Class discussion and class participation: Determination of their relationship

Abstract

Class discussion as an instructional strategy is placed at the heart of the classroom learning experiences to elicit active student participation. Convenience sampling of 105 undergraduates, majority of which are English as a Second Language (ESL) learners at Wenzhou Kean University (WKU) in China, participated in this descriptive correlational online survey. Findings showed a strong and positive relationship between class discussion and class participation. When there is enough time given for a group of three to five students to discuss general and creative topics on discussion questions given by instructors, the students are more confident to actively participate in class.