Pick-a-Passage

Students prepare 3x5 cards on assigned readings, following a format that encourages reflection and independent thinking. The instructor can then call on students at random, and even reticent students are prepared with something to share. Class discussion is enriched and students do not feel “ambushed” when called on.

Author
Martha Balshem, Ph.D.
Professor, Sociology/Special Asst. to the President for Diversity
Portland State University
Portland, OR, 97207-0751

Background
According to Halpern and Hakel’s summary of research on human learning, “[l]earning is generally enhanced when learners are required to take information that is presented in one format and ‘re-represent’ it in an alternative format” (Halpern and Hakel, 2003). This suggests that the time-honored teaching technique of asking students to speak in class about something they were assigned to read is an educationally sound practice. A major problem with this, however, is that some students just do not voluntarily speak in class. We can, of course, just call on reticent students. But this works against creating a relaxed and open climate in the classroom and leaves many students feeling more, not less, tense about class discussions.

The Pick-a-Passage assignment is designed to address this. I originally developed this simple assignment when I was teaching in general education courses with the expressed goal of developing oral communications skills. I have found, however, that Pick-a-Passage has the additional happy effect of increasing the diversity of views and opinions expressed in class discussions. Over the past eight years, I have used Pick-a-Passage in at least seventeen classes, with thirty to sixty students in each class. The assignment has always worked well and received positive evaluations by the students.

Implementation
Usually, I give students a brief set of instructions for Pick-a-Passage on my syllabus. I might write something like this:

Pick-a-passage (3x5 cards): Speaking helps you to process what you read, and voicing your insights and opinions helps both you and your classmates to learn. This assignment is designed to insure that everyone comes to class prepared with something to say. For each reading, prepare a 3x5 card, and bring it to class on the day the reading is due. On one side of the card, write your name; the author and title of the reading; and a brief note stating the author’s main point. On the other side, write the page number and location on the page of a passage from the reading. Pick a passage that you agree with, disagree with, don’t understand, see as important, want to express an opinion about, have a strong reaction to, see as a nice summary of the author’s point, or can relate in an interesting way to something else you have learned in this class or in another context. On your card, write your reason for picking that passage. Unless your passage is very brief, do not copy the passage itself onto your card. In class, I will call on students to tell the class what passage they picked and why.

On the first day of class, when I review the syllabus and assignments, I explain Pick-a-Passage in much the same way that I have described it here. I share with the students my conviction that speaking out loud helps us to push our thinking along and share my observations that people who tend not to speak in class often have different points to make than those who do. I tell them that there is undoubtedly a wide variety of things that people in the class will notice about the reading and that everyone will benefit greatly from that diversity of views and insights if we all feel comfortable enough to speak in class.  I try to transmit to them how highly I value student comments. I then introduce Pick-a-Passage as an assignment that I’ve developed over the years that allows everyone to speak in class without putting anyone on the spot by surprise. I tell them: “You do need to prepare your cards for Pick-a-Passage. But if you do, I can call on you, knowing that you’ll be fine because you have a comment ready.” I also remind them to bring their textbooks to class each time we are scheduled to discuss assigned readings.

For the first few Pick-a-Passage discussions, I begin by stating the main topic or point of the reading under discussion. I then ask, “Who would like to share his or her passage?” Usually, the more talkative students will volunteer. I call on someone, thank him or her for volunteering, and say: “Tell us what passage you picked. Give us the page number and location on the page.” The student does so, and I say: “Page X, second full paragraph? Okay, give us all a minute to get there.” Often, I have to tell the student to wait until the other students and I find the page. Then I say, “Okay, read your passage for us.” After that, I often need to prompt the student by saying, “Now tell us why you picked that passage.” Generally, I will then add a comment of my own. My appreciative reception to the comments of those “early adapters” serves to encourage others to volunteer.

After the class becomes accustomed to Pick-a-Passage, I start to call on people at random, going down rows or around tables, or calling on people by name from the class list. I ask a student to state the main topic or point of the reading, rather than doing it myself. In some classes, I have marked in my grade book whether people did or did not have a card prepared. This doesn’t seem to impact student behavior; whether I do it or not, most students come prepared.

The Pick-a-Passage discussion works best if you can keep the tone of the discussion positive. After all, you are calling on people who would rather not speak in class. They may be shy, or feel insecure or marginalized in an academic environment, or find communicating in a classroom to be difficult for some other personal or physical reason. In my experience, Pick-a-Passage does not engender any surplus of comments that are off-topic, inappropriate, or based on a misunderstanding of the reading. But there are some, and it behooves the Pick-a-Passage discussion leader to respond to any such comments as kindly as possible.

Following are several of the most comment questions I used to move Pick-a-Passage discussions along.

• “Did anyone else pick that same passage or a passage that relates to it?”
• “Would anyone else like to continue us along the same vein of thought?”
• “Would anyone like to respond to that?”
• “Would anyone like to move us onto a completely different issue?”

Before leading a Pick-a-Passage discussion, I make sure that I have written a list of the critical, complicated, or centrally important points that I want to see covered in class discussion of that reading. At the end of the Pick-a-Passage discussion, I take a quick glance at this list. I generally find that most of my list has been covered by either student comments or my own responses to student comments. If anything has not been covered and we are nonetheless ready to move on, I say: “We’ve covered everything I wanted us to bring out about this reading except for one thing.” I then go on to make that point. I almost always find it possible to close the discussion by recognizing that through the passages they picked, the students brought out most of the major points important to an understanding of the assigned reading. I’ve generally contributed to that, of course, through my comments on their comments.

Usually, I collect the note cards after each class and give the students a small amount of credit for each one. Sometimes I award points; sometimes I give a “check” for each completed card. It doesn’t seem to make much difference which I do. The students spend enough time writing up the cards, though, that it seems appropriate to give them some credit for that work. One other grading option is to allow the cards to be turned in only at the end of each class period; this functions as an indirect way of giving students credit for attendance.

Follow-Up
Pick-a-Passage requires no follow-up. I welcome the opportunity to read the note cards, which often reveal unexpected contexts within which students are reacting to assigned readings. If I see themes or issues running through many of the cards, I sometimes reflect this back to the students at the next class.

Materials/Resources
Attached here are two documents: one, a longer description of the Pick-a-Passage assignment; and two, an example of a completed note card.

Pick-a-Passage requires no special materials or resources. If you want to be extra nice to your students, you can provide them all with the requisite number of 3x5 cards for the term. This also eliminates the (minor) problem of getting little hand-made, irregularly shaped, and easy-to-misplace bits of paper from students who forget to buy 3x5 cards and so try to make their own.

Adaptability
The Pick-a-Passage instructions will give you an interesting set of 3x5 cards from a class of any kind.

Large classes: In a class as large as 60, it’s possible to make sure that each student is called on once or twice during the term. In classes larger than 100, it is probably not feasible. If you have discussion sections for a large lecture class, the cards could be used in the discussion sections. It would also be possible for students in large classes to share their cards with each other in groups or pairs.

In a large class, the instructor could read a sample of the cards to check for themes, misunderstandings, and the like.

Author's Reflections
Pick-a-Passage is nothing more than a student-friendly context for the time-honored “write a note card for every reading” assignment. It has been a very successful context. It gives me a way to bring reticent students into class discussion without causing them undue embarrassment. All the students, reticent or not, seem to appreciate this. For my part, I am constantly surprised and delighted at how much gets covered during a Pick-a-Passage discussion. It can get pretty non-linear, but the instructor can always wrap things up at the end and cover anything left unsaid.

Citations
Halpern, Diane F. and Milton D. Hakel. Applying the Science of Learning to the University and Beyond: Teaching for long-term retention and transfer. Change 35(4):36-41, 2003.