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Teaching a Class

Setting Expectations

Success in managing a class, especially in a course that relies heavily on class discussion, depends in large part on establishing clear rules of operation, preferably before the class starts.  Moreover, it's easier to impose such rules when they are viewed as widely used in many classes. The following seven rules were codified by a member of the HKS faculty and are recommended by the Degree Programs Office as an appropriate code for all HKS courses.  Click here (PDF) to view the seven rules.

Classroom Dynamics

Every class, every group, has its own distinctive dynamics, determined by the individuals in it. How many of us have taught the same class to two different groups and had two entirely different experiences? Yet there are some constants among groups: all groups experience a period at the beginning in which people are trying to figure out how this group will work and what their position in it will be; all groups have quiet members and noisy members; all groups have a diverse membership which influences the quality of the interactions. 

Groups can be productive or unproductive, based on their constituency, the topic, and their facilitation or leadership. Occasionally “hot moments” arise, in which the emotional temperature rises dramatically, either precluding learning or, when skillfully handled, leading to the most intense and lasting learning of the semester.

Classroom Contracts 

Every classroom has contracts in place, some explicit, some implicit. The explict contracts are usually found in the syllabus:  what the course is about, what has to be read when, what and when papers or exams are due, what the grading scheme is. There are also many implicit contracts at work: who gets to speak, for how long, how do they get to speak, who sets the agenda, what kind of learning is expected, how is success measured. 

Teachers are typically quite open about the syllabus and quite silent about the implicit contract. If we have thought carefully about it in advance, we could be far more open about what we are looking for in classroom dynamics and expectations, make the implicit explicit.   Click here (PDF) for more on classroom contracts.

Hot Moments

Everyone, at some point or other in their teaching career, faces a "hot moment" in the classroom -- a moment when the conversation either stops or erupts because of the volatile nature of the subject matter, or because of conflicts among students. These moments happen in science courses as well as in the more predicatble social science and humanities courses. The challenge for the teacher is to turn such a moment into a learning opportunity, rather than either ignoring or inflaming it. Accomplishing this means managing oneself, helping the students in the moment, figuring out what is actually occuring, and then imagining how to use the moment for learning.  Click here (PDF) for more on managing "hot moments."

Quiet Students, Noisy Students 

Almost every classroom has a few students who are quiet, a few students who talk a lot, and a big bunch in the middle who talk from time to time. This has to do with individual personalities, issues of diversity, the topic, and the personality and biases of the instructor.  It is important for the teacher to look for these imbalances in participation and to find ways to balance it.

written by Lee Warren

Making Your Lectures Interactive

Tips

• Plan the level of your lecture for the students you have, not the students you wish you had. 
• Choose one main point or takeaway for the lecture. Determine what main thing you want students to know or be able to do at the end of it? 
• Use no more than three or four sub-topics in a 90-minute lecture to make that point: illustrations, examples, explanations. 
• Where possible, cut! Fewer points made clearly are far more effective than a download of material. 
• Make sure you convey how the lecture fits into the overall context of the course. 
• Begin with a provocative question or problem that the lecture will address. 
• If you can, start with something the students already know or are interested in. 
• Put an outline of your main points at the edge of the blackboard, and refer to it as you progress through the lecture. This will help students understand the structure of your talk. 
• Emphasize main points in your voice and your body language. Repeat important points to keep everyone with you. 
• Watch the class. If everyone is busy taking notes, wait before moving on. 
• Transitions are important. Help the class understand when you are a closing a topic and starting the next one. 
• Invite questions. Even in a large class, questions can help underline important points, clarify misconceptions, and wake everyone up by changing the pace. 
• At the end, if you have 15 minutes of material to cover and only 5 minutes available, save the material for next time.

Written by Richard Olivo for Harvard University's Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning and slightly revised by Lee Warren.

Resources

The Act of Teaching and How to Speak are online videos available on the Bok Center website in streaming form.

The Center for Research on Learning and Teaching (CRLT) at the University of Michigan has created two short videos and one-page summary sheets on engaging students in large classes and using technology and collaboration tools.

• Engaging students in large classes - short video, summary sheet
• Engaging students using technology and collaboration tools - short video, summary sheet

Leading Class Discussions

Leading discussions requires a teacher not only to have an idea of what should be covered and where the discussion should go, but also to have the skills to track and improvise on what occurs in real time in the classroom. Discussion leading requires as well that we know our students and find ways to respond to them that are individually appropriate.   Click here (PDF) for a list of techniques for responding to students.

The best discussions are those that focus more on the students’ learning than on your teaching; having a clear learning objective for the session will help to focus discussion.

Tips

Prepare! 

• Know the material well. 
• Decide what is the one big thing you want to accomplish that day, what the big take-home point should be – whether it is a something students will know or something they will be able to do.
• Develop a plan for accomplishing your objectives. Usually you can cover only three or four aspects of your topic (at most) in a 90- minute session. 
• Think of provocative, interesting questions for each of your topics. 
• There are three types of discussion: informational, interpretive/analytical, and debatable. If possible, do some of each, either within one class or over the semester. 
• Vary what you do within the class and from class to class. Use debates, slides, student presentations, small-group discussions to vary the pace. 
• Don’t over-prepare. Take in one sheet with an outline, some critical questions, and a few notes on it to help you remember particular questions or facts.

Know your students.

• Know their names if at all possible. 
• Know their learning styles and something about their interests. 
• Find out what level of preparation they have had for this class. 
• Do introductions on the first day of class, if the class is small enough. 
• You might want to meet for 10 minutes with each student at the beginning of the semester, or in a large class, with groups of five. 
• If you treat your students with respect for their ideas and confusions, they will learn more easily. Treat all students with equal respect. 

Questioning, listening, and responding are the building blocks of a discussion.

• Prepare interesting and evocative questions that will pique their interest and curiosity.  Click here (PDF) for some ideas for questions.
• LISTEN!! You will gather invaluable information about what and how students are thinking. 
• Use silence; it is the surest way to discover students’ thoughts, questions, and confusions. 
• Respond based on what you have heard. You can respond with a statement, a question, a restatement of what they have said. When possible try to take student’s thoughts further. 
• Stay on topic and let students know clearly where you are in the discussion. 

Enjoy yourself and show your enthusiasm for the material. Talking about things that are important to you and helping others understand them is a noble enterprise. Letting your students know you are passionate about your material and that you like and respect them will make it work. 

Resources

Bok Center videos: Interactive Teaching, What Students Want, Teaching in America, Act of Teaching. The Act of Teaching is available in streaming form on the Bok Center website.

*Revised from Derek Bok Center website, written by Lee Warren.

Managing Diversity in the Classroom

One of our greatest opportunities and challenges in teaching involves dealing with pluralism in our classes. The most important issues arise around race, gender, and increasingly sexual orientation. ... We need to be far more effective in our work in this arena if we are going to get the maximal benefit from the diversity of our students. ... I would also like to call your attention to a different set of pluralism issues -- the treatment of different philosophical views in the classroom. I have heard from a number of conservative students that they find many classrooms to be unwelcoming of divergent views. Excellence requires that we find ways to understand and incorporate issues and experiences of those who have faced discrimination and powerlessness as well as to find ways to encourage the voices of those who are underrepresented here at the school.

-- Dean David Ellwood, 30 September 2004

All classrooms have a diverse population which is increasingly wide in its range. Diversities include personality, level of preparation, race, gender, class, religion, sexual orientation, ethnic background. Making learning possible for everyone is the goal, and is often a challenge. 

In preparation for teaching in diverse classrooms, the following is a summary of key points to keep in mind:

 1. Plan for a diverse classroom:

• Create flexible learning processes that account for the variety of learning styles that may exist in a diverse classroom.
• Design classroom instruction and materials with a diverse group of students in mind.
• Think about ground rules or norms that will guide the learning that is to occur.
• When appropriate, develop a syllabus that explores multiple perspectives on the topic.

 2. Make the classroom accessible to all students:

• Create opportunities to get to know your students as individuals.
• Invite student participation.
• Create opportunities for students to interact in class with each other in respectful and meaningful ways.
• Generate a challenging but vibrant learning process that encourages students to develop their creative, critical, and analytical thinking skills.
• Be a role model for students through your own active participation in the learning process.

 3. Confront potential issues of discrimination and manage hot moments:

• Devise personal strategies in advance for managing yourself and the class in such moments.
• Interrupt blatantly racist and discriminatory behaviors when they emerge in class.
• Defuse potentially harmful moments by having students step back and reflect on the situation.
• Turn potentially hot moments into powerful learning experiences by turning the questions they raise back to the group for discussion.

 4. Assess one's own biases:

• Develop an understanding of how your experiences, values, beliefs, and stereotypes may influence your knowledge and understanding of groups that are different from your own.
• Examine how your own experiences, values, beliefs, and stereotypes inform the way you interact with individuals whose backgrounds are different from your own.
• Assess how your own experiences, values, beliefs and stereotypes affect the way you behave in the classroom.

The above summary was prepared by the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, Harvard University and slightly revised by Lee Warren.

Teaching with the Case Method

Harvard Business School’s C. Roland Christensen Center for Teaching & Learning website provides useful information on case method teaching such as a sample class, tip sheets, and short videos.

Harvard Business School offers an online multimedia resource on the topic of participant-centered learning and the case method.

The Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning offers the Christensen Discussion Seminar.

Using Technology in the Classroom & Web-based Tools

There is a wealth of material on the Internet for teachers who wish to make use of various types of technology in the classroom.

Visit the Kennedy's School's Media Services department website to obtain media availability for each classroom if you plan to utilize audio-visual technology in your class or program.

Taping Your Class

To reserve a camera, fill out the Media Request Form at least 3 days before you need it. The Media Request Form must be submitted for each session, unless this request will be standard for the same class for part or all of a semester. In that case, use the Repeating Schedule Request Form.

HKS Media Services provides the video camera and will also provide a technician, if requested, for the taping. There is a charge for the technician for a standard 1.5 hour class. Alternatively, they will train a CA or TF to do the taping. There is no charge if you provide the tape and a CA or TF does the work. To reserve a camera, fill out the Media Request Form at least 3 days before you need it. The Media Request Form must be submitted for each session, unless this request will be standard for the same class for part or all of a semester. In that case, use the Repeating Schedule Request Form.

Streaming Video/ Podcasts

Once the class has been taped, HKS Media Services will provide the faculty member with a URL, which can then be placed on the Coure Page website. There is no cost to have your class on our server for the whole semester. Video’s are automatically deleted by HKS Media Services at the end of the semester. HKS Media Services also has the capability to podcast videos.

Document Camera

The document camera enables the faculty member to project an image without using the trandtional overhead transparencies. A book, three dimensional object, diagrams or notes you write as the class is in process (which you might otherwise write on the blackboard) may be projected. Reserve the document camera at HKS Media Services.

Audio Response System/Classroom Polling

Individual “clickers” for each student in your class for polling students during class and immediately projecting results. HKS Media Services provices the clickers.

Audio Conferencing/Video Conferencing

Each classroom is equipped for both audio andvideo conferencing. Contact HKS Media Services to make arrrangements.

To learn more about the offerings of HKS Media Services, visit their website.

Solving Teaching Problems

Carnegie Mellon's Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence has a useful Web-based tool for identifying and working through teaching problems.  Click here to visit the tool.