Straying away from topic
What is the best method, and words to use to invite students back in a conversation when they have strayed away from a topic?
Hi Michele,
I use the approach of stating that "I appreciate what you have shared with us, but I was wondering if you could give us the two most important parts of (topic of discussion) so that we can move to (next topic)". This allows the student to save face, keeps the class on target and provides learning for everyone.
Gary
Can you give some advice if you have more than one student who is taking you off topic? Sometimes one student will make one small coment and others will start to join in.
Hi Jeffrey,
This is where you need to be a strong class leader. You have to take control of the discussion and bring it back to the topic. When a student tries to take the discussion away you can talk with him/her and explain that you appreciate the input but that you have to keep on topic. You can break the class up into discussion groups and this keeps one single person from dominating and controlling the discussion. Another way is to assign the roll of recorder to such a student. They write down the key parts of the discussion and then have 1 to 3 minutes to report out the highlights. This keeps they in a very limited roll and they can't take the discussion away from you. If none of the above work I have a "hart to hart" with them and explain my expectations of student behavior. Seldom do I ever have to go this far.
Gary
I have learned that if you let your students have about 3 to 5 minutes before class starts to get out their morning conversations you will have better control during the rest of the class session. Let each student have "their" time & when it is time to start class, it is easier to keep their attention. I think, no matter what you will always have those students who are gonna stray off the subject.
Hi Rebecca,
You are right about letting the students "debrief" themselves as they get ready for class. Once this is done you are ready to pull them together and start your class. Good strategy.
Gary
I find that when we stray away from the topic it is usually because they are sharing their experiences that have happened to them. When this happens I always try to turn it into a group discussion. It's an open discussion but we are able to get back on track easier than the students having individual conversations.
I will often say "I think this is an interesting topic of discussion.... perhaps we can pick it up again when we reach chapter _____" or if it is when we are off on a tangent I'll say "I can see we are all interested in this .... let's finish the material for today and if we have time at the end we can pick it up again.
Hi Vipan,
Good strategy. It lets the student save face but keeps the class on target. Sounds like you have a very good understanding of class/student management.
Gary
I will implement a "parking lot".This is a section of my white board that I use to put questions that are off topic or questions that are on material that is ahead of the material I am currently covering. I write the question down on the board. This gives the question value by me acknowledging the question and giving it enough importance to write it on the board. When I get to that section of the lesson I use the question as a reminder to ensure I answer the question completely. For questions that are off topic I will not use class time to cover it but will be available after class or on breaks to answer any questions the students have.
That's a nice way to segue back to the topic at hand, I like it!
