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Two students having a discussion

Two students having a discussion (track5, iStockphoto)

Two students having a discussion

Two students having a discussion (track5, iStockphoto)

Format

How does this align with my curriculum?

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This strategy helps students identify key ideas from a text, video, or other content and share these with a partner.

Why use it?

  • To increase student comprehension of a text, video or other pieces of content
  • To facilitate dialogue between students

Tips for Success

  • Choose a piece of content that you want students to analyze deeply. Choose content that can be easily understood if a reader begins at multiple points. One student will begin reading or watching partway through the content. Non-fiction content or a text that has a natural halfway point is particularly well suited for this learning strategy. 
  • Specify which parts of the text each partner should read. 
  • Consider modeling how to identify and teach the key points before students split into pairs. 

How do I use it?

  1. Give students a text, video, or other piece of content to interact with. 
  2. Organize students into pairs. 
  3. Partner A reads one section of text to themselves while partner B reads another section of text to themselves.
  4. When both students are ready, they teach the key points from their section to their partner.
One student teaching his partner about a piece of online content
One student teaching his partner about a piece of online content (Source: SDI Productions via iStockphoto).

Variations

  • To conclude, have pairs work together to develop a summary of the text.
  • Have students work in groups of three or four. Each one takes a section of the text, reads it, and teaches the key points from their section to the group. 
  • After reading, students could take a few minutes to gather their thoughts and record key points before sharing what they learned with their partner. Students could then record what their partner says as well. 
  • With longer pieces of text, this process could be repeated multiple times. Each time smaller chunks of text should be used. 

References

Adapted from: Garmston, R. J., & Buckley, M. (2013). The presenter's fieldbook: A practical guide.