Today, universities offer a number of different classes as well as general lecture-type classes. One of the most interesting teaching methods is group discussion. It is simply designed to encourage students to exchange ideas or opinions with each other, away from the boring way in which professors unilaterally communicate information to students. Through the discussion in class, students can listen to the experiences and stories related to not only professors but also students who have lived different lives. Professors can help students to cooperate with each other by giving them group assignments.
However, students have various ideas or opinions for these discussion classes. Some people think group discussion classes can be more active instead of boring lectures, but others may complain about the difficulties of talking to strangers they meet and having to work on tasks that have a direct bearing on their grades with other people.
First, let’s take a look at lecture classes. As an advantage of lecture classes, students can follow the professor’s lecture and opinions, which can be directly related to the exam questions later. And each student’s effort is directly related to their own grades. The downside is that during class, one-way communication can be boring. Sharing ideas and information about classes between students may not work well. The advantages of group discussion classes are that students can actively participate in the class and make the class active and lively. Also, if the members are congenial or friendly with each other, it can grow into a secondary group of students like the forming of a club. And if multiple people share one task, the burden of the task is also reduced. On the other hand, the downside is that it takes time to adjust to each other at first. Also when it is difficult for members to cooperate, it will be difficult for them to carry out tasks. And a small number of people’s problems can affect a larger number of the group.
These days the culture of eating alone and nuclear families is spreading. Also the increase of single-person households could be shaped by individualism. In the past, neighbors often shared food, time, and space. From that, for those people the old saying ‘Good neighbor rather than siblings’ has sprung up. But today, many people don’t even know who lives next door. Under these circumstances, school – as a miniature version of society – should teach students how to have a positive influence on society. If we turn a blind eye to these problems just because they are annoying and complicated, the conflicts and problems in society will intensify.
Therefore, schools should offer both collaborative learning style classes as well as lecture style classes. Studying for good grades is important for the future, but it is also important to learn to meet and interact with people at school and to learn how to treat each other before going to society. Human beings are social animals. It’s impossible to live alone your whole life. At some point, you have to interact with the world, but if you don’t know how, those difficulties will come affect you sooner than later. You should be able to approach people and be able to talk to others first, not just wait for someone to approach you. Schools can help students do these things through a variety of classes.
