FAQ

  1. What grade level(s) and subject(s) can consensus meetings be used for? I have had success personally using consensus meetings in science and during a more general enrichment session that our school calls PAWS. I believe you could use consensus meetings in all subject areas throughout middle school, high school and college. It could also be used in a more supported way in upper elementary.
  2. What type of school do I teach in (plus other random information)? Mason Middle School is part of Mason Public Schools located off of 127 between Lansing & Jackson. We are a rural, title 1 school. This year I teach five class periods, each is approximately 55 minutes in length with 24-28 students per class period. I have a classroom set of Chromebooks generously supplied by the Dart Foundation. We have recently purchased Amplify Science curriculum in grades 6-8.
  3. Where did I learn about consensus meetings? Consensus meetings were introduced to me while attending NGSX training at the Ingham ISD. My session was lead by Robert Stephenson. I found this training to be incredibly inspiring and opened my eyes to a variety of ways to make learning authentic in my classroom.
  4. How long do consensus meetings take? This is entirely up to you! My shortest consensus meetings are about 4 minutes of discussion with approximately 2 minutes added on for getting into and out of the meeting. I have also had consensus meetings where we continue to build on our topic over the course of many phenomenon that have taken multiple class periods to complete. They are very easy to tailor to your students, classroom, subject, grade level and participation/engagement level.
  5. How do I improve participation/engagement? First, students need to be very clear on what counts as participation. I take time to clarify that "I agree" isn't enough, but if they explain evidence it is wonderful. I also allow students to participate by asking questions, reading questions from the board and asking others to provide evidence. Second, you must create a safe environment and continue to coach this atmosphere. (See baby steps for more information.) Once both of those things are accomplished I have employed a variety of techniques depending on my students, topic and classroom 'mood' for the day. Here are a few techniques I've used:
    • Tracking student participation as feedback
    • Tracking student participation as a grade
    • Tracking student participation on classroom dojo for accountability with parents
    • Tracking student participation for an individual prize (ex. every student that participates two or more times in the consensus meeting gets a scented sticker or high five)
    • Tracking student participation for a class period contest prize (ex. class with the most students participating two or more times gets scented stickers and high fives)
    • Tracking student participation for extra credit
    • Students self monitor and track
  6. How do I track student participation? I have used Class Dojo on my cell phone and plain old pencil and paper. Pencil and paper is my preferred method. I use plain paper. As the meeting starts I orient the paper like my classroom. As a student speaks I write their name near where they are located in the classroom and add a check. Throughout the meeting I continue adding names until everyone is listed. Once a student receives the maximum number of participation I cross them out on the paper and say "Bobby, you're muted" out loud.
  7. How do you mute a student? This is my best strategy for classroom management during a consensus meeting. Students are given a maximum number of times they may participate. Once they reach that number they are "muted" which means they can't talk any more. This helps them to self regulate their comments, but also ensures a handful of students can't dominate the discussion.
  8. What do I do if a student doesn't participate? There are many ways to answer this question. Simply put, if there is a prize, extra credit or grade then those students won't receive that item. The longer answer is that I need to remember what the goal of a consensus meeting is - to use student voice to promote the idea that learning is socially mediated. If someone is obviously paying attention, tracking the conversation with their eyes or perhaps nodding along with the speaker, I will continue to encourage them privately but I never want to jeopardize the safety of the consensus meeting environment. I teach my students to encourage others without 'calling them out.'
  9. What do I do if no one is participating? This is the truest form of 'wait time' that happens in my classroom. If we have empty air time I continue to stare out at the students without saying anything. I do not break the silence for any reason. Just like in traditional discussion, increased wait time will make students 'anxious' and eventually someone talks. It works, literally, every time.
  10. What do I do if too many people are talking at once? This is the only time I will 'call out' or interrupt a meeting, besides my quiet "Bobby, you're muted" statements. I will 'call out' "one conversation" to the whole room when multiple people are talking. Early on I have to coach this but it is very rare that I have to deal with specific individuals that can't handle it. On those rare occasions I will sometimes point out the students by name or give them 'the look.' Other times I have assigned seats for those particular students that can't seem to control their whispering.
  11. What is my role during the consensus meeting? I sit on a chair behind my front counter during consensus meetings. It is important to me that I am 'outside' the meeting. I am not the focus or audience. Early on students often need to be reminded to talk to their peers rather than me, but they quickly ignore my presence and hold these meetings entirely on their own. I keep track of time, change slides if needed and track participation or concepts/misconceptions.
  12. How do I use this strategy with my curriculum? A consensus meeting is a strategy you can use at any time in your classroom. Your curriculum doesn't need to tell you when to implement one. I've successfully used consensus meetings with self created curriculum, IQWST and Amplify. Here are just a few of the examples of ways I've incorporated a consensus meeting into my lessons:
    • To share out after an individual or small group response opportunity
    • Going over lab results
    • Create a class summary
    • Students write a final copy/answer key to something
    • Incorporate questions already provided in your curriculum (i.e. specific assignment questions on a handout or lab, partner discussion topics or key concepts)
  13. How do I ensure my students 'got' what they were supposed to? By far, students in my room get more out of consensus meeting discussions then any other type of discussion we hold in class. It creates motivation and self reflection in a way that most other discussion formats are unable to do. But that being said, it's still important that the students are responsible for their learning. I use a variety of methods in my classroom including:
    • Written response following meeting
    • Handout/Question sheet completed
    • Self Rating or Reflection
    • Exit Slip
    • Record of key concepts created
  14. Why do I offer incentives for students to participate? Human nature is to crave rewards, I don't see the point in fighting against that, I would rather use it for my student's gain. I "sell" the excitement over a silly high five or scented sticker with my attitude. The students know its silly, but it doesn't stop them wanting them. (The scented stickers I love are here: https://amzn.to/2TaSG9a)