None of us likes to see a class discussion go flat.
Discomfort clouds the room.
Fearing the awkwardness of silence, we resort to other teaching techniques, predominantly the lecture method. Happy to escape oppressive silence, our students bend quietly to their notebooks. In turning to our own knowledge to fill the void, we deprive our students of a chance to practice inquiry within our disciplines. By planning discussions as models of inquiry, we can engage students in examinations of content that also emphasize the kind of thinking we espouse.