Restructure your syllabus, providing some class time for a lecture and the remaining time for open class discussion. List the reading assignments you expect your students to complete before the start of the class and make notes about each topic you intend to discuss during a semester.
Divide your syllabus between larger topics, grouped by the general topics you will discuss. As an example, for your British Literature course, separate your syllabus between the Romantic, Victorian, Modern and Postmodern periods, giving your students the chance to study the assigned material, but also the differences between each period. Identify and list in your notes the most important ideas and events from each period, such as the different feminist movements in Britain during each period.
Use the lecture portion of your class to provide the important facts surrounding the daily assignment, such as the history of an author for a literature class, or the background of a formula for a science class. Provide the essential background material, which your students can use to help them during the discussion portion of each class.
Open your class to discussion, asking questions designed to make your class think about the subject for themselves. Encourage your students to question the ideals and motives of each class topic, while leading them to discover important information about the subject. As an example, if the daily topic was Mary Wollstonecraft’s “Vindication of the Rights of Women,” encourage students to question how Wollstonecraft’s argument relates to Plato’s writing from 2,000 years prior.
Guide the discussion to avoid allowing students to take the class off-track. Encourage other students to comment if a remark seems incorrect or correct it yourself by suggesting an alternate way students can approach the question. Remember, your focus is to teach students how to think and interpret for themselves, based on your teaching and leadership style.
Provide numerous group projects during the semester, including class presentations. Assign students to specific study groups, informing them that the people in each study group will give all presentations together as a group. Encourage them to meet with their study groups periodically during the semester, and work together on each assignment you hand out.