University of Wisconsin–Madison
Undergraduate student Sylvannah Lang, left, participates in discussion during a Masterpieces of Afro-American Literature class taught by Sandra Adell, professor of Afro-American Studies, in the Helen C. White Hall at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on Feb. 22, 2017. Adell is one of twelve 2017 Distinguished Teaching Award recipients. (Photo by Jeff Miller/UW-Madison)

See below to register.

Register

The Discussion Project
(In-person)
January 2027 Courses

FACULTY & ACADEMIC STAFF
REGISTER HERE

January 6, 7, 8, 8:30am-4:30pm, each day in Teacher Education / MERIT Library, Room 250 – for Faculty and Academic staff. On campus.

OR

January 11, 12, 13, 8:30am-4:30pm each day in Teacher Education / MERIT Library, Room 250 –for Faculty and Academic staff. On campus.

TEACHING ASSISTANTS
REGISTER HERE

January 13, 14, 15,  8:30am-4:30pm each day in Educational Sciences Room 259 – for Graduate Student Teaching Assistants or Lecturers. On campus.

Who should register for the Discussion Project In-Person course?

  • We welcome any university instructor (faculty, academic staff, graduate student) or staff person who leads discussion.
  • The course is most applicable to those teaching face-to-face classes with fewer than 40 students but is also relevant for those teaching large interactive lecture classes with discussion sections.
  • In order to be eligible to participate, registrants must be available to attend all three days of the course.

If you are not affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would like to take The Discussion Project course, please please email Lynn Glueck at lrglueck@wisc.edu.

Any of the Universities of Wisconsin may request that The Discussion Project come to teach on your campus by emailing lrglueck@wisc.edu. We also have been running an open enrollment Universities of Wisconsin course each June.

The Discussion Project Virtual
(Online) September 2026 Start

There are still a few seats open.

REGISTER HERE

WEDNESDAYS, 1PM-3PM CST: 9/16, 9/23, 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 10/28

Who should register for the Discussion Project Virtual online course?

  • We welcome any university instructor (faculty, academic staff, TA) or staff person who leads discussion.
  • The course is most applicable to those teaching online classes with fewer than 40 students.
  • In order to be eligible to participate, registrants must be available to attend all synchronous sessions.
  • The focus of the course is online synchronous video conference discussion (eg., via Zoom). Skills learned are also relevant to in-person teaching.

Course format: Participants will meet online in seven 2-hour synchronous sessions on Zoom. Each session is preceded by one hour of asynchronous preparatory work in Canvas.

If you are not affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would like to take The Discussion Project course, please please email Lynn Glueck at lrglueck@wisc.edu.

Any of the Universities of Wisconsin may request that The Discussion Project teach online for your campus by emailing lrglueck@wisc.edu.

Some findings from The Discussion Project Research…

Students are more likely to engage in discussion when their instructor has prepared them for it.

More students are able to engage in discussion more effectively in small groups.

Students can engage more in discussion when they feel comfortable with their classmates.

Open questions with more than one answer can foster discussion with broader participation.

Many students need structure and guidance to engage well in discussion.