NTLSN · Crash Course · Small groups

Tutorials & small-group teaching — a crash course

A tutorial is not a small lecture. Four short lessons on facilitating real discussion and learning in small groups, then a self-check.

The one thing to remember: in a tutorial, your job isn't to talk — it's to make students think out loud. Facilitate; don't fill the silence.
4 lessons~10 min read1 self-checkGrounded in discussion-facilitation & small-group pedagogy

The lessons

1
Facilitate, don't fill the silenceTalk less, prompt more
›

The instinct to rescue a quiet room with more talking is the main thing that kills tutorial learning. Get comfortable with the pause.

  • Ask, wait (count to ten), then ask again — don't answer your own question.
  • Redirect questions back to the group before you answer.
  • Aim to talk far less than the students do.
2
Design the discussionGood questions, clear structure
›

Discussion rarely happens by accident. Plan the questions and the shape, and give students something concrete to engage with.

  • Open with a question that has more than one defensible answer.
  • Give a task or stimulus, not just ‘any thoughts?’.
  • Sequence from concrete to analytical to evaluative.
3
Active small-group techniquesStructures that make everyone work
›

Simple structures spread the work and the thinking across the whole room, not just the confident few.

  • Think-pair-share, snowballing, jigsaw, structured debate.
  • Give roles so no one can hide and no one dominates.
  • Make groups produce something — then compare.
4
Inclusive participationMore than the loudest three
›

A good tutorial hears from everyone, not just the usual voices. Design participation in rather than hoping for it.

  • Use written or pair steps before whole-group talk.
  • Vary how students can contribute (speak, write, draw, vote).
  • Notice who hasn't spoken — and make it easy for them to.
◇ Bring it together — from the NTLSN commons
Browse engagement resourcesTeaching Critical Thinking course369 sector videosFrameworks & policy

Before your next tutorial — a quick self-check

✓
I plan to talk less than my students do.
✓
I use the pause — I don't answer my own questions.
✓
My opening question has more than one defensible answer.
✓
I use a structure so everyone works, not just the confident.
✓
Students produce something, not just chat.
✓
I design participation in for the quiet students.
Source & attribution. Curated from small-group teaching and discussion-facilitation good practice indexed by the NTLSN commons. Practitioner synthesis, not original research.
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