Fishbowl

In Fishbowl, an outer circle of students sits around a smaller, inner circle of students. Students in the inner circle engage in an in-depth discussion, while students in the outer circle consider what is being said and how it is being said.

Inner circle students are challenged to participate in a high-level discussion while the outer circle is able to listen to discussion and critique content, logic, and group interaction.

• It teaches students observation, listening, and community-building skills.
• It involves strong involvement of the audience and empowering them.
• It allows the teacher to see what misconceptions students have and address them.

1. Selecting a topic for the fishbowl. The most effective prompts (question or text) do not have one right answer, but rather allow for multiple perspectives and opinions.
2. Teacher to set up the classroom to facilitate two circles: one inner and one outer circles.
3. Establish rules for discussion (possible rules):
   • Discussion for inner circle set for 10 mins
   • Students of outer circle to listen and to write notes
   • Respectful (no interruptions)
4. Assign a small group of students (generally three to five) to form the inner circle in class, and ask the remaining students to form a larger outer circle around the first circle.
5. Give students the following guidelines:
   • Only inner circle students will speak
   • Outer circle students will be “observers” and will take notes on both content and group process
   • Although observers will not speak during the Fishbowl discussion, they will have the opportunity to address any issues that arise in the follow-up discussion.
6. Give students the prompt question for discussion.
7. The round is over either after the set amount of the pre-determined time has passed or after each person of the inner circle has had at least one opportunity to speak.
8. When the round is over, the students from the outer circle present key points or observation from their notes. Once the outer circle has shared their observation, students from the inner circle move back to the outer circle and a new small group to the inner circle.
9. Group may be pre-determined by the teacher or according to the students’ interest on similar topics.
10. Students may be asked to do reflection on how the discussion went, how the students perform and their lessons as a whole.