Online Course

Gil Nathanson

“I am a chemistry professor who was just preparing to teach a 20 person graduate class when I participated in the Discussion Project. For the first time in my three decade career, I had the opportunity to discuss, debate, and revel in ideas presented by a wide swath of teachers across the university. I was startled by the originality and freshness of the suggestions, many of which can be translated to teaching science. I would gladly recommend the Discussion Project to all who are interested, even if you are an instructor in a large class.”

Brandon Bloch

“Thanks so much for sending along this explanation, and for your coaching throughout the instructional consultations. I found the Discussion Project to be such a productive and eye-opening experience, and I’ll definitely recommend it to my colleagues. I’m already finding ways to apply the methodologies we discussed to my teaching.”

Overview

1. 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.
2. A limited number of participants will have access to free instructional consultation with the Discussion Project staff during or after the course sessions.

For those who have taken the Discussion Project in-person course in the past, you will find some material to be similar, though every principle or activity addresses the challenges and affordances of discussion in the online environment.

Please see below for the learning objectives and topics that will be covered during the Discussion Project program.

If you are not affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and would like to take the Discussion Project course, please visit this website where individuals and institutions may register for a course series.