Preparing for Classroom Discussion
1. Have questions prepared beforehand.  Prepared questions can be kept on the overhead
    or on the board to keep everyone on task.
2. If questions are especially challenging and/or some members of the class are reticent to
    speak, pass out questions prior to the discussion period.
3. If questions are especially challenging, the instructor might want to think through the
    options for "good" answers and the criteria by which these answers are evaluated.
4. Questions can take many forms. Four common question types include:
       Memory Questions: Recall of information.
       Convergent Questions: Connection known details to infer relationships among
            pieces of information.
       Evaluative Questions: Making judgments as to the logic, reasonableness, or worth of
            an idea or argument. Judgments might be ethical, pragmatic, logical, etc.
       Divergent Questions: Imagining new possibilities; original thinking that cannot be
            tested directly against known information. "What if" types of questions.

Suggestions for Facilitating Classroom Discussion
1. Use words with the vocabulary range of the students. This requires a tricky balance
        between teaching students new words but not intimidating students into not being
        able to provide an answer because they don't understand the question.
2. Pause after asking a question ("wait time"). Five seconds of silence can seem like an
        eternity, but students need time to process the question and construct an answer,
        especially when the question is convergent, evaluative, or divergent.
3. Don’t answer your own question. Once students realize that the instructor will answer
        his or her own questions, they begin to disengage.
4. Give a question to the entire class first. If you decide to call on a specific student, say
        the student's name, repeat the question, and then wait for the response.
5. Develop strategies to cope with the over-zealous student and the reticent student.
6. Encourage lengthy responses and fully developed answers. Try follow-up questions
        such as "Under what circumstances?" or "How might that be accomplished?" or
        "Why do you believe that would be the consequence?"
7. Try not to interrupt a student who is attempting to answer a question and don't allow
        other students to interrupt.
8. Make the class responsible for their discussion. Instructors should facilitate, not carry
        or dictate, the discussion. Encourage students to comment on the responses of
        classmates before summarizing or moving to another question.
9. Attend to nonverbal signals indicating that a student would like to ask a question,
        would like to answer a question, or would like to make a comment.
10. Be aware of you own nonverbal behavior when students are asking or answering
        questions. The body sends subtle messages of approval/disapproval or interest.