discuss the issue as a whole class. Normally I would move between groups listening in. But the first time I did this, EM was assigned to a group. She took her role to be pushing the discussion along, getting the students to question their assumptions, and playing devil's advocate when there was too much agreement. If she and I are each doing that in one group, then half the students are getting direct interaction with someone playing an instructional role. If we circulate week by week, all the students are getting a fair amount of small group interaction with each of us. Over time she will get to know them. be available to talk about academic issues and what its like to be a student on this campus (she is, I don't think she'd mind me saying, an unusually diligent and responsible student, but is also extremely personable and unintimidating).

My hunch is that hiring someone from a previous iteration of a FIG to do the work she is doing is a low cost, but likely high impact, intervention. To be clear about the cost -- it is costing $550 for the whole semester to pay her 3 hours a week, which in the context of the cost of the FIG is very small. Of course, we'd need a randomized study to figure out whether it is really an effective practice, and I've been talking to Greg and a couple of funders about the possibility of doing that.

Any suggestions of what more I should be asking EM to do are welcome....

Welcome !

Welcome, Colleagues!

FIGure 1: FIGs

We hope that Facts and FIGures will provide a forum for you -the FIGs faculty- to share your reflections and experiences while teaching (and learning) in your FIGs seminars.  And as the title of this blog suggests, there may be many facts regarding FIGs that can be shared.  There will also many things we can FIGure out together along the way. We are looking forward to vibrant discussions along these themes as the semester develops. 

In keeping with our collective desire to explore all things FIG-related, anything is fair game in this forum.  Some of you are seasoned FIGs faculty, and others are joining our growing community for the first time.  Together we can work in support of this unique opportunity to teach and learn with our students.  For example, if you are planning a guest speaker, or a special event or trip, don't hesitate to post it here if you would be interested in sharing that experience with other FIGs faculty and students.

If you have any questions about the blog, how to use it, or have any other concern regarding the administration of this forum, do not hesitate to contact us at uwfigs (at) gmail.com.  Otherwise, let's get posting!