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[newhere]

I am freshly minted TT material at a State Uni in the most diverse state in the US.  The science course I am teaching this Fall includes ~ 8 discussion sessions on assigned reading (+essay).  After the first few discussions I have noticed that (1) the extent to which students are vocal has virtually nothing to do with the quality of the student, in terms of mastery of the material, thoughtfulness, etc and (2) the extent to which students speak correlates with race.  White students speak readily, students of other races (1/2 the class), on the whole do not, despite the fact that some of them are my best students.  I am asking the forum for suggestions on how to bring out the quiet voices, some of whom I am sure have much wisdom to offer.  How to encourage them to speak? Or to establish a discussion atmosphere that encourages/welcomes their participation?  I hate to call on people and force them out of their shells, but I will if I have to.
thanks for any advice from more seasoned teachers.

[zharkov]

Call on students, don't wait for them to speak.  You can do it randomly, with name cards, or do it a bit more intentionally.

[oldchair]

Small-group work might help.  Sometimes, it's OK to let students stay quiet. 

[helpful]

Find different ways of engaging students - respect the fact that they all have diverse learning and engagement styles.

PS Most diverse state is Texas? Florida?California?

[seniorscholar]

Call on students, don't wait for them to speak.  You can do it randomly, with name cards, or do it a bit more intentionally.

I've always done this in classes for which discussion is commonplace. I use the cards on which they write their names and contact information, and on which I record attendance and how often they've spoken in class. Almost always a student will come to my office (or write me a handwritten -- not e-mailed -- note) saying that s/he is very uncomfortable about speaking in front of other people. I say, kindly, that the small classroom is a place to practice, then, since almost any profession is difficult to follow if one is not comfortable talking to small groups of people.

Although I must admit that observation, over the years, suggests that this may not be true of male science faculty at a research university. Even when they're appointed to important committees.

[bluesocks]

PS Most diverse state is Texas? Florida?California?

I had the same question--what do you mean by most diverse (least % of whites; most variety of ethnicities / racial backgrounds; huge socioeconomic variety)???

[newhere]

Just to clarify: by diverse, I meant racial and ethnic diversity.  No single racial/ethnic group is higher than ~ 30% in my state, and this has been true for a long time (decades).  There are ca. 6 ethnic groups that have significant representation in the state.  My students reflect that, and within a discussion class of 14 students, I probably has some representation of ~ 6-8 cultural backgrounds. 

As far as teaching advice, the general sentiment seems to be to call on students. I will do so - I was just hoping I could make some more subtle changes that would encourage students to speak on their own, rather than being forced. There are also issues of non-native English speakers, as well as students who grew up in the US and I suspect spoke mostly pidgin at home.  These students don't speak up in class. period.

[mountain_ivy]

When you call on students, keep in mind that we faculty don't tend to wait more than  a few seconds for an answer, and if we don't get one, we move on.

Before you ask the question, tell students that you will call on someone, so ask them to prepare an answer in their heads, or to jot it down.  I tend to do the latter.  Ask the question, give them some time to think of the answer, then call on someone.

Another option is "the talking ball."  Ask the question, give them prep time, throw the ball to someone who is designated answeree.  When you ask the next question, the person with the ball can select the next answeree by tossing that person the ball.  Can't do this often, but it can make it easier for students to talk.

[sciencephd]

You may need to call on them.  Most science classes don't have "discussion", so many of the students may be uncomfortable or unfamiliar with the idea of discussion in a science class.

[tuxedo_cat]

As far as teaching advice, the general sentiment seems to be to call on students. I will do so - I was just hoping I could make some more subtle changes that would encourage students to speak on their own, rather than being forced. There are also issues of non-native English speakers, as well as students who grew up in the US and I suspect spoke mostly pidgin at home.  These students don't speak up in class. period.

Depending on how long you have for each class, spend just a bit of time at the beginning of class having them respond to a writing prompt related to the reading.  Then you can call on any student and the whole deer-in-headlights issue will be much less of a problem.  You don't need to grade this writing (which would be a nightmare, it seems!) and you can be up front about the fact that this is primarily a device to encourage broader participation in discussion.  Variations on this technique:

*have students exchange their in-class writing and then ask them to explain the other student's answer when you call on them

*type up 5 or so key passages from one of the readings on separate sheets of paper with space below to write an analytical response to the passage.  Write, exchange, discuss.

*assign 1/3 of the class to bring a typed response to the reading for each class meeting, and call on them to help lead the discussion (that will save you time if it's just a 50 min. class)

I agree that calling on students randomly will get some of the smarter students to speak up, but may also make the more shy students freeze up and feel even more anxious about speaking.  Giving them just a bit of window to put their thoughts together can make a big difference.