Discussion Reflection

Preparation


Normally when I read the assignments for class, I'm not as worried about keeping an open mind because I'm not worried about having to discuss my thoughts at the beginning of class. There's time to hear what others think and mix their feedback with mine before I feel I need to come to a specific standing on any story or poem. Since I had to have my thoughts ready to go for the discussion, I had to pay much closer attention to how I reacted to the story, and what my thoughts and opinions were on the questions being discussed.

I am not much of a note taker when it comes to stories unless I need to specifically quote something or have a referencing page. I don't think taking notes would have changed the outcome of how I contributed to the discussion. I realized that some students dissected every question to the point that we could have spent the whole hour talking about that one topic. I don't function in that way. I can remember and express my thoughts easily without taking notes.

I am not against notes however; if a partner prefers we use notes, then notes it shall be. As long as I had enough time to go over each question and run it through the story in my mind, then I was prepared to answer any question needed. I was impressed at how students researched the tiniest parts of the story which aided in the context and symbolism of certain elements and key points. I am not a researcher in the slightest. I will debate and elaborate until pigs fly but don't ask me to go digging for specific information. Please :) It is definitely an area in which I have room to grow.

The Experience


I quite enjoyed the discussion. It's so refreshing to see the story through other's point of view. The theory in the making by Decker was possibly my favorite. I could possibly jump on that train if we went into the details more. Depending on the circumstances, I would have opened up my mouth and had a louder "voice" about certain ideas. But it was a discussion, not a debate; word-vomiting my opinions wasn't going to necessarily help the discussion along. I realized that in order to keep the time, we really needed to stick to our limit (one main response and two comments). There were over half of the questions that I could have camped out on for some time though.

Personally, I'm a fan of the discussions. It helps me process the story more thoroughly. I spend more time writing than I do reading, and about half of that is homework; I don't use the time I have to immerse myself in the wonders of literature, so other's comments and ideas help me keep an open mind. My reasoning isn't always the most accurate, and I'm sure life would be incredibly boring if I never got the chance to see things from another's perspective. It would probably be horrifying for everyone else, too! :)

In an English class I had a couple years ago, we often had these types of class discussions. It was a safe and trusting environment where we knew we could answer honestly and 1. not be shut down, but 2. actually develop our ideas as we were discussing them. And maybe it's a girl thing, but I would rather talk about my understanding or misunderstanding than write about it--or let alone read about it!

Overall, I really enjoyed this and now I'm going to race to get the book for Friday :)