By Julie High
Roundtable is one of the cooperative learning techniques that can develop students’ ability in vocabulary, grammatical structures, and writing skills.
Roundtable structures can be used to brainstorm ideas and to generate a large number of responses to a single question or a group of questions.
Faculty poses question.
· One piece of paper and pen per group.
· First student writes one response, and says it out loud.
· First student passes paper to the left, second student writes response, etc.
· Continues around group until time elapses.
· Students may say "pass" at any time.
· Group stops when time is called.
The key here is the question or the problem you've asked the students to consider. It has to be one that has the potential for a number of different "right" answers. Relate the question to the course unit, but keep it simple so every student can have some input.
Once time is called, determine what you want to have the students do with the lists...they may want to discuss the multitude of answers or solutions or they may want to share the lists with the entire class.