The first thing that struck me about “Most Likely to Succeed” was how reluctant students were to get into the socratic discussion, and at the same time, the value of it. Students leading discussions is a great way for them to learn about the subject content, and at the same learn how to communicate as part of a team. I fully intend to integrate this type of discussion into my teaching style.
Taking further inspiration from the classroom of former math teacher of my own, I’m considering a math class format using that central desk and chair arrangement, with several whiteboards/blackboards available on the outside. Ideas would be introduced in circle discussion, and then in-class exercises would be done at the boards, like so:
A concern is that classrooms will often have too many students or too little room accomplish this effectively, as it’s not very space efficient.