Resolving a Teacher-Student Conflict: An Intrinsic Case Study

Abstract

This article presents an episode that occurred during a semester-long academic course called: Conduct Problems and Class Navigation. It focuses on investigating the behavior of a student who, because of her uniqueness, was an interesting candidate for an intrinsic case study. This paper presents a distinctive way of handling an interfering and disruptive student in an academic course at the university. The description of the case takes the reader on a narrative journey and demonstrates a solution for the inappropriate behavior. The lecturer’s persistent and consistent use of the bypass procedure demonstrates an on-site application of a teaching tool and her response influenced the student’s behavior and achievement. This also caused the other students to be aware of basic rules concerning class conduct. The lecturer’s conduct in this case can contribute to beneficial conduct during academic teaching. The novelty here is in the lecturer’s modeling approach, which allows students to experience firsthand, a way of disciplinary problem solving which they can use with their future students.