What Is a Harkness Discussion? A Teacher’s Guide
A Harkness discussion is a student-led method in which students sit in a circle or oval, taking turns to pose and answer questions while the teacher guides rather than leads. It originated at Phillips Exeter Academy through Edward Harkness's 1930 gift, with traditional groups of 12 students and one teacher. I've adapted it to a full class of 30.
If you are like me, you are always trying to find new and innovative ways to get your students engaged in your lesson...or at least to buy into what you are teaching. The daily "sit and get" or the constant shuffling of stations can grow tiresome.
One new learning style I recently discovered is called a Harkness Discussion. Some might argue this is just another variation of the Socratic Seminar of Shared Inquiry teaching. While they all do share some similarities, Harkness differs in that the teacher plays more of a moderator and less of the ‘person in charge' role.
A little history helps explain why this works: the approach originated at Phillips Exeter Academy through Edward Harkness's 1930 gift, with the first Harkness-style classes beginning in 1931. The traditional table seats 12 students and one teacher, though I've adapted the format to a full class of 30 in my own classroom.
Misconceptions About the Harkness Discussion Method
Those of you who are familiar with the loose and tight method of teaching and classroom management might be rolling your eyes right about now. But let me ease your concerns. The Harkness Discussion isn't just another fancy term for a class discussion. It goes beyond just talking about a subject. When we try to have class discussions, the conversation is typically dominated by a few students, or it quickly turns into an argument. This is not effective or helpful.
In the Harkness Discussion, students sit in a circle or an oval. In my version, every student has to pose a question and answer at least one question in order to receive a grade. Since the teacher acts more as a guide than as the one leading the conversation, this allows him or her to watch and record interactions and summarize which students effectively understood the standards taught.
A Harkness Discussion Example
In my Harkness discussion, I sit behind the group and check off each student's name on my roster as they talk. Once I see that one or a few students have answered more than others, I will announce that they have to ‘sit out' a round while others get an opportunity to share.
I also include a visual PowerPoint for each discussion and lesson that lists the rules of the Harkness Discussion, how they receive points (for posing questions and answering questions), and how they lose points (for dominating the discussion or not talking at all).
The Truth About the Harkness Discussion
The Harkness Discussion method is more of an active, discussion-based learning style that requires students to take the lead in managing the lesson and subsequent discussions.
This method actually teaches students how to learn in a way in which they are not simply sitting and taking in instruction, but rather, they are required to:
- Listen
- Observe
- Analyze
- Verbalize
- Provide visual descriptions
Since all students learn differently, this method can support multiple forms of participation and may help you accommodate diverse learning needs, while helping each one develop new methods that make sense to them.
Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean the teacher gets to hang out and search Pinterest all class period. Instead, the teacher will need to provide students with resources (texts to read) and question starters to guide them as they prepare for their discussion.
How Does the Harkness Discussion Work?
Now, you might be thinking, ‘this sounds wonderful, but how does it work?'
First, the Harkness Discussion method can be adapted across many subjects and classroom settings. The teacher will assign a reading to their students. Students will analyze the material and develop a set of questions to ask their peers during the discussion.
We all know those students who sit in the back of the class, hiding, and just praying the teacher never calls on them. They distrust their own ideas and answers and seek others for ‘right' answers for an assignment. The format can give this specific student more opportunities to contribute and room to build confidence in their own opinions and ability to succeed.
In my classroom, I treat reading and preparation as formative work, since students have to find information that pertains to the unit of study and the given standards, and the discussion as the summative assessment, since it requires students to demonstrate their knowledge verbally.
Next, as students begin to ask their peers the questions they created, discussion will begin. In my classroom, students raise their hands to answer, just as they would in a normal classroom. However, the student who posed the question will direct the conversation. Now, this will be messy and difficult at first. So, I advise you to model this with your students before jumping into a full Harkness discussion. I have even shown my students YouTube videos of other classrooms performing this so they can see just how easy it is to carry on a natural conversation without the teacher directing everyone.
Finally, as students begin answering the questions, the originator of the question (the student who originally posed it) will write down the correct answer. This part of the process requires several levels of understanding for the student. Students have to create a high-level question based on the given material. They then have to listen during the discussion and know the answer they are seeking. This process allows the teacher to assess reading, writing, and speaking standards in a single interactive, fun lesson.
How to Effectively Use the Harkness Teaching Method in Your Classroom
Since all teachers' styles are different, one of the main reasons I love the Harkness Discussion so much is that you can easily adapt it to your own style, curriculum, or reading. If you teach a poetry unit, you can have students read the text, analyze it, and create questions in one class period. The next day, students will enter the class prepared to begin their discussion.
Social Studies: Students could read and analyze a chapter about the Fall of the Roman Empire. As students read, they could create questions like these: What caused the fall of the Empire? Who were the main players? When did this happen? Why do you think this event is important in history? Are there still any relevant themes from the lesson of the Romans to today's societies? Again, you will have to coach your students through the phases of developing questions, but once they understand, the process will run smoothly.
Language Arts and English: Students could read a chapter from a given novel in class. They could analyze the text and create questions like these: Why did the main character… Infer: Do you think… Compare one theme from this novel to another text read in class. Identify one example of a simile or…
Art: Students could view and analyze a specific painting. Their questions could consist of: What does this painting remind you of? What other artists share the same style? Why do you think this painting is important?
Science: Students could complete a unit on the ecosystem. The discussion could lead as follows: Which aspect of our ecosystem is most important? Infer… Identify… Create an example of…
Questions for a Harkness Discussion - Types of Questions to Teach Students to Ask
As a pre-lesson for this activity, you must teach students how to ask the questions you want them to pose to their peers. Best practices suggest using question-cues and prompts.
- Factual: According to the textbook...As stated by… Based on the events…
- Remembering: List examples of…. Identify how._____ was used… Define the term___ found in the story… Name one character who…
- Understanding: Summarize… Explain… Interpret… Infer...Restate in your own words...paraphrase what happened when...compare and contrast_______ in the story…
- Applying: Apply one theme or lesson in this story to…
- Analyzing: Compare and Contrast...Organize events by…
- Evaluating: Defend a character's actions by… Justify the statement...Evaluate the effectiveness of...
The examples above are a starting point, not a fixed list. Adapt the question-cues to your own subject, and try a Harkness discussion with a single reading before committing a full unit to it. The first attempt will feel awkward. That's the format working as intended, not a sign you're doing it wrong.
RELATED -
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Harkness discussion?
A Harkness discussion is a student-led classroom method where students sit in a circle or oval and take turns posing and answering questions about an assigned text, while the teacher guides rather than directs. The approach originated at Phillips Exeter Academy through Edward Harkness's 1930 gift, with the first Harkness-style classes beginning in 1931.
How is a Harkness discussion different from a regular class discussion?
A regular discussion is usually dominated by a few vocal students and steered by the teacher. In my version of a Harkness discussion, every student must pose and answer at least one question to earn a grade, which spreads participation across the whole group rather than a few students.
How many students work best in a Harkness discussion?
The traditional Harkness table seats 12 students and one teacher around an oval, which is the group size for which Phillips Exeter Academy originally designed the method. In my own classroom, I've adapted the format for a full class of 30, with added structure, such as a roster to track who has spoken.
Who assesses students during a Harkness discussion?
In my classroom, the teacher assesses by guiding rather than leading the conversation. Tracking each student's questions and answers against a roster, combined with a rubric that awards points for participation and deducts them for dominating or staying silent, gives a clear record of who met the standard.
Can a Harkness discussion work in a large class?
In my experience, yes. I've scaled beyond the original 12-student design by adding accountability tools, such as requiring every student to ask and answer at least one question and tracking participation on a roster, so that a class of 30 has a structure similar to a traditional Harkness table.
- Student-led, teacher-guided - the teacher guides and tracks participation rather than directing the conversation.
- Built-in accountability, in this version - the author requires every student to pose one question and answer one to earn a grade, which spreads participation across the group.
- Works across subjects - this method adapts to social studies, language arts, art, and science with subject-specific question prompts.
- Scales beyond its original size - the traditional Harkness table seats 12 students and one teacher, but the author has adapted the format to a full class of 30, with a roster and clear rubric.
- Model it before running it live - students need to see the format in action, through modeling or example videos, before they can lead a discussion on their own.
Trying a new discussion method well takes practice, and coursework focused on discussion-based instruction can shortcut a lot of the trial and error. The professional development programs featured here focus on exactly that kind of classroom-methods training.
- What Is a Harkness Discussion? A Teacher’s Guide - April 19, 2018
- Using Technology in the Classroom: A Teacher’s Honest Take - May 9, 2017
- What Is an Anchor Text in Education? A Teacher’s Guide - November 4, 2016
