Print Discuss supplies a useful resource for English language teachers – ESL conversation questions. Depending on the working situation, instructors often find themselves with limited time to prepare for discussion classes. I hope they can visit this site and get something useful for a class that requires minimal preparation time.
Our discussion questions are especially suitable for students from intermediate to advanced levels. Low-intermediate students may struggle to answer some of the questions. Moreover, some of the topics may not succeed, depending on the cultural context. Instructors should have a sense of what their students can talk about and direct students to answer those questions.
Each set of questions should provide more than enough material for an hour-long class, especially if the instructor encourages the students to see the questions as just the starting point of their conversations. One version of an ideal discussion class goes like this:
After either of the discussions, when the class is one again, I like to pick one or two students and ask them a question from among those they just discussed. This adds a little pressure to those students (speaking in front of more people), but they've been prepared by their recent practice, and it's chance for them to build confidence.
90+ conversation topics organized by category - from personal relationships to current events.
Grammar-focused questions for practicing specific types of language and structures.
Generate random questions from selected topics for spontaneous discussions.
This site started with discussion topics, and somewhere along the line I added targeted practice question sets for practicing specific types of language and grammar. It's not always easy to make grammar practice interesting and communicative, but that's the goal there. I also made a question generator which can be fun for students, though more challenging when you include multiple topics. Also! Read about some of the ESL books that have helped make me a better teacher, here.
The questions aren't perfect, and I would really appreciate feedback, suggestions, and opinions. Also, feel free to make requests for topics you think should be on this site.
You can contact me, Aron, through the Print Discuss Facebook page or email me at [email protected].