Chapter 3: Let the Students Do the Talking

In Chapter 3, Finkel communicates the importance of student-led discussion, inquiry and presentation. This involves the willingness of an instructor to step aside and lend support to their learners as needed. The greatest challenge in this, as Finkel points out, involves relinquishing control over the and flow of student-led activities. Finkel takes this a step further by demonstrating that it is through the unforeseen outcomes of these activities that truly enduring and profound learning can occur, or as he puts it "the surprises are the biggest payoffs of the class" (p.41).

Can you think of an instance, as either a student or a teacher, when an unplanned discussion or inquiry led to an unexpected and rewarding learning experience? Can we, as educators, rely on our students to arrive at these learning experiences without our consistent guidance? What degree of support is either or necessary or ideal from a teacher's perspective?