All for One: Using Panel Discussion to Improve Proficiency through Group Work

Students may know the facts but are they able to clearly articulate it at the appropriate time given? This research-based paper looks at students’ perceptions of participating in a panel discussion in a tertiary setting. The students were given a month to prepare for their discussion by researching and practising with their peers in the same group before they presented in front of their peers. The research was conducted for a month and students were given ample time to complete the assigned project. Prior to the presentation, the students were given a lecture on conducting a panel discussion. Furthermore, the students were given time to practise with their peers in two separate sessions to enable them to get more accustomed to the format of forum discussion. The students were then asked to present, after a month of preparation in front of their peers that were also their audience and evaluators. The discussion was conducted with the audience also posing questions that were answered by the panel members during and after the presentation. This is a replacement to the typical assignments that get students to react to online postings where they have a lot of reaction time before giving a response. The findings of this study indicated that students were vocal and responsive and were more confident with their overall performance at the end of the presentation.