I really enjoyed the article on Response-Centered discussion by McGee. In other classes I have had we discussed the importance of group discussion on a particular book. I think that this article took what I already knew about discussion groups and enhanced. This article not only showed what a teacher should be doing in the group but also how the students responded to it. I was amazed at how some of the students responded to the question of why the fox could never catch the hen. Some of these students really came up with great and insightful ideas.
The teachers role in the Response-Centered discussions is really important. They first need to create a set of expectations or rules for the discussion groups. They also need to really help lead the group into a good discussion and make sure that everyone is included and participating in it. With lots of practice, eventually the teacher can back off the group and let the students take hold of the discussion themselves. By the teacher scaffolding this type of discussion the students will be able to hold meaningful discussions on their own. This will allow them to feel more comfortable with the process and dive deeper into the comprehension they had of their story.
I would really like to try this in my first grade classroom. I believe that a lot of the students in there would really benefit from this type of student lead discussion group. I know that it would take a lot of practice and patients on my part and the students', but the benefits and outcomes of this would be so important to have.
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I think it would be interesting to try this type of discussion in an early elementary grade as well. I go to the Child Development Center every day this semester and we talk a great deal about open-ended questions. I feel this is the beginning of response-centered discussions for younger children. For example we are entering a unit on nursery rhymes and we are going to be reading "Humpty Dumpty." I plan on discussing and having the student's create what they believed Humpty Dumpty looked like before we fell off the wall. I also will be reading "Hey Diddle Diddle" and ask the children where the dish and spoon ran away to? This will spark some discussion and hopefully a bit of debate.
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