Promoting civility in large classes.

Abstract

This chapter looks at issues of civility in the large university lecture classroom, where management and discipline problems seem to plague teachers the most. The author first suggests specific ways in which college teachers can promote a classroom community in which mutual respect is expected from day one. She opens with a discussion of what constitutes incivil behaviors in large classes and why they may occur. She describes 4 groups of specific strategies that college teachers can use in creating a constructive large-class environment: 1) define expectations for student behavior at the outset, 2) decrease anonymity by forming personal relationships with students, 3) encourage active learning, and 4) self-assess your behavior and seek feedback from students and colleagues. She gives solutions to some student misbehaviors common in large classes, such as: talking and inattention, arriving late and leaving early, inattendance, missed deadlines, and challenges to authority. She closes with the reminder that perhaps, most importantly, instructors need to consider their own behavior as well as that of students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)