What is it?
“Learning through discussion requires the learner to articulate their ideas and questions, and to challenge and respond to the ideas and questions from the teacher, and/or from their peers.” – ABC Learning Design method by Clive Young and Nataša Perović, UCL.(2015). Learning types, Laurillard, D. (2012). Resources available from https://abc-ld.org
Discussion encourages students to engage in meaningful dialogue by sharing ideas, debating concepts, and reflecting on their learning. This activity promotes collaboration and critical thinking as students articulate their thoughts, question perspectives, and respond to others. Examples include taking part in seminars or group discussions, contributing to online forums and engaging in peer review. These interactions may occur in real-time or through written or recorded contributions.
Benefits
Discussions promote active engagement, allowing participants to exchange diverse perspectives, deepen their understanding, and refine their critical thinking skills. All skills required in the world beyond university. They help clarify misconceptions through collaborative learning, while also fostering a sense of community and belonging in the learning environment.
By encouraging open dialogue, discussions can enhance problem-solving abilities and support the development of effective communication skills. Online discussion can encourage participation from learners who may feel less confident speaking in a traditional classroom setting.
Examples
- Class discussion forums and channels to accompany learning areas
Tools: Microsoft Teams channels, Viva Engage, Blackboard (with new functionality in Blackboard Ultra) - Stimulate discussions through sharing of ideas
Tools: Mentimeter, Microsoft Whiteboard, mindmapping tools, sticky notes, Miro, Collaborate in Adobe Express - Set up discussion groups where students can collaborate and community build
Tools: Class Notebook, Microsoft Teams, Viva Engage, Email, shared Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel document - Socratic discussion – collaborative dialogue and enquiry
Tools: Copilot, Blackboard Ultra, Panopto
Recommendations
To encourage discussion among students you will need to take on the role of a facilitator, rather than that of a lecturer. Online discussions require clear goals, and approaches that ensure equity of participation to avoid students disengaging. In Blackboard you can create topic-specific discussion threads where students can post their thoughts, respond to peers, and engage in dialogue. Students can incorporate text, images, links, and media to enrich their contributions. Blackboard Ultra has more options and discussions can become part of the assessment process.
To facilitate small group discussions you could using breakout rooms in Microsoft Teams. This allows students to engage in focused conversations with fewer people and on specific topics before bringing their insights back to the larger group. In class you can use Mentimeter to stimulate real-time engagement by creating polls or open-ended questions that students can respond. This is particularly helpful if you have a large cohort or limited time for more in-depth discussion. Microsoft Whiteboard allows students to collaborate visually, brainstorm ideas, and annotate shared content. Students can add sticky notes, drawings, and comments and share them with their peers.
A Socratic dialogue is a structured conversation in which participants ask and answer questions to stimulate critical thinking and illuminate ideas or underlying assumptions. It is much easier to set up a Socratic dialogue now that AI is available, for example you could encourage your students to discuss a topic in Copilot when the Generative AI is acting out a persona such as a historical figure or business customer. Professor Mike Sharples from the Open University suggests Socratic dialogue using AI is a good way to “get yourself out of your current way of thinking and see an alternative view”.
The Academic Essentials training (UWE login required) on mylearning includes a course on techniques for obtaining feedback from students. Various techniques are explored that could be replicated with the aforementioned tools. For example, use of open-ended questions, the muddiest point and effective questioning. The Improvisation Skills for Teaching workshops (UWE login required) on mylearning covers engagement and teaching and methods of facilitating discussion.
Case studies
This CHSS Good Practice session looks at using online whiteboards.
How can the DLS help?
Explore other pages on this site to find out how to use the tools listed. If you still need help, please contact your College DLS team for support.
Further resources
- The case for discussion boards – Higher Education Pedagogies, Policy & Practice research network
- Active learning using Bookmarks, Notes and Discussions in Panopto
- Using Panopto Bookmarks, Notes and Discussions tools
- Discussion Boards
- Teaching and learning with discussion forums (UCL)
- Monitoring student progression by assessing online discussion forum posts (UCL)