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[avaya]

Alright, this is going to sound REALLY mean.  But it's not, I'm just being blunt.  I have a student in one of my classes who just doesn't really get things.  And he's a talker, a big talker.  He constantly raises his hand and wants to say things in class.  I like participation, but when I call on him, he says things that are only tangentially related to what I was talking about.  Other students get confused looks on their faces, I ask him how his point relates to what we were talking about in class, and he just simply repeats his point.  I honestly believe he thinks he is smart and he is making all these great contributions to class.

So what do I do?  It's to the point where he is being disruptive.

[mj_romo]

This is a good question because I've got one of those as well.  I appreciate student participation, but this is distracting and annoying, and it definitely isn't helping other students in a remedial class.  I hope someone has a suggestion for us.

[anthroid]

Pull the student aside.  Tell him how much you appreciate his comments and questions but that you have received comments (which, now that you've posted, is true) that his remarks keep other students from talking.  You say, "I know you don't mean to do that.  You're so incredibly enthusiastic, and you can't know how very much this pleases me!  I just love it when someone is as excited by our ideas as I am!  But...you need to give your..um..slower... colleagues a chance.  Could you let them ask questions for a couple of classes?  Write down your questions and comments and, if your points aren't addressed, how about if you come to my office hours and we can talk in depth then?"

In my experience, that should shut him up for maybe 2 weeks.  Then you remind him again. 

PS  He won't ever come to your office hours. 

[prytania3]

I take those type of students aside after or before class and say, "Look, I really appreciate your participation. I wish all my students participated as much as you do; however they aren't, so I need a favor from you. I need you to only raise your hand once or twice during class because I have to get these other students talking, and as long as you're taking up their slack."

Okay, that's what I used to do and it worked pretty well. Now, however, I'm more blunt. I just say, "We've heard from you. I want to hear from some other people."

[voxprincipalis]

(Hey, look! Anthroid just wrote almost the exact same comment while I was typing. Well, it can't hurt to say it twice, so I'll just leave this as is.)

I've had a couple of those. What eventually worked for me was taking the student aside and saying, "Although I appreciate how much you want to contribute to class, I need to make sure that all students are encouraged to participate, and the more questions you ask, the less they feel obliged to volunteer their own opinions. It's important for them to be able to earn their participation grades, and some of the students aren't as comfortable just piping up as you are. Of course, I don't want to ignore you in class, so would you mind just keeping track of your questions -- writing them down, maybe -- and then turning them in to me every so often? That would help everyone out a lot -- and please don't be offended if I don't call on you all the time in class."

YMMV, of course, but this worked pretty well for me. Over the course of the semester, he wrote down fewer and fewer questions, and we ended up answering most of those in class discussion anyway, so it wasn't any extra work for me.

VP

[anthroid]

(Hey, look! Anthroid just wrote almost the exact same comment while I was typing. Well, it can't hurt to say it twice, so I'll just leave this as is.)

I've had a couple of those. What eventually worked for me was taking the student aside and saying, "Although I appreciate how much you want to contribute to class, I need to make sure that all students are encouraged to participate, and the more questions you ask, the less they feel obliged to volunteer their own opinions. It's important for them to be able to earn their participation grades, and some of the students aren't as comfortable just piping up as you are. Of course, I don't want to ignore you in class, so would you mind just keeping track of your questions -- writing them down, maybe -- and then turning them in to me every so often? That would help everyone out a lot -- and please don't be offended if I don't call on you all the time in class."

YMMV, of course, but this worked pretty well for me. Over the course of the semester, he wrote down fewer and fewer questions, and we ended up answering most of those in class discussion anyway, so it wasn't any extra work for me.

VP

Well, that's because a) we're both brilliant and b) we're soul mates 4-ever.

[voxprincipalis]

Well, that's because a) we're both brilliant and b) we're soul mates 4-ever.

I telepathically knew you were going to say that! Really, I did -- pinky-swear!

:-)

VP

[crazybatlady]

See, I expected "4-eva!!!!!"

Silly me, always out of the loop.

[kaysixteen]

I suppose 'silence, ree-tard' is a no-go, eh?  Ah well, it is getting late, and I am in a chirpy mood.

[grasshopper]

Thank you, Kay16 - I had a similar thought, but wasn't feeling sassy enough to put finger to keyboard.

Hey! Did you know that it's no longer PC to use the term "retard"? Pity.

[prof_mom]

I have a graduate student who does not do the reading. Instead of just sitting there, he tries to participate (actually, dominate) the discussion. He frequently displays his lack of knowledge about the readings and it's just silly.

I have managed to shut him down a bit by just telling him to wait for others to talk and asking him questions that try to get him to focus on how the author of the article would interpret this. He is silenced because he has not read.  Also, I try to ask my questions directly to other students.It is difficult and sometimes I must be rude to get him to stop, but the strategy does allow other students to talk.

Good luck!

[avaya]

I suppose 'silence, ree-tard' is a no-go, eh?  Ah well, it is getting late, and I am in a chirpy mood.

I hate to say it, but I laughed myself silly at this!

[avaya]

Thanks everyone.  I have informally asked him to limit his participation but he just doesn't get it.  I will have him meet with me after class to have a discussion.  I think the idea of him writing his questions down will work well.

I was also thinking of talking to him about the fact that his comments aren't relevant.  I don't know if I can get through to him.  I will have to think about this a little more.

Thanks for all the advice everyone!

[medievalisttoo]

Part of the problem here is not that this student is just a "talker", but that he doesn't stay on topic, even remotely, right?  I had one of those, who took several classes from me.  When taking him aside to speak to him privately didn't work, I had to move it to open discussion:

Me: What does this tell us about pheonomenon X?

Student: Blue, rhinorceros, triangle.

Me:  Well, that's interesting, but it's not really on topic.  Anyone else? What does this tell us about pheonomenon X?

[arugula]

Once  you've asked the student to limit participation to more appropriate levels, I think you should feel free to cut him off in class.   Simply say, "Wait, I want to let someone else address this one." No apology or self-consciousness. Reaffirm for him after class that you can see he learns best through discussion, but other people need the opportunity to talk as well.

I do, however, think it's a skill worth honing as a discussion leader to be able to tie things back to central issues/topics, regardless of the cockamamie directions students sometimes take things in.  It's an art sometimes to weave your way back, but it's entertaining to you and students when you can do it, and it lets you re-emphasize that even informal discusson isn't a free for all; there is a structure and a point to what you're doing together.