Leading an Effective Discussion

Provide the Right Environment:
1. People must have time to think.
2. People must feel safe to state their opinion.

Use discussable questions. For example: “What are the first four books of the New Testament?” is not discussable - there is only one correct answer. “Why do you think four different gospels are included in the Bible?” is discussable. Thinking of good questions will be your most important task in leading an inductive Bible Study (see Build Your Own Bible Study).

Keep the discussion going. Ask, "Why do you think that?" Or "What do the rest of you think?" The latter question works well to help the group correct itself when the discussion goes off on a tangent.

Minimize leader talk. The more you talk, the less they will.

Don’t echo. Don’t repeat people’s answers. If they can’t be heard, ask them to repeat it.

Don’t answer your own questions. See prompting above.

Don’t look for one answer. “That’s good, but it’s not quite what I’m looking for,” will kill a discussion. If you want to make one point - use a lecture or other appropriate method.

Don’t tell people they are wrong. Try to avoid saying, “You’re wrong,” or, “I think you made a mistake, Bettylou.” See the example under positive reinforcement for ideas on how to handle this. Don’t leave an obvious error unchallenged. Make sure the discussion brings out the right ideas. But you don’t have to tell someone in front of a group that they were wrong - they will figure it out.

Don’t let one or two people dominate. Use redirection and call on non-volunteers to try to handle this situation. “Let’s hear from someone who hasn’t spoken up yet.” If necessary, talk to the dominating person privately. Look for ministry opportunities - why does this person feel the need to talk so much? How can we help him grow in this area?

Don’t interrupt. Let people finish what they are saying.

Don’t probe. Encourage people to share what they want to, but don’t make them share what they don’t want to. If someone in the group starts to probe, say, “Let’s let Jill tell it the way she sees it.” or “Why don’t we let Jill finish what she has to say.”

Don’t give advice. Advice is cheap and sometimes disastrous. If someone else in the group has had an experience that is applicable to the person’s situation, allow him to share it. But do not go on to draw the conclusion for the person. If the person specifically asks for advice, tell what you might do in a similar situation.

I’m trying to do everything right and our group still won’t discuss?
Let people write down ideas first and then call on several volunteers to share what they’ve written.

Have people discuss the questions with the person sitting next to them and then bring ideas to the whole group.