Refuting Misconceptions about Classroom Discussion
discussion as an influential instructional method to encourage students to apply knowledge and develop higherorder thinking and understanding. The classroom reality, however, is that teachers only use the discussion method sparingly. Instead, teachers predominantly use a quasi-discussion form called recitation to involve students in demonstrating their knowledge of subject matter. The problem is compounded by the fact that teachers generally refer to all major interaction sessions with students in the classroom as “discussions” when, in reality, they are recitations. Although both forms of interaction are effective in achieving their intended purposes, discussion is vastly more appropriate and effective in developing in students the widely endorsed citizenship competencies associated with rational and humane decision making and problem solving necessary for the common good (Parker and Hess 2001; NCSS 1994; Wilen and White 1991). Social studies teachers do not use discussion in their classrooms for many reasons. Based on his study, Onosko (1996) listed several reasons, which include a lecture-recitation instructional tradition; a long tradition of disciplinebased curriculum design; emphasis on speedy and superficial coverage of content; fact-based textbooks; and the limited availability of issue-based materials. It is hypothesized that one reason teachers avoid discussion is that they are relying on common misconceptions about the discussion method to make judgments about its use. Those misconceptions diminish the role that discussion can play in the classroom to help achieve the purpose of social studies. Logically, we can further assume that reflective and conscientious teachers might consider using discussion more often if their misconceptions were refuted with accurate and practical information. Possessing reliable and up-to-date information is the first step teachers need to consider when evaluating discussion as a viable instructional method. In this article, I reveal common misconceptions about the use of discussion in the classroom and propose endorsed principles of practice for teachers that are based on findings from the research and theoretical literature. My goal is to challenge discussion misconceptions convincingly and lead teachers to reflection and examination of their current classroom discussion practices. The end result may be instructional improvement.