The UW-Madison Deliberation Dinners is an initiative run by The Discussion Project. It is separate from The Discussion Project course. Please click here for further information.
Why run the UW-Madison Deliberation Dinners?
- The purpose of the Deliberation Dinners is to provide students the opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions with other students about controversial political issues in a setting that exposes them to multiple and competing ideas.
- The Deliberation Dinners will use a particular form of discussion called deliberation. Discussion writ large is focused inquiry through speaking and listening that is purposeful, broadly collaborative, and leads to deeper understanding through analysis of different perspectives. And deliberation is a discussion that answers the question, “What shall we do?” — without requiring or seeking consensus.
What is the structure of the Deliberation Dinners?
- In its second year, The Deliberation Dinners brings together twenty four groups of 10-12 UW–Madison undergraduate students (a total of 250 students divided into two cohorts) for a series of six, 2.5 hour dinner sessions throughout the 2024-25 academic year.
- Each group of 10-12 students will be matched with one UW-Madison instructor who will facilitate the deliberation.
- Facilitators have all taken The Discussion Project, and thus have specialized training in discussion pedagogy.