Chapter 1: Helping Students Understand Class Expectations
Many faculty have always been comfortable in the classroom setting. When they were students, they “instinctively” understood what they were supposed to “Get out of” the class activities and materials their professors chose, even if the purpose was never explicitly explained. Often college educators assume students enter our classrooms with that same “instinctive” level of understanding, so they don’t explain to their students why they are doing in-class workshops, reading a particular article or engaging in class discussions. The purpose of this chapter is to give instructors insights into where communication with students breaks down, and tools they need to help students understand why they are doing things the way they are.
There are many students in today’s college classrooms– students might be neurodivergent, have limited English proficiency, or have just returned after serving in the military. They might be parents with little time, the first in their family to attend college or returning students who have been laid off from a decade or two of employment, as well as Post Secondary Education Option students.
This chapter will focus on how to frame class activities and be more explicit in communication to increase the likelihood that all students will engage successfully in class.
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1.1 Beliefs Students Might Have about the Classroom Experience
They may see class discussion, workshops and activities as days when the professor is “lazy.” Students, especially if they are first generation and come from an environment where they are led to believe their instructors are absolute authorities, can be uncomfortable with class activities that are not lecture. They believe the instructor’s job is to provide them with information that they will write down, memorize and learn. If the instructor does something else, i.e. a class activity in which students role play or discuss concepts, they may conclude the instructor is not doing their job.
They don’t see themselves as having agency in their own learning. They may resist a workshop in a writing class because they think, “What do I know about writing a paper? Who cares what my opinion is on this legislation? I just want to know what my professor thinks since they are giving me a grade.” That same type of thinking can apply to discussions that require them to express opinions, take a side on something etc. They don’t see themselves as having enough knowledge to do this work.
They don’t see the connections between course components. If they are assigned an article or other reading they may not understand how that reading connects to the learning they are doing in their class or see the connection between the book and the classroom.
They might misinterpret directives as “suggestions.” Many instructors use language that is direct to them, but not their students. For example, an instructor might say “You might want to read chapter 5 by Friday,” or even “You should read chapter 5 by Friday.” To the instructor this is a directive—”I expect you to come to class Friday having read chapter 5.” But the student hears a suggestion– “might want” and “should” sound like choices, not orders.
They have an “Is this going to be on the test?” mentality. Many students see their job as learning facts– they think learning means being able to recite the year something happened, or the definition of a term. Faculty value it when students develop critical thinking skills, question what they learn, make connections between ideas, make connections between what they are learning in class and what they are learning in other classes etc. students often don’t value this. They want to know exactly what will be on the test, so any activity that doesn’t seem to provide them with knowledge they will need on the test they view as useless.
They believe that being confused means they are not smart. Some students conclude they are “not smart” the minute something in a classroom becomes difficult. They don’t understand that true learning should push them out of their comfort zone, and they should feel challenged. Faculty are often very comfortable having debates that challenge their opinions or knowledge, and are comfortable with activities that stretch their abilities because they have faith that with time and hard work, they will ultimately be able to incorporate new ideas and skills into their belief systems, but students often lack this faith.
2.2 Discussion Points about Class Expectations
General Expectations
It is important for faculty to fully appreciate how differently some of their students perceive classes and coursework than they do. While not all faculty began college with successful study habits, they all ended their college careers with strong skills– and had a good enough experience that they opted to go on to earn a Masters or PhD.
It is probably fair to say that many A students in our classes would likely earn an A no matter who is standing at the front of the classroom– they already possess the study skills, self-discipline and understanding of college expectations that characterize successful students. The much more challenging students to support are the students who earn low C’s, D’s and F’s– in addition to lacking the discrete study skills more successful students have, they are often the most different from their instructors, which means that instructors are likely to make classroom choices that don’t make sense to or don’t resonate with those C and below students. Below are common faculty practices that harm lower performing students:
They begin the semester with an “In order to be successful in this class you must . . . .” speech. Many faculty spend the first day or two of the semester telling students what they must do to be successful in the class– they might say they don’t accept late work, they expect people to keep up with reading, they warn students that the reading will be difficult, etc. This kind of speech is ineffective. The A and B students are going to engage in effective behaviors whether they are being told to or not. The C and below students don’t have enough academic self-awareness to recognize that are likely to turn work in late, they often believe they are stronger readers than they are and the fully expect that they will spend adequate time on their studies. It is far more effective to provide “how to be successful in the class” advice once students have a reason to believe they won’t be successful– preferable as a result of their performance on a early assignment or test.
They don’t give a substantive graded event until between weeks 4 and 6 of the semester. It is common for faculty to give the first important test or assignment when 25% or more of the semester has already gone by. In a number of classes, it is not uncommon for faculty to give very few grades of any kind until this time. Struggling students often have no idea that they are making poor study choices until a substantial part of the semester has already passed and then they must scramble to change habits– or they might despair and conclude that they will never be successful and quit. It is much more helpful to these students if the instructor gives a quiz or other substantive assignment much earlier in the semester. Especially if faculty follow up that first graded event or test with specific suggestions about effective studying, students are more likely to recognize that college success requires them to change how they study.
They don’t refer to materials they have posted on the class D2L site or passed out in hard copy. Some faculty post or pass out a reading schedule and assume students will follow it, even if they don’t bring it up again. A and B students will make sure they complete readings on time, but C and below students might assume reading is optional.
They use ambiguous or meaningless language that gives students the wrong impression. See the chart below for common phrases instructors use and what wrong impressions lower-performing students might come away with:
| Phrase/ statement | Why it is ineffective and what to do instead |
Indirect phrases like:
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A and B students will understand that you are giving a directive, but other students might think that you are providing a suggestion.
Direct language like “Read chapter 5 by Friday” is more helpful. |
Vague statements such as:
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These statements seem like they would be helpful– after all, faculty understand that learning involves synthesizing ideas, comparing and contrasting processes, ideas or people, understanding a process, etc. and they want to encourage students to engage in these behaviors. However, some lower performing students might interpret them:
These phrases might be misinterpreted as “memorize as much as you can” since lower performing students often conflate memorizing and learning. Instead, use techniques like “thinking out loud” (see below) for specific suggestions. |
| Make sure you allow enough time to . . . . | While it is right for faculty to help students understand the time commitments college requires, it is important to recognize that lower performing college students base their decisions about college on how things went in high school.
It is not unusual for lower performing college students to have earned passing grades in high school by studying only 15 or 20 minutes a day. They know that college will be harder– so they might decide to double the amount of time they spend studying. Thirty to 40 minutes a day is not enough study time to earn strong grade in college, but lower performing students are not familiar enough with how college works to understand this. Therefore, statements like, “make sure you allow enough time” are not helpful. Instead, use the resources in the Time Managment Chapter and techniques like “thinking out loud” (see below) to help students get a more realistic idea of the length of time a task might take. |
|
These phrases are fine if faculty actually mean them, but often they don’t. For example, “We’re going to go over Chapter 3 on Tuesday” from the faculty perspective probably means “Come to class on Tuesday having read Chapter 3 because we are going to discuss it.” The student might hear, “When I get to class on Tuesday, my instructor is going to tell me what I need to know from Chapter 3 so I won’t need to read it.”
To the instructor, “We are going to work on X in class” might mean, “Complete X before you come to class. In class, we are going to discuss it, compare the answers students got and/or revise X.” The student hears, “We are going to have a study hall.” Instead, be specific about what students should do to prepare for the next class– for example, post a checklist for them on D2L, or pass a paper version out to them in class. |
Thinking Out Loud
However possible, faculty need clarify exactly what their expectations are for students so those are less familiar with or comfortable in academic environments are more likely to meet expectations. How can faculty do this? One technique that can clarify expectations for students is “thinking out loud.” “Thinking out loud” involves verbally stepping students through what faculty hope they will do to prepare for a lecture, start their homework etc. The trick to “thinking out loud” is to use the “I” voice as though the instructor were the student. Below is an example of “thinking out loud” an instructor might give to clarify expectations about a class discussion over a Geology chapter.
“I’m going to pretend I’m one of you, and I just learned in class today that I need to read Chapter 7 for Thursday and it is about volcanos. I learned today that there are six types of volcanos, and it is important to know the differences and similarities between them, so when I read, I’m going to pay attention to that. But I also know that when I come to class on Thursday, I’m going to be assigned to a group and we are going to have to pretend we are geologists and we are going to get pictures and descriptions of volcanos from around the world and we will have to say what kind of volcano it is and explain why. I really want to be ready for that discussion, so I’m going to make sure I come in with a notebook page where I list the different types of volcanos and their similarities and differences.”
“Thinking out loud” often takes only marginally longer than simply saying “read chapter 7 and be ready for a discussion on Thursday,” and often instructors need to do them more in the beginning of the semester because students will learn what the expectations are.
Course Components
Faculty select reading materials, plan activities and write assignments and exams with specific goals in mind. They often model classes after their own favorite college classes– they mimic the lecture styles, class activities and assignment that were meaningful for them. However, it is not always clear to students exactly why faculty have assigned the readings they have, or why they have structured their classes they way they have.
This section will be broken down by course components and will provide suggestions for how to talk to students about why you have chosen the course components you have followed by suggestions about how to talk to students about the choices you have made so they are more likely to “get on board.”
The Two Types of Lectures
Most faculty lectures probably fall into one of two categories—and occasionally a combination of the two.
Hand in Hand lectures– these lectures closely follow the book. If faculty give hand-in-hand lectures it is likely because they want to make sure students understand major concepts out of the book. They might emphasize explaining concepts from the book in slightly different ways, or they might encourage students to identify concepts they find confusing. It may or may not be important for students to have completed the reading before they come to class.
Jumping off point lectures—These lectures build on the material in the readings. For students to understand them, they must come to class with the reading completed. Here, faculty assume students can read and understand the book on their own, so they use lecture time to focus on how the concepts are used in the “real world,” or to talk to students about their own professional experiences that relate to the concept. As a rule, it is these kinds of lecture that pose more trouble for students.
Before Lectures
Students would benefit from a few minutes of orientation at the beginning of a lecture. Here are things they would benefit from knowing:
Timing: Is the expectation that students read related course materials before or after the lecture? Why?
Purpose: Is the lecture’s purpose to help students understand basic concepts from the book (Hand-in hand) or to build on basic concepts from the book (Jumping off point)? If faculty members are explicit about purpose that might help students who think they are just “listening to stories.”
Long-term Goal: How will students be tested on lectures? What are they supposed to do with the knowledge they get from them?
During Lectures
During lectures, there are moments where being explicit can help students. For example, prior to telling a story or giving an example, students could be told, “I’m telling you this story because it is an example of concept A . . . .”
It might also help to agree to lecture for a set number of minutes– say 10 or 15, and give students a three, four or five minute “break” where they can ask clarification questions, compare what they have written with what a neighbor has written or simply catch up by filling in missing information, etc.
At the End of a Lecture
As a lecture is wrapping up, ask students to write a summary sentence– i.e. “What did you learn from todays’ lecture?” Students can submit them to you so you have an idea what students are taking away from the lecture, or you can ask them to share with each other. A similar summation activity is asking students to generate a test question based on the lecture, but avoid using “what is . . . .” or “when did . . .” questions. Instead, they can ask questions like, “What is important about . . . .?” or “What caused X?” or “What are the major differences between X and Y?”
The Types of Class Activities
While there are endless classroom activities, they likely break down into class discussions and workshops, and from there into two purposes.
Discussions
Discussions break down into two rough categories:
Concept Check Discussions: Faculty might have a discussion to make sure students understand important concepts and to give students opportunities to discuss concepts in their own words and if, appropriate, express or develop their own opinions about course materials. As faculty listen to what students have to say about class materials, they are there to clarify when students are confused, encourage them as they develop their thoughts or affirm their understanding. Usually, the end goal of these kinds of discussions is to help students develop their own understanding of concepts so they can apply that understanding to a project, paper, etc. Often, there is no hard and fast right and wrong in these issues.
Task-focused Discussions: Faculty might have discussions designed to help students complete a task they need to do for an upcoming test, paper, etc. Math instructors might give student groups a problem and ask them to solve it, a nursing instructor might give groups of students patient scenarios and ask them to use what they know to determine the best course of action, a sociology instructor might ask students to brainstorm possible text questions. Task focused discussion usually end with something the students have produced—a solved problem, a paper outline, etc. Often, the purpose here is to develop a skill or perfect a process for completing a task correctly.
As with lectures, it can help students if faculty name the purpose of the lecture or activity and explicitly tell students what they are supposed to “get out of it.”
Students who have an “Is this going to be on the test?” mentality may respond to language that emphasizes the connection between the discussion and the graded event that is coming up. Language such as, “The purpose of this discussion is so you can practice a concept you will need to understand on the exam,” or “By the end of this lecture, I hope you will be able to do X, because being able to do X will help you write your paper, prepare your presentation, take the test, etc.”
In Practice
Years ago, a Psychology professor came to me frustrated. In spite of his efforts, about 60% of his class was earning a D or below. He asked me if we could team up to see if something could be done to help his students. As part of our work, we surveyed students about what aspects of the course they found useful. When I got the results of a survey back I was surprised to see that most students ranked “labs” as “unhelpful” or “extremely unhelpful.”
I had attended several labs and they were well-organized. Even though I was unfamiliar with Psychology, I immediately saw that the labs were designed to help students understand important concepts from the chapter and I couldn’t imagine why students were so negative about them. After the professor and I scratched our heads for a while, we decided to write up a short statement about the purpose of the lab that went something like this: “Today in lab, you will learn X, Y and Z. X, Y and Z is important because . . . . and you will read more about it in chapter A of the book.” We printed out our statements and passed them to students as they walked in the door.
The next time we surveyed students they gave the labs a much higher rating. The labs themselves didn’t change—just the way we presented them.
Kathryn
Workshops
Workshops focus on asking students to evaluate one another’s work in some way. For example, an English instructor might ask students to evaluate one another’s introductions or thesis statements, or a math instructor might ask students to compare how they solved a problem with the goal of determining where students might improve the process. Faculty know that that point of workshops is to help students develop judgement so they can work independently—for example, students analyze one another’s papers so they will be able to write a paper with less guidance from the instructor next time. Students sometimes see these workshops as “pointless.” They only want to know what the faculty member thinks because they are the one who gives the grades. Some students can be so focused on grades in the here and now that they don’t consider the fact that the goal of the class is to develop a process they can use in future classes or situations. It can help these students invest in workshops if instructors clarify their purpose.
Here is information they might find useful:
Role clarification: Instructors can explain that their role is to grade and evaluate assignments/ papers, etc., but the role of the students is to understand a process/ concept etc. by evaluating another student’s work.
Identify the specific knowledge, skill or outcome the students will gain in the workshop. Help students understand how knowing the skill or knowledge will make their lives easier in assignments they will face in that class, but also in other classes they will take in future semesters.
Acknowledge that workshops aren’t easy for anyone, particularly students who haven’t done them before, and that discomfort can part of learning something new. Discomfort doesn’t mean a student is not smart or capable, it means that their brains are growing and grappling with new concepts—which is a good thing.
The script below is a sample from a faculty member who is asking students in composition class to review essays in small groups:
“Today we are going to have a workshop over the essays that are due next week. The goal of the workshop is evaluate how your classmates have organized their papers so you can make suggestions or ask questions, and use that information to improve your own paper’s organization.
Please remember, the point here is NOT for you to grade one another. That’s my job. Instead, the point is to give you practice with essay organization so next time you have to write an essay, you will have some experience to draw from, and that might make it easier to do.
Some of you might not like workshops very much because you feel like you are so new at writing that you don’t know what to say to someone else about their paper, and that’s okay—if you find that this activity is difficult for you that doesn’t mean you are a bad writer or that something is wrong with you as a learner. It just means that you need to learn more about how to organize essays, which is the whole point of this workshop. You aren’t supposed to be an expert.”
1.3 Understanding Course Component Resources
Class/ Lecture Objective Worksheet
Overview
The Class/ lecture Objective Worksheet provides students with an opportunity to identify objectives for any lecture or class activity. It can be completed by faculty and students together, by small groups of students in a classroom environment, or by students independently.
How it Helps
The Class/lecture Objective Worksheet will help students with the following aspects of executive functioning:
Metacognition– Because this resource helps students understand how different course components fit together, it builds metacognition. It will also help students see that each activity, reading etc. is connected to a larger goal, which will reduce students’ perceptions that activities are “random” or “meaningless.”
Self-Monitoring– This resource might help students become more academically self-aware. If they have a stronger understanding of exactly what they are supposed to do and why, it will become more evident to them when they are confused and it may help them to decide on more appropriate study strategies.
Class/Lecture/ Reading Objective Worksheet
The purpose of today’s (circle one) lecture activity lab workshop reading is:
The information I learned today will help me understand (Complete as many of the statements below that you can):
The process of ______________
How _________ is different from/ similar to _______________
Why ________ is important to know so that I can _____________
That there are different types of _____________
That ______________ caused _________________
That ________________ affected _______________, _________________ and ____________________
How to identify _______________________
Share notes with a classmate
1.4 Ideas for Use: Helping Students Understand Class Expectations
If You Are a Tutor . . .
- Ask students to make a list of course components– what are all the things they need to read, watch, do, etc. in order to be successful in the class. After the list is made, ask students to speculate about why the instructor has included each course component, and, if students are confused about why they are doing something, help them develop a question for their faculty member and/or consult the syllabus or other course materials for clarification.
- Talk to students about moments of discomfort you might have had with course components– for example, do you remember being overwhelmed or confused by a particular class workshop? What did you do?
- If your student needs to prepare for online or face-to-face discussions and is struggling with what to say or how to participate, work with them to make a plan or set goals. For example, your student could set a goal of asking one question and making one comment.
- If your student has a workshop coming up, talk through how to prepare for it. What will they have to look for or do in the workshop? What are some appropriate comments they could make?
- Ask your student what they need to do to be successful in their class. Watch out for comments that suggest they have misinterpreted the instructor. For example, if they say there is nothing to read, or no homework, make sure you help them read course materials for clarification.
- Ask them if they know whether they are expected to read materials before lecture or after, and help them differentiate between a “hand-in-hand” and a “jumping off-point” lecture.
If You Are Faculty . . . .
- Make the expectations of each lecture, class activity etc. as clear as possible by verbally stating your purpose, writing it down or both.
- Avoid the misleading or vague language that may cause students to draw inaccurate conclusions about what expectations.
- If at all possible, develop a meaningful assessment (i.e. a test that closely mimics tests that are typical for that subject) and give it as early as possible. Even a 10-point quiz at the end of the second week could be very instructive for students. After students have their scores back, discuss the test items and explain what knowledge or skills students need to have to answer them successfully.
- In whatever way makes sense for you and your class, incorporate the Class/Lecture Objective Worksheet into your class. The worksheet can be customized to fit particular classes and content, and it can be completed orally– i.e. “Write this in your notebooks . . . ” or the worksheet can be passed out to students before class. Either at the beginning or the end of lecture (whichever is most appropriate) ask students to name the purpose of a course component, activity or lecture.
- Use the “thinking out loud” technique to help students understand expectations, and work to be as specific as possible when it comes to how to study. Consider the resources in chapter 3, “Time Management,” to help you.
- Consider providing students with opportunities to reflect on what they learned in discussions or workshops so you can see what students are getting out of them, and address issues as necessary.
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Click the link: Chapter 1 Helping Students Understand Classroom Expectations
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