Student Engagement through Book
Clubs:
Lessons Learned
Dr. Stephen Owen & Dr. Tod Burke
Department of Criminal JusticeRadford University
IntroductionsDr. Stephen Owen & Dr. Tod Burke
Our Experience with Book Clubs
Goal: To Consider How Book Clubs Can Promote Student Engagement with Course Material
Literature ReviewKey Lessons:“Readicide” and “Reading Under Duress”Students Value Collaboration and EngagementValue of Writing about ReadingWhat the Best College Teachers Do
For Discussion…
What books related to your discipline – other than textbooks – could be used to enhance student learning?
Goals of Book ClubsEnhance engagement with course material
Promote critical reading and critical thinking
Enhance teamwork and communication skills
Structuring a Book Club Students work in groups Each group explores a
book Multiple group meetings to
process book content Incorporation of book
content into class Final paper Group
presentation/discussion
Prior to meeting Summary/Reflective journal Develop discussion
questions At the meeting
Share ideas Discuss questions Prepare group answer to
question posed by instructor
Implementation IssuesOne book, or multiple books?How to select books?How to assign groups?Ideal group size?Number of group meetings?What questions provide meaningful analysis?How to integrate with class?How to evaluate group work fairly?
Pro’s and Con’sPRO’s Promotes critical analysis See application of
material More than a “book
report” Promotes reading Builds professional skills OTHERS?
CON’s Faculty workload Student workload “Free rider” issues Picking the right books Not a good fit for all
classes OTHERS?
Developing a Book Club
Consider one of your courses…What purpose?What books?What questions?How to integrate with class?
Conclusion
Positive results of book clubs
Questions?