FROM RESEARCH TO THE CLASSROOM: CLASSROOM DISCUSSION
What Do I Say Next? Using the Third Turn to Build Productive Instructional Discussions by Evelyn Ford-Connors and Dana A. Roberston (Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 2017)
“After an initiating question or remark and subsequent student response, the next turn in the discussion typically belongs to the teacher, and it is at this juncture that teachers can extend students’ thinking as they probe, clarify, provide feedback, prompt elaboration, or hold the ideas up for others to consider. By picking up on students’ ideas, teachers explicitly connect them to lesson content and important concepts while also maintaining a cumulative progression of relevant ideas rather than vaguely connected student remarks. Simultaneously, teachers’ uptake of student contributions positions students as capable participants in academic life. Thus, through this strategic use of the third turn, teachers have the opportunity to help students build new knowledge; if we want to use classroom discussions as sites for new learning rather than displays of what students already know, we need to talk to them differently.”
Summary
In this article, Evelyn Ford-Connors and Dana A. Robertson share the findings from their research into the specific types of teacher talk that promote productive discussions. They define discussions as “the instructional exchanges that occur between teachers and students” and talk moves as “the various ways teachers can use talk within these discussions.”
Classroom discussions frequently follow an IRF pattern: the teacher initiates, a student responds, and the teacher follows up. The effectiveness of this pattern depends on “the purposes it is used to serve on particular occasions, and upon the larger goals, by which those purposes are informed.” Ford-Connors and Robertson look specifically at the third turn—teachers’ follow-up responses in this pattern—to identify the ways it can be used strategically to positively impact classroom discussion.
Third-turn talk moves fall into two categories. No single talk move is considered better than another. When teachers combine them with intention and base them on students’ ideas, discussion becomes more rigorous, and student learning is strengthened.
- Questioning: Although it is not limited to the third turn, research has shown that using certain types of questions in the third turn correlate with deeper understanding and higher learning outcomes.
- High-Press Questioning- These questions are often open-ended and can be used in the third turn to probe students’ ideas, push for elaboration and clarity, foster critical analysis, and support deeper thinking about content. Research reveals that teachers’ use of high-press questioning impacts the rigor of a lesson and the degree of engagement and high-level thinking, especially when students are asked to relate their ideas to the text or to contributions from their classmates and to support their responses with text-based evidence. Longer periods of student engagement and more elaborated responses are associated with four questioning strategies:
- Socratic Questioning (Prompting and guiding the discussion as it progresses)
- Pumping (prompting for additional explanation and ideas)
- Reflective toss (shifting an idea back to students for further consideration)
- Constructive Challenge (questioning a students’ statement by asking for additional evidence or revision)
- Low-Press Questioning- These are leading or narrowing questions that can be used in the third turn to scaffold students’ participation or to focus students’ attention on important information. Low-press questions often seek literal responses or offer choices.
The effectiveness of teacher questioning doesn’t depend on the use of high-press or low-press questioning. It results from the teacher’s questions being linked to what the student has said. The authors also note that the teacher is not solely responsible for forming questions and responses. When provided with models and opportunities to practice questioning, students will take the initiative to contribute to discussions with questions and comments on texts and content, becoming co-constructors of knowledge.
- Teacher Uptake: This quality of effective teacher talk in the third turn is associated with more productive discussions. Through uptake, teachers build on what has been said by incorporating a portion of the previous comment into their response.
- Revoicing- When used as a third turn strategy, the teacher incorporates an aspect of the students’ comment to create a connection, elaborate on the student’s idea, recast the response in more academic terms (for example to model technical terms or vocabulary), or to open the discussion to further comments from others.
- Elaborative Feedback- this type of response during the third turn includes some form of explanation or strategic information, redirection, or clarification to help students modify their performance. This type of feedback is most effective when it focuses on students’ correct or practically correct responses and adds to their previous attempts rather than focusing on incorrect responses.
Conclusions
“Using a broader repertoire of teacher talk moves in the third turn that includes high- and low-press questioning and uptake to revoice and elaborate students’ participation but also fosters students’ productive engagement with content, connects new vocabulary to essential concepts, and heightens the intellectual rigor of the classroom (Ford-Connors, 2011; Hattie & Timperley, 2007; Web et. al., 2008). This repertoire of talk moves and the flexibility with which skilled teachers employ them during discussions weave together students’ contributions with content and scaffold the learning e4xperience. At the same time, the language-rich interactions that occur when students and the teacher productively discuss content and grapple with ideas develop students’ capacity to think deeply about content and define the kinds of talk and thinking that are sanctioned in the classroom (Nystrand, 2006). In other words, as they manage their classroom’s discourse, teachers set the stage for how knowledge will be generated and shared, which in turn strengthens students’ opportunities to learn.”
Takeaways For the Classroom
- Tune into what talk moves you currently use in the third turn during large-group, small-group, and one-on-one discussions and identify patterns.
- Use high-press questions to probe ideas, encourage critical analysis, invite elaboration or clarification, and build new knowledge.
- Use low-press questions to activate students’ background knowledge, scaffold students’ participation, focus students’ attention on specific information, and facilitate practice with vocabulary.
- Incorporate a blend of high-press and low-press questions into the third turn. Write question starters on a post-it note or index card as a visual cue.
- Revoice students’ comments to build connection, elaborate on their ideas, or model vocabulary and technical terms.
- Offer elaborative feedback to provide explanation or offer strategic information, clarify misconceptions, or guide students to make corrections.
- Explicitly name and model third-turn strategies for students and encourage them to intentionally practice using third-turn talk moves in discussions.
- Be conscious of not taking full responsibility for the third turn. Use wait time to give students the opportunity to use talk moves to keep the discussion flowing.
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