Making Connections Count

When I was teaching composition classes, I required that my students conference with me at least once during every essay cycle. This helped me to develop a mentor/student relationship. As a result, the students learned to trust me as I critiqued their papers and suggested ways to improve how and what they were communicating. Yes, it took time out of my busy schedule, but the pay off was priceless. I had the opportunity to encourage them one-on-one in their skills and to watch them develop as students. Not only this, but the students better understood and accepted that any failure fell upon their shoulders, not mine. I too have experienced the horrors of being yelled at for some poor grade or some lost points, but those episodes have come from the students who never came to conferences...which supports my argument for making student connections.

When I switched to teaching reading classes, I no longer had a reason to conference. I found that because of this I was not getting to know my students as quickly, and it took longer for them to trust me and to figure out the value of the class. If I only conferenced with students who were doing poorly, we were already in a perceived adversarial situation. I realized that I needed to make connections with these students as much as with my composition students. This has become one of the cornerstones of my teaching style. I found this to be especially valuable because not only do I teach those required courses that many students don't like, I also teach those courses for which grading gets disputed. Students understand when they get a math problem wrong; they do not have as clear an understanding when they are told their arguments are weak or their answers are incomplete. The stronger connection I can make with a student, the more the student accepts my standards and requirements. Thus, I am going to incorporate conferencing into all my classes.

The traditional student is coming from a generation who want to relate, who want a voice in their education. Although they will settle for walking in and out of class without getting to know their fellow students or instructor, they enjoy developing those connections and a sense of community within the class. When I have utilized small group discussions and activities, which I do a lot, students have reported this has caused them to come out of their shell and has helped them to realize that they do have something to say.  As they get to know me as their instructor, I have found students generally become more participatory in class and take more pride in their work.

This is for me one of the added benefits of teaching in a community college, rather than a large university. If we take advantage of this, we can help students adapt to the college culture. In many universities, it is "sink or swim." Some of my daughter's classes at UA had her sitting in auditoriums filled with 100-300 students, and her work was graded by TAs. Education factory style! I did not go into teaching in order to lecture to large groups; I am here because I want to see individual students succeed.

I have discovered added benefits for making these connections with students. One is that it gives me the opportunity to change the consumer mentality that some students come with: Since they paid for the course, they deserve a good grade. As we communicate one on one, they learn the importance of their personal commitment to their courses.  It also helps students to see the value of attending a community college where they can get this individual attention when needed. I have also found that it gives me a chance to do casual advising, even if this is simply recommending that they see their advisors. A personal benefit is that this connection keeps me motivated as an instructor when I hit those mid-semester slumps or overwhelming weeks. Knowing my students as individuals keeps me focused on giving them my best effort. And these connections remind me that the few times I do have difficulties with particular students are the rare moments, not the norm, in my semesters.

Now the issue becomes learning to keep my schedule open for students, which means saying no to other things.