Most seminars are offered to students who have taken a number of courses in their majors and have developed a certain base of knowledge that prepares them to focus on the subject of the seminar. In fact, since the word derives from the Latin word seminarium, which means “seed plot,” it may be helpful to think of a seminar as a place where you plant seeds in a prepared garden, meaning that this form of instruction depends on students having some basic knowledge and skills.

Placing Responsibility on Students
Teaching a seminar means rethinking the ways in which classroom time is organized and reconsidering the expectations placed on students. When I have taught graduate seminars, I have expected students to present concepts or information—sometimes assigned and sometimes not—and lead class discussions as a way to encourage them to take some leadership of the intellectual material. I have also assigned them several research projects or one large one, and required them to make progress reports on their work each week.

One strategy that helps them adjust to a small group of students in a seminar setting entails setting different ground rules for attending each class session; participating fully in discussions about various models, theories and concepts; and demonstrating command of and engagement with the material all the time. When there are only a few students and each one is expected to connect fully with the ideas being discussed, there is no room to hide and there should be no expectation that you will explain the material. Critical to making this new situation work is clarifying these differences in the syllabus and at the first class session. You also need to avoid sliding into explanations and filling in when students have not read or do not remember the assigned material. In those situations, I have just let them flounder and not answered questions or provided any support, especially in the first few weeks of the seminar.

Altering Your Vision of Your Role
If you are really going to encourage and force students to take ownership of the material, that means you need to step back from your regular role as a faculty member and even from facilitating the discussion. Starting a seminar class with some discussion about what will happen and why helps students alter their perspective about the course and shifts their expectations about your lecturing or leading the discussion.

One way to help them recognize your new role involves treating them as mature students who are excited about the subject and want to take a leadership role. That means that they should come prepared and play significant roles in making the discussion successful. I have found that asking them to take attendance, organize the presentation schedules and ensure that everyone responds can help them realize the shift. Another way is to specify your different role in participating in the discussion but not leading or facilitating it. I have also found that not even starting or facilitating the discussion allows me to participate more actively, and they adjust well after a while. A third way involves reminding them that the quality—not the amount—of their discussion and participation will be part of the evaluative criteria that you use. I have even asked students to evaluate their own participation and everyone else’s in the course (in a confidential document given only to me). That assignment provides them with a symbol of how important that part of the course can be.

Evaluating Students
Although many of us normally evaluate papers and other written products in any teaching situations, in a seminar, you might want to consider providing feedback on draft documents and even inviting other students to provide peer feedback on written papers, as well. Especially, if there is a significant research project due at the end of the term, giving students a chance to comment on drafts of other students papers can improve the quality of everyone’s work.

Other ways of encouraging debate is requiring short reaction or reflection papers for each course session. Some faculty members have used the end of class to encourage discussion on how the seminar went and what students could do to make it better next time.

There may be other evaluative criteria to use in a seminar course, and feel free to develop ones that you think work with your students. Remember that a seminar can be a great place to push students’ thinking and provide them with a different educational experience. They just need to realize it requires different commitment from them and a change in role for us.

Summary
Thank you for reading this column. If you have other ideas or suggestions about teaching seminar classes, send them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I will include them in future Mayo Clinics. Next month, we will talk about organizing review sessions.

Dr. Fred Mayo, CHE, CHT, is a clinical professor at New York University and a frequent presenter at CAFÉ events nationwide.