ORID is a structured questioning strategy including Objective, Reflective, Interpretive, and Decisional questions that has emerged as a successful adult teaching-learning technique. The ORID builds upon the tradition of the group discussion teaching method by including both the affective and cognitive domain and gives structure and substance to a…

Describes three group-processing activities used with youth or adults in adventure- and experiential-education settings. Includes target group, group size, time and space requirements, activity level, props needed, and instructions for group processing and reflection. Involves stimulating campfire discussion for various purposes, journal writing…

One management class read a literary text and wrote answers to the teacher's questions. Another class discussed the text in small and large groups. Group discussion stimulated better and more creative insights than private reading. The teacher's questions inhibited responses. Discussion groups understood the relevance of literature to management;…

Describes and discusses a combinatorics exploration occurring in a recent course to help characterize the kind of learning communities to establish with students. (Author/MKR)

As the end of the school year draws near, children may become disruptive or exhibit anxiety and excitement due to the anticipation they feel about transitioning from their present class to the next. This paper offers suggestions on how to use group time discussions to acknowledge the children's feelings and to encourage them to share what they are…

The value of an academic conference lies in its ability to engage attendees in ongoing scholarly conversations. Such engagement depends on presentations that are intellectually sound and effectively delivered, but it also requires thoughtful participation by discussants, session chairs, and audience members. Shared understanding of the…

Purpose--To illuminate the importance of the communal deliberative process, as a form of collective thinking, in overcoming the growing complexities of schoolwork in uncertain and turbulent environments. Design/methodology/approach-- Introduces the notion of deliberation as evolved from Dewey's moral theory, the essential phases and elements of…

This article presents data from a mixed-methods study that collected data through surveys (n = 656), interviews (n = 15), and discussion groups (n = 75) to explore the use of social strategies such as education and outreach by non-governmental organizations and government agencies to reach outcomes related to biodiversity conservation and resource…

Although images are often used in the classroom to communicate difficult concepts, students have little input into their selection and application. This approach can create a passive experience for students and represents a missed opportunity for instructors to engage participation. By applying concepts found in visual sociology to techniques…

"Our culture underestimates teachers--not only the complexity of their work, but also their potential to contribute substantively to the dialogue about school reform," write the authors of this article. Online teacher networks have the potential to transform traditional concepts of teacher leadership, enabling teachers to bond together into…

This handbook presents the fundamentals of successful study circle leadership. It also includes pointers for study circle organizers and participants, concluding with a comparison of dialogue and debate--a guide for distinguishing study circles from other types of discussion. The guide contains seven sections that cover the following topics: (1)…

This guide was developed to help train leaders of small-group, democratic, highly participatory discussions known as "study circles." The guide is organized in two parts. The first part presents the basics of study circle leadership, and is written for participants in the training. It includes information on what a study circle is, tips…

This paper focuses on the selection, training, and monitoring of the small group leaders in an extensive program of sex education. It discusses leadership screening, early orientation, small group training sessions, practice leadership, supervision, evaluation, and problem solution in this highly sensitive area of sexuality. (Author)

Focuses on various levels of diabetic patients' involvement in the care of their disease and effects of these levels on how closely they later followed self-care programs. Suggests that by participating in group discussions about excuses for not following a self-care regimen, and offering solutions to counter those excuses, diabetic patients…

This article considers the experience of a long and significant relationship with a number of students at M.I.T. This student group developed an extraclinical association, and their reactions to this association are evaluated. (Author/RK)