World Cafe

What is it?

World cafe is a collaborative teaching and learning strategy that promotes an environment for structured discussions for sharing knowledge and perspectives. Students work in groups and discuss a topic at several tables. They periodically switch tables and get introduced to the previous discussion by a ‘table leader’ at the new table.

Why use it?

Engage in deep learning as they link and connect ideas
Promotes listening, speaking, leadership, reflection and problem-solving skills.
It can be used to structure discussions for large groups of students.

How do I do it?

	Synchronous face-to-face	Synchronous online	Asynchronous	Tools
Student preparation	Students prepare based on the material/topics that will be discussed	Students prepare based on the material/topics that will be discussed	Students prepare based on the material/topics that will be discussed
Your preparation	Make sure that all the materials are available for the activity Prepare the topics/questions	Prepare the topics/questions Familiarise yourself with break out rooms in Zoom and how to move students around	Prepare the topics Set up discussion forums	LMS Breakout rooms in Zoom Discussion forums
During activity	Arrange the classroom with café style round tables and chairs. Divide the classroom into groups of 4-5 students per table. Ask the students to select a recorder or leader. Provide a different question or topic per table for the students to discuss. Allow 5-10 mins for the group to discuss and jot down the key points either on a flip chart placed on the table or tablecloths/butcher’s paper that can be written on. After the allocated time get the students to move to the next table leaving one the leaders behind to summarise their key discussion points for the new set of students. The group now selects a new leader and the discussion continues until the time is up. Repeat the process until everyone gets a chance to lead. At the end of the session get the students from each table to summarise and provide their feedback to the class.	Divide the classroom into groups of 4-5 students. Ask the students to select a group leader. Place students in breakout rooms. Provide a different question or topic per breakout room (this can be indicated in a shared document that all groups have access to). Allow 5-10 mins for the group to discuss and record their ideas in the shared document. After the allocated time move students to the next breakout room (leaving one the leaders behind to summarise their key discussion points for the new set of students). The group now selects a new leader and the discussion continues until the time is up.	Create as many discussion boards or threads as there are questions/topics Students are required to post at least once per topic/question. A designated student ‘weaves’ all the posts for the next group. The activity is complete when all students have contributed to the discussion boards.	Zoom breakout rooms Discussion forums
Artefact	Paper, post-it notes	Shared document	Discussion forums

Considerations

Timing can be challenging and a timer can be helpful.
Ensure you visit each group to gauge their understanding of the topic.
Take a flipped approach and add a self-directed component to the session by getting the students to come pre-prepared for the session.