NILE runs a wide range of professional development courses delivered in various modes. In this series, NILE's Senior Trainers look at some of the key concepts, activities, tips and tools which feature in our NILE courses.

 

Creating the Best Space for Critical Dialogue in Your Classroom

In a rapidly changing world, preparing students to be active, informed global citizens is more crucial than ever. Language educators need to develop the skills to facilitate critical discussions that promote global awareness and responsibility on globally significant topics like inequality, climate change, migration and social justice.

Critical dialogue goes beyond sharing opinions; it involves creating a space where students can question assumptions, explore diverse perspectives, and challenge social norms. For Rose Aylett, Course Leader of NILE's Global Citizenship in Language Education course, creating the right classroom climate for these kinds of discussions is key to their success. 

Rose suggests that running an effective classroom discussion is as much about what happens before and after, as what takes place during the conversation: “Planning dialogue – preparing the questions we intend to ask our learners, predicting questions they might ask us (and how we want to respond), and setting clear ground rules is really vital. But we also need to promote learner reflection afterwards – who put forward the strongest arguments? Who listened well? Who encouraged others to participate? Without this learners won’t develop important global skills.”

So, how can we facilitate critical dialogue in our classrooms? Rose offers the following pieces of advice:

  • Negotiate clear conversational guidelines with learners to maintain respect and focus, especially when discussing potentially sensitive topics.
  • Decide what role you are going to play in the dialogue and reflect on how your position as the teacher might influence both what learners say, and how they think about the issue under discussion.
  • Foster active participation by giving all students an opportunity to speak, emphasising the importance of every voice in the conversation.
  • Encourage active listening and reflection on how learners engage in classroom talk.

Join Rose for more on integrating global citizenship in your teaching
on her NILE Online course running in January and September

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