Fishbowl

Activity

Fishbowl activities allow students to practice a skill under peer review and in front of an audience. In the fishbowl activity, a group of students is chosen to discuss a given topic. The rest of the class watches the discussion, or listens and reads the transcript. A secondary discussion occurs concerning the outcomes and process of the first. Another technique is to assign a student the role of note-taker and summarizer.

Appropriate Content Areas

Frequently used in speech, political science, advertising, philosophy, and business, but applicable to most areas.

Goals & Objectives

Identify how the activity aligns with student learning objectives (SLOs).

The goals can differ based on whether the student is participating or observing the fishbowl activity. Participants need to demonstrate knowledge, while observers would need to demonstrate evaluative or critiquing skills of arguments.