How to Participate in & Lead Class Discussions

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Skills Keywords:

This Resource Page will help you:

Understand the purpose of class discussions
Learn how to develop strong, critical discussion questions
Practice strategies for encouraging participation
Prepare to manage group dynamics and difficult conversations

What Are Class Discussions and Why do they Matter?

Class discussions provide a space for you to collaboratively explore course content, share diverse perspectives, and build deeper understanding through dialogue. Rather than simply listening to lectures or reading texts in isolation, discussions allow you to test ideas, ask questions, and co-construct knowledge with your peers and instructors.

Participating in class discussions is about more than just talking—it’s about learning how to think critically, listen actively, and communicate effectively. When you engage in class discussions, you are developing key competencies that will serve you well beyond the classroom:

Critical thinking: Analyzing ideas, asking thoughtful questions, and evaluating different viewpoints.
Oral communication: Expressing yourself clearly and persuasively in real time.
Collaboration: Building on others’ ideas and navigating group dynamics.
Active listening: Paying attention to nuance, tone, and nonverbal cues.

Responsiveness: Thinking on your feet and adjusting your message to different audiences
Empathy and inclusion: Making space for diverse voices and managing conversations with care
Confidence: Finding and sharing your voice in academic and professional spaces

How to Participate in Class Discussions

Large Discussions

Small Group Discussions

What is Discussion Facilitation and Why does it Matter?

At some point in a course, you will be asked to lead (or facilitate) a class discussion. Discussion facilitation refers to the process of guiding and supporting collaborative learning through discussions.

When you take on the role of leader / facilitator, you are not expected to have all the answers. Instead, your role is to help your peers engage meaningfully with the material, listen to each other, and build on one another’s ideas. Effective facilitation creates an inclusive environment where everyone feels encouraged to contribute and where learning happens through respectful exchange and critical reflection.

Facilitating discussion involves:

Preparing open-ended, thought-provoking questions
Encouraging broad participation and active listening
Managing time and guiding the flow of conversation
Navigating disagreement or sensitive topics with care
Helping the group synthesize ideas and make connections

How to Lead or Facilitate a Class Discussion

A discussion facilitation assignment typically includes the following tasks:

Task 1: analyze and present the key points of an article
Task 2: build a list of discussion questions
Task 3: facilitate a discussion among your classmates.

To learn more about Task 1, check these Resource Pages:

To learn more about Task 2 and 3, keep reading!

Task 2: How to Build Discussion Questions

A good discussion question is open-ended (that is, it does not have only one “right” answer). Aim for a range of questions that encourage participants to think critically and make connections between the article and other ideas. Consider inviting participants to reflect on:

Theory: Interpret the article using theoretical principles studied in class.
Methods: Evaluate the research methods used in the article.
Professional practice: Analyze and critique the professional practice demonstrated in the article.

Lived experience: Connect the results of the article to their own professional or personal experiences.
Bias or scope: Whose perspective is represented? Which voices are NOT heard? How does this affect the implications of the article?

Task 2: Your Turn!

Generating a good set of questions takes time and reflection. Here is an activity to help you evaluate effective and less effective discussion questions.

Read the abstract on the right from a study about a cultural exchange between Indigenous and non-Indigenous high school teachers in Chile.
Evaluate the discussion questions on the cards. Which ones would encourage a meaningful discussion, and which ones would be less effective?
After you’ve engaged in a reflection, click on each card to see our opinion.

ABSTRACT: This manuscript presents the results of a pilot study, Kuykuitin, a project that provides history teachers of elite schools in Chile with firsthand contact with history teachers in an intercultural school in the Araucanía. This region is the conflict zone with higher levels of violence between the Mapuche and the Chilean State. The pilot study analyzes the perceptions of the students of elite schools in the city’s capital – Santiago – about the Mapuche and the present-day conflict, before and after their history teachers participated in the Kuykuitin project.

Citation: Figueiredo, A., Madero, C., & Cano, D. (2020). The impact of a multicultural exchange between indigenous and non-indigenous history teachers for students’ attitudes: Preliminary evidence from a pilot study in Chile. Multicultural Education Review, 12(3), 215–222.

Task 3: How to Facilitate a Discussion

Facilitating a lively discussion requires preparation, focus, and active listening. Below are some practical tips to be an effective facilitator.

1. Arrive ready with follow-up questions or prompts to keep the conversation going and guide participants to a fruitful discussion.

Examples:

That’s a great point—what led you to that conclusion?
You mentioned [X]. Can we go a bit deeper into that for a moment?
How do you think that insight might be applied to professional practice?

2. Take notes so that you can summarize and refer back to ideas that come up—consider writing these on the board or a shared document. If you are leading the discussion as a pair or group, consider choosing one person to be the note-taker. Consolidate and share your notes at the end of the session. If you lead a group discussion, your notes will also be helpful when you report back to the instructor and the rest of your class.

3. Encourage participation

You present your question to the group, and there is a long silence. Silence doesn’t mean disengagement. Some participants may need more time, feel unsure, or hesitate. Inclusive facilitation means creating space for different ways of participating and fostering a discussion environment that feels safe, respectful, and accessible to all. What makes your classmates reluctant to participate, and how might you help? To illustrate, let’s take the abstract by Figueredo et al. (see previous activity) and this question as an example:

Figueiredo et al. chose to interview an exclusive socioeconomic group: students from elite schools in Chile's capital city. How might this have impacted their results?

They don’t understand the question.

What seems like a perfectly clear question to you might be confusing to others. Be ready to rephrase. For example:

The students were very well educated; they lived in a big city, and probably came from wealthier families. How might that have affected the answers they gave?

Also, consider starting with a straightforward or fun question to break the ice, for example:

Did you enjoy the reading?
Have you ever been in a similar school context?
What do you know about Chile? Have you ever been?

They want time to think about their answers.

Give everyone time to reflect. Some people prefer to do this on their own. Others like to discuss the question with a partner or group. Consider asking your classmates if they would like a couple of minutes to think, take notes or discuss in pairs.

They are not sure whether their answer is acceptable or appropriate.

Perhaps some classmates have an issue with your question, but are hesitant to disagree. Or perhaps they aren’t sure how to express their response tactfully. Be prepared to critique or open up the question. For example:

Let’s take a step back. Are most students in elite schools in Santiago from wealthy families? Maybe that’s not a reasonable assumption—can anyone offer some insight?

What are some advantages and disadvantages of interviewing a more homogeneous group?

They are uncomfortable speaking in front of a large class.

Some participants may be more comfortable contributing to a group answer: “We think…” as opposed to “I think…”. Others are more likely to contribute in writing. Consider offering the option to post responses to a Google Doc, Padlet, whiteboard, or other tools.

How to Manage Difficult Conversations & Sensitive Topics

�� is a diverse academic community. We each arrive here with different backgrounds, life experiences, and ways of communicating. These differences can enrich classroom discussions—but they can also lead to moments of tension or discomfort. Engaging respectfully with dissenting views and navigating sensitive topics is part of the learning process.

Disagreement is not only expected but also essential to the construction of knowledge. However, these conversations require attentiveness, empathy, and responsibility.

What are sensitive topics?

Sensitive topics often involve harm or violence directed toward identities—such as those based on race, gender, sexual orientation, place of origin, religion, or physical and mental ability—even when such events are discussed as part of historical or theoretical analysis.

In education and psychology, topics like trauma, discrimination, exclusion, or systemic injustice may emerge in classroom discussions. While academically important, these conversations may be personal or emotionally charged for some.

Tips

Below are some important tips for dealing with difficult conversations and participating in inclusive discussions. Click each tip to read examples of phrases that might help you navigate these moments.

Don’t shy away from curiosity about learning something you don’t yet know. No one knows everything!

If a concept or perspective is unfamiliar, ask a clarifying question like, “Can you explain what you mean by that?” or “I’ve never heard that term before—can you give an example?”

Take diverging opinions as an opportunity to reflect on your own views.

Instead of immediately disagreeing, try saying, “That’s an interesting perspective—I hadn’t thought of it that way before.” or “Now I’m wondering how my own experience might be influencing how I see this.”

Always maintain a respectful conversation: different opinions do not mean personal differences or an attack.

Use language like, “I see your point, and I’d like to add another angle…” or “I disagree with the idea, but I appreciate you sharing it.”

What doesn’t sound hurtful to you might be hurtful to someone else! If not part of the course content, always inform your peers when bringing new sensitive topics into a class discussion.

Try saying, “I’d like to bring up a sensitive topic—would everyone be okay if we take a moment to talk about [X]?” or “This might be difficult to discuss—please let me know if it’s not the right moment.”

Listen actively. Pay attention to others’ opinions before responding. Take into account any new argument they might have brought and evaluate it before discarding it.

Acknowledge what others say with phrases like, “That’s a good point, and it makes me think about…” or “I hadn’t considered that factor—thanks for raising it.”

Emotions are part of the learning process! If you feel discomfort with a peer’s opinion or something you read for class, acknowledge the discomfort and feel it. Then, try to understand why that discomfort happened.

Reflect internally or say, “I noticed I felt uncomfortable with that idea—maybe because it challenges something I’ve assumed. I want to sit with that a bit more.”

Your Turn!

Take this quiz to learn more about applying effective facilitation strategies in realistic discussion situations. As you select your answers, check our feedback.

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