STARTING AN ACADEMIC CONVERSATION What is an academic conversation? How do you start one? Copyright © 2015 The Teacher Writing Center, a division of SG Consulting, Inc. 

Warm-Up Look at the picture. What are these students doing?

Discuss Response What do you think they are talking about?

Academic or Social?

Academic Conversations  Focus on a school subject or ideas  Often started by a teacher who asks a question about something you are studying  Sometimes, prompted by a student  Also referred to as an “academic discussion”

How do you begin an academic conversation?  Start with a statement about a school subject or idea.  Follow up with a question that can’t be answered “yes” or “no.”

Examples StatementFollow-Up Question I think the main idea of this [book, film, article, etc.] might be ___________. What do you think? I think the author is trying to ___________. What are your ideas? I think ___________ is one of the lessons we can learn from ___________. How do you feel about that?

Academic Conversation Tips

In summary … - An academic conversation is a discussion about a school subject or ideas. - A teacher often begins an academic conversation by asking a question about something you are studying. - Follow-up questions should be questions that can’t be answered “yes” or “no.”

For Reference and More Practice … Refer to the Starting an Academic Conversation Student Reference Sheet.Starting an Academic Conversation