Teaching Professor Tips App

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Tip topics include: assignment strategies, student engagement, classroom management, instructional vitality, and much more.

For more information, click here.

Written By: Jessica Moser

Tips for Teaching Hybrid Courses

Hybrid or blended courses are defined as using the web for interacting (not just posting).  Courses are considered to be truly hybrid if the amount of online work falls anywhere between 30-70%.  There are several pros to implementing hybrid courses within your teaching curriculum, but there are challenges with employing them as well.

The first thing an instructor must consider when making the switch to hybrid is which material to present online vs. which material to present face to face.  This means considering how you are going to deliver lectures, discussion activities, projects, and homework assignments.  If this sounds daunting, never fear!  The following tips from instructors who have mastered the art of hybrid courses can help. 

1. Keep time frame in mind.  Remember that you’ll have to create or revise material to make it web-friendly, and you might have to take time to learn the ins and outs of the system you’ll be using.
2. Be sure to consider your students.  What sort of needs and skills do they have that will enhance their use of the hybrid course material?  What sorts of struggles or obstacles might they face with online material?
3. Utilize D2L for a streamlined and cohesive collection of information.  Students are going to use D2L a lot throughout their time spent at the university, so even if you are teaching an intro course with mostly freshmen, it’s still a good idea to use the D2L system so that students get used to using it as much as possible.  Plus, if you aren’t teaching classes with high freshmen populations, your students will already have the experience they need in order to work with D2L for your course.
4. As it goes with all elements of teaching, don’t try to recreate the wheel.  Reuse the materials you have already created, or make adjustments to them to utilize them as online materials as well.
5. Prepare for a longer amount of your time to be spent online.
6. Make sure to explain to students what your online expectations are during an in-class session.  This provides ample opportunity for walk-through demonstrations and questions.
7. Consider where lecture material best fits into your curriculum.  Would your course benefit from more in-class activity time and small group discussions?  Record your lectures ahead of time and post them online for students to watch before attending class.  (More information on this under the “Flipped Classroom” tag.) Would you like for students to witness your lectures face to face?  Utilize the online portion of your course for discussion and supportive readings or case studies.
8. Have students work collaboratively online.  This is the most important thing to remember when creating a hybrid course.  Students shouldn’t only use the online portion of the course to post things and forget about them.  They should be interacting with one another, discussing the elements of the subject area, and working through issues that they might be faced with concerning the material.
9. Even though your students will be working in two different environments for your course, don't expect them to complete twice the amount of work. 
10. Keep the creativity flowing!  Just because you will no longer be implementing certain elements of your course face-to-face any longer doesn't meant you have to get rid of the really intriguing and thought-provoking activities you have done in the past.  Hybrid courses just mean reconsidering how you can best implement those activities for stronger learning experiences.

Written By: Jessica Moser

Teaching Large Classes: Getting Students to Utilize Feedback

Grading and providing feedback is one of the most time consuming things that instructors must do.  Rubrics, written comments, point systems, whatever your grading method may be, it’s no question that you devote a large amount of time using it to provide constructive feedback to your students.  But what happens when those comments, suggestions, and point values are never read?  When students simply skip over your handwritten responses to glance at the letter grade and stuff the assignment away?  How do we get students to not just read the feedback that is provided to them, but to also take it constructively to use on future work?
 

Surprisingly, the first step to curing this problem is reconsidering the ways in which you provide the feedback itself.  According to Maryellen Weimer in her article “Getting Students to Act on our Feedback,” the feedback we so often provide to students tends to be more about justifying the grade we’ve awarded rather than highlighting what a student needs to do to improve.  Instead, include “three or four specific suggestions that target what the student should work on to improve the next assignment.”

I know what you’re saying, “But that still won’t help if the students aren’t actually reading the feedback anyway!”  Weimer provides a solution to that as well.  She suggests providing students with a few minutes in class to look over and read through their feedback, and then asking them to write an action plan on how they will use that feedback to improve their work in the future.  This action plan doesn’t have to be long, just a few statements will do.  You could even have students start with the same opening line, “Based on the teacher’s feedback and my own assessment of this work, here are the three things I plan to improve in the next assignment.” 

If you don’t particularly like the paragraph response as an option, try one of these instead:

• Write in revisions – this is a particularly helpful method with papers and written work.  Have students turn in their work a second time, but making note of the revisions they made according to the comments and suggestions that you had provided on their first-round paper.

• Collaborative revisions – have students bring in their work to review with someone near them.  Students should focus on the feedback you provided and then decide on ways that each of them could utilize that feedback to revise their work.

These assignments encourage students to take the constructive criticism you’ve provided and use it to become better writers, thinkers, and studiers in the future.

Tip Provided By: Jessica Moser

Teaching Large Classes: Pre-Class Assignments

Time flies when you’re having fun.  Maybe this phrase is to blame when you realize week after week that your classes have flown by, and you didn’t have nearly as much time as you thought you would.  And if that weren’t troublesome enough, this challenge only increases with the number of students per class, forcing professors and students alike to feel rushed through material.

Professors at Vanderbilt university propose a way to alleviate these time constraint stresses by getting students engaged in class material outside of scheduled class hours, and then using in-class hours for discussion, collaboration, and debates.  Here's how they do it.

Students are assigned a pre-class bit of homework (much like the already are in most classes).  These homework assignments are more about involving students in contemplating the content rather than formulating structured responses, so the style of responses may vary throughout the semester.  Some examples of this pre-class homework are:

• Watching a video

• Responding to a news article

• Developing an argument based on a reading

• Choosing a quote from a reading that stood out to them

• Reading a case study

• Listening to a podcast

Even though the design of this pre-class work can look different each time, the goal is always to get students to begin thinking critically about the content on an individual level before arriving for class. 

Once class time does roll around, your students will have prepared an understanding of the content you will be covering.  It is suggested that you take some time to explain to students that being prepared for class includes: being able to make claims about the reading and use examples to back up those claims, make connections between the things they've read about and their own experiences, and be able to work with the text in a knowledgeable and insightful way.  (Asking them to create lists, annotate their texts, or write a summary of their arguments are all useful ways for them to prepare.)

Vanderbilt professors then utilize these developed ideas by arranging students into groups of no more than six students.  Ask your groups of students to discuss the responses that they came up with on an individual basis about the homework, and consider how their individual responses compare to one another.  You might even choose to assign another shorter reading for them to delve into as a group in order to stir up some new ideas.

Later, choose groups to share what they discussed concerning the main elements of class that day.  This may spike mutual agreement over a text, but it could also transform into a debate of ideas between class members, forcing them to decide on ways to structure their argument based on facts and ideas they have constructed themselves from the course material.

It's recommended to alternate using pre-class homework strategies like this one and regular lecture class days on a weekly basis so that students are able to interact directly with the material they are learning, and still gain insight through direct instruction.  Or, a daily combination of pre-class work alongside interactive lecture would work just as well.

Tip Provided By: Jessica Moser

Teaching Tip: "Today We Will"

Disengagement and lack of accountability are just a few issues that are commonly seen in college students.  With ever-growing classroom sizes, how do we continue to keep students engaged and accountable for what they’re learning?  Two words: learning objectives.  As seen in successful primary and secondary classrooms across the globe, students tend to work best when they understand what their learning objectives are for each class period.  Thus embarks “Today We Will” learning.  

A concept taken from listing learning objectives, “Today We Will” requires only 2 things. 

1. Teachers write “Today We Will” and then a list of the main things they hope their students to learn or take away from their class that day.  

2. Teachers keep that list up for students to see for the entirety of the class period.  

Simply listing the objectives for class that day provides students with a road map of what they can expect and listen for throughout class.  This keeps students engaged in a checklist of sorts, allowing them to keep track of each of the main points your lesson focuses on, and what they should make note of as important for future classes, assignments, projects, or exams.  

A “Today We Will” list also prompts student questions if they become lost or confused on a particular topic.  Writing out your objectives makes students more accountable for making sure they fully understand each concept before the class is over.

Keep in mind that your "Today We Will" list doesn't have to be absolutely specific.  You might choose to include a statement like, "Today we will go over three big questions that are on the midterm." Not only does this make students more attentive, it also encourages them to attend class, arrive on time, and compensate for any portion that they may have missed.

Tip Provided By:  Jessica Moser

Dr. Anne Hlas on Attention

Attention is a limited resource and one that must be established, directed, and maintained. Dr. Anne Hlas, Department of Languages, provides strategies on how to structure your class to get the most out of student’s attentional resources:

The first 10 minutes of the class is the most attention rich time for students. When we are passing back papers or going over logistics the beginning of class, it’s not as effective as if we were to use that time to target new material. Last semester, my student researcher, a colleague, and I conducted research on attention where 274 students—from all different levels of Spanish—were given clickers so they could self-report when they were having an attention lapse.  In addition to learning that students were paying more attention the first 10 minutes of class, our findings also suggested that more active learning techniques, such as cold calling (randomly calling on students), interactive speaking tasks, and working on individual white boards, may also increase attention.

For more information on this subject, consider checking out the book Brain Rules, by John Medina. 

Interview by: Jon Pumper

IF-AT Testing: Up to Snuff, Up to Scratch

I’ve never been a man to go for a lottery ticket. Perhaps I was dissuaded by an old economics professor of mine who asserted that the odds of you winning were only marginally increased by actually owning a ticket: that is to say, the odds of you purchasing the winning ticket are only fractionally better than the odds of the winning ticket spontaneously blowing into your hand as you munch on your afternoon sandwich. Perhaps a bit of hyperbole, but it sticks with you.

While IF-AT tests have all the appearances of a lottery ticket, their chances of generating a winner are substantially better. In fact, the creators of the new testing system would suggest the chances are even better than traditional multiple-choice tests. IF-AT (Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique) tests provide students with immediate feedback as they answer questions, encouraging strategic test-taking and facilitating retention of material.  The test is fundamentally a giant Scantron with its answers buried under a layer of scratch-off coating. After reading the question, students will scratch off the box they believe is correct. If they reveal a star, they can move on; if the space is blank, they continue to try until they get the right answer.

Example of Team IF-AT Test

The benefits of this approach, according to the company, are as follows:

1. Immediate feedback is superior to delayed feedback: students who answer correctly right away affirm their learning, while students who need multiple attempts will understand their error as they are taking the test, ultimately resulting in a better understanding of the material.
2. Teachers won’t have to waste class time going over tests.
3. Partial credit can be easily assigned, (i.e. half credit for a correct second choice) relieving students from the nasty pressure of deciding between two tough choices.
4. Scratching makes for a more interesting, interactive test.

If you would like to give this method a try, stop in at CETL to request your own set!

If you would like to learn more about IF-AT testing, take a look at their official website here.

You scratch their backs, and they’ll scratch your test.

Tip provided by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Eric Jamelske on Guest Speakers

The phrase “could not have said it better myself” is one of those phrases that on the surface appears to be solely complimentary but deep down often times contains a hidden truth. For instance, I might say after listening to a lecture on quantum mechanics that I “could not have said it better myself,” for the very distinct reason that I could not have said anything at all about quantum mechanics. The world is so dense with knowledge that we rarely can say anything “better ourselves” except for maybe the discipline we have specialized in and what we would like for dinner. Dr. Eric Jamelske, Department of Economics, embraces this truth, and seeks out guest lecturers for areas in his course that are not his direct specialty.

In the classes that I teach that are naturally interdisciplinary—like Health Economics or Environmental Economics—I try to get guest speakers to talk about the components I know less about. For instance, I will get a chemistry professor to talk about the science of climate change, or a philosophy professor to talk about environmental ethics. Being trained public speakers, we can all pool together resources and give a presentation on any topic, but if you don’t own it, or are not passionate about it, it’s not as effective as if you were to get an expert on the material. I’ve had great success reaching out to other faculty and community speakers to come in and present on special subjects, and it really enhances the course. I think faculty are very open to the idea and all you have to do is find the right person for it.

Interview by: Jon Pumper

Team-Based Learning: Motivating Students with Little Coaching Involved

I love teamwork. I love the idea of everyone rallying together to help me win. 

—Jarod Kitz

From sports clubs, to theater troupes, to competitive Rubik’s Cube solving squads, most students attending college have been a part of and functioned within the structure of a team countless of times. A common practice among teachers is to assign group projects or discussions that mimic this very structure. However, while short-term group projects/discussions undoubtedly require teamwork, they do not necessarily simulate the same experience of being on a team. What makes the idea of a ‘team’ really work is the loyalty that each member has to the success of the group: people are much more motivated to succeed as a team if they have been a part of it for a long time and know/trust the people that make up the group.

Team Based Learning takes the concept of a long-term commitment to a team and puts it into action. The process involves four major components:

1. The instructor assigns each student to a team that will remain permanent throughout the semester. At the beginning of the course the instructor will pass out a survey in order to make groups as diverse as possible.
2. The instructor assigns individual tests followed by team tests, where the members can discuss what they originally answered. The team test is in IF-AT format, so members can continue discussion if they initially answered wrong.
3. The instructor then simultaneously collects responses from the entire classrooms (this can be done simply by using iClicker technology). This allows teams to interact with other teams and discuss right/wrong answers.
4. The students will create peer evaluations at the midpoint and end of the semester to gauge each other’s contributions and effectiveness.

Faculty that have used this approach testify that:

• Students feel more motivated to prepare for and attend class as not to let down their team.
• Discussions are vibrant and fill up the classroom.
• Working in a team is fun! Students feel like they have a stake in a group devoted to learning course material.
• Friendly competition within the classroom can act as a motivator as well.

Tip provided by: Jon Pumper

Post-secondary, my dear Watson.

In a world where NCIS and CSI consistently make an appearance amongst the top 20 most-watched-television-shows, it is pretty safe to say people enjoy engaging in a good mystery. And I mean “engaging” in the fullest extent of the word: when BBC started up Sherlock, everyone I knew was suddenly talking in British accents, smoking calabash pipes, and inspecting things from table counters to bologna sandwiches. People love cracking a case, even if they have to make up the case themselves.

Consider feeding off that energy by introducing mystery to the classroom. You could have students gather clues to figure out why a hypothetical market crashed, or inspect properties of different bacteria to identify what killed the infected murder victim. By framing the lesson as a mystery, you get your students to engage in the material in a way many of them engage recreationally.

For ideas and templates of established ‘mystery lessons,’ visit Mystery Spot at http://www.accessexcellence.org/AE/mspot/. 

Tip provided by: Jon Pumper

Setting the Tone: Consistency

I once had a Morality teacher in high school that was a dense 6’5, 230 pounds. He looked like a man who would beat morality into you if it didn’t go against the very subject he taught. Perhaps it was this odd dichotomy that allowed him play the role of “good cop/bad cop” so fluidly: he was at once adored by his students as he was the main cause for their gastrointestinal issues. 

Early on in the course, he played a rather unfortunate trick on us. He had recruited a student to show up late to class the next day. When the student showed up—ten minutes into class—the teacher started screaming at him. I think he may have even thrown a chair: he was extremely devoted to his character. While the class watched in silent horror as the student left the room, the teacher surveyed the class, daring anyone to speak up. Of course, no one did. He sat down and took a distinct bite out of his second package of Ho Hos.

Then he started laughing. The student came back inside, took a bow, and we all slowly realized we had been duped. He framed this as a moral predicament, challenging us to consider why we didn’t stand up for our classmate when he was clearly being unfair. While this elicited some pretty good discussion, I couldn’t help but think that wasn’t all that was at stake here. What was really being challenged was our will to fight the environment he had established in the classroom since day one, an environment where he was uncontestably in complete control.

I had never realized how much command, how much presence we allowed this man to have. His bluff wasn’t even a gamble: he had known from the onset that we were going to be paralyzed against his injustice, unwilling to contradict a man who had firmly established his dictatorial authority. He was asking us to oppose him as a teacher, and we cowered as students.

I feel very ambivalent towards him now. I do not know how I feel about his iron grip that he held on the class.  But I still respect his ability to set a tone and maintain it. We knew from the first day what we were to expect from him and he never deviated from it. While his method for maintaining command may have been questionable, his consistency never was: he had a class climate that was a sweltering 90 degrees and terrified six days of the working week. And no student, morality lesson, or weatherman was willing to challenge that.  

Write up by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Allen Keniston on Demonstrating Phenomenon

There is no better way to appreciate the results of research than by participating in the process yourself: Dr. Allen Keniston, Department of Psychology, discusses how he replicates important psychological phenomenon in and with his own classroom:

I always try and find a way to demonstrate the phenomenon we are talking about. For example, if I want to claim that I can influence an individual’s behavior without the individual being aware that I have done so, I like to show the class that I can. This transforms the concept from an abstract idea that is discussed in a reading or lecture into a concrete reality for the students, something that actually happens in their life. You need to demonstrate the claim in order to keep students engaged and to promote understanding.

Interviewed by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Leah Olson-McBride on Role-Playing

Role-playing exercises offer a unique way of learning material: they require a high amount of imagination and communicating skills that are useful in any discipline. Dr. Leah Olson-McBride, Department of Social Work, shares how she uses Role-Playing exercises in her class:

One thing I’ve started doing in my Groups and Families class—a class where we teach the students how to be social workers with groups and family units—is a fishbowl activity, where students will actually role-play and act out a scenario. In the middle of the class, after teaching specific techniques regarding the upcoming scenario, I put up a case study on the screen and pull some students from the class to live out the situation. One person will play the social worker, other students will be the family, etc. After the performance, the class will give feedback on what the social worker did well, and what they could improve upon. Students seem to be really anxious about participating, but always give good feedback on it. A common response I’ll get is: “I was really nervous being chosen, but I’m really glad I got to do it.” If it’s really hard content, sometimes I’ll have them show me the worst way to do it first: it takes the pressure off performing perfectly, and, of course, the students think it’s really funny.

Role-playing can actually be applied to nearly every discipline: view creative examples and types of role-playing exercises at Carleton’s teaching website here. 

Interview by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Jan Stirm on Word Paragraphs

As a learning tool, writing gives students practice in organizing and articulating ideas, fundamental communication skills necessary in all disciplines. Dr. Jan Stirm, Department of English, discusses how she uses frequent, low-stakes, writing assignments to give her students opportunities to develop their composition and critical thinking skills:

In my Shakespeare or Chaucer classes, I ask students to write what I call a “word paragraph” on a short passage in the text. They choose one word from the reading, and explain why they've chosen that word and why it is important in the text. The key is that it is a low stakes, fairly easy, and short (it’s only a paragraph, so it’s not very scary) assignment, and I give them lots of opportunities to do it. I like these because it allows students to learn through writing, getting them to critically think about the text as they read. As a result, I often notice a big change in in how fully a student can develop their ideas about the text over the course of a semester. I try not to worry as much about grammar or proofreading: the important piece is whether or not the student can assert an idea and helpfully support it with evidence from the text.  

Interview by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Jeff Vahlbusch on Scripts

A class script is a student produced summary, interpretation, and commentary on a class discussion. Each class period, one student is assigned the role of “scribe,” where they must document the class conversation, noting everything from who-says-what to specific references made to texts. Additionally, scribes are responsible for analyzing and synthesizing the discussion within the framework of the course. Dr. Jeff Vahlbusch, Department of Languages, speaks to his success with implementing scripts:

It works very well with courses that are heavy discussion. It’s almost an automatic flipped classroom in a way, where the learning goes on outside of class and then you deepen and extend it through conversation. Students get accredited for their contributions, and this reinforces the notion that everyone’s input is equally valued. In the end, you have a record not of what the professor thought the course was, but what it looked and sounded like from the student perspective, with all the commentary, humor, and acerbic asides included.  

Interview by: Jon Pumper 

Dr. Eric Jamelske on Simulations

Biology classes have labs; social work classes have case-studies; economic classes have market simulations. Dr. Eric Jamelske, Department of Economics, speaks to the importance of including simulations in the classroom:

I think any activity that allows for simulation is really useful. If I want to get students to really understand how markets work, the best way is for them to actively simulate a real market, by participating as buyers and sellers. In Economics we have a lot of graphs, and if there’s a way I can bring a graph to life –let the students actively discover how equilibrium is derived—I think it sticks a lot more. Not every day has to have an activity, but I keep three or four on reserve to use over the course of a semester.

To read more on learning simulations, consider checking out The Gamification of Learning and Instruction by Karl M. Kapp, a book that provides strategies on designing and implementing game-based learning. We have it here at the CETL library. 

Dr. Angela Dalhoe on Name Tents

Nameless students often feel just that: nameless. As best demonstrated by the internet, anonymity often leads to inattentiveness, unaccountability, and an unhealthy amount of time spent viewing cat pictures. Dr. Angela Dalhoe, Department of Special Education, shares how she utilizes name tents to amp up participation and interact with her students more personally:

For all of my classes I have my students create name tents. I think these are particularly useful for large classes: when you have 50 students in a classroom, it’s really hard to keep track of who is participating and who is present. With the name tents, attendance becomes really easy: I keep them up front and let the students pick them up at the beginning of class. Any leftover names are obviously not present. This serves as a constant reminder that attendance is important and consistently monitored. Additionally, the name tents allow me to call on my students by name, which is really important for relationship-building and community-building.

Interviewed by: Jon Pumper

Dr. Mary Beth Leibham on Academic Motivation

Education can often be competitive: the grading scale determines winners and losers (albeit the students themselves are often the ones to determine ‘winning’ vs. ‘losing’ grades), and class averages are often used to help students determine whether or not they were successful on a given assignment. While comparative statistics can serve as motivation for students to perform better, Dr. Mary Beth Leibham, Department of Psychology, states how she prefers to motivate students in a different way:

One thing I do that I think stands in contrast to a lot of students’ experience is that I do not reveal any information on distribution of grades. Some of the first questions I get when I hand back an exam or assignment are ‘what was the class average?’ or ‘what was the high/low score?’ Because of my motivational perspective, I don’t give students this comparative information. Some of the research on academic motivation and goal-orientation has determined that one of the factors that leads students to be more performance-oriented is comparative data. I’m trying to get them to focus more on themselves, on their individual learning process, and less on how they are doing compared to others.

Interviewed by: Jon Pumper

Teaching Tip: Dr. Sherrie Serros on Snowball Activities

These last few gorgeous days have tempted even the most cynical Wisconsinites to believe that winter is finally over (for those that remember last year, however, cynicism might still be fully present). But if you don’t want to embrace the warmth like the myriad of college students in shorts now (it’s still only 40 degrees, people) try introducing one or both of these “snowball” activities that Dr. Sherrie Serros, Department of Mathematics, provides below:

Snowball fight:  This activity enables students to anonymously participate in a process-oriented problem and ensures 100% participation. I put a couple of different solutions on the board that provide the same answers, but structurally are very different. Students have to decide which one demonstrates valid mathematics. If I were to just openly ask the class, I wouldn’t necessarily get a lot of eager responses: student are often afraid to raise their hand and assertively declare which one is right and which one is wrong.  So instead, I have each of them take a slice of paper on which they have to write out what solution they think is correct and their reasoning behind it. Nobody else knows what they’ve written; I instruct them not to write their names on the piece of paper. Then, they crumple up the piece of paper into a little ball and throw it across the room. Students then pick up whatever “snowball” is nearest to them and they read what it says. In this way, I get to hear everyone’s thinking process and I can focus on the misconceptions present in the classroom without ever putting a single student on the spot. Additionally, when we do focus on the misconceptions, people can hear that others had the same thoughts and feel that they were not alone. Students really like this activity (who doesn’t like throwing snowballs?) and I benefit by hearing everyone’s thought-process in the classroom.

Rolling Snowball: This activity is useful when you want to generate a big idea based on a small core. My example for this comes from my education classes when I want the students to work on lesson design. I separate them into groups and start by providing them with the content of the lesson, and then have each group add an additional facet to the lesson (i.e. the diversity of learning styles, or the diversity of learning abilities, or assessment). By the time we go around the room and gather everyone’s contributions we have a big unit formed that addresses many crucial facets of lesson design. The metaphor I use for this is that of a snowball rolling down the hill because as each layer is added our lesson design becomes bigger, more fleshed-out, and more involved. 

Interview by: Jon Pumper

Knowing Your Students: What’s in a Name?

There is a unique feeling associated with being called by name for the first time by a professor. And I don’t mean the time during roll call when the professor proposes something that only vaguely resembles your name, a grotesque mutation of phonetics that would remain unclaimed and untouched if it weren’t important to be counted in attendance. What I mean is the first time a professor notices your hand raised in the air and doesn’t say “uh-huh” or “go ahead” or “you with the pit stains speak your mind,” but rather includes the word that suggests they actually know you, appreciate you, or have spent countless hours looking at a copy of the seating chart: your name.

Suddenly you feel real, tangible, distinctly differentiated from the sea of nameless strangers that surround you. You exist, you matter; you feel almost as if it was your destiny to answer that question about the consistency of paraffin wax. In the classroom of life, you have just been heralded into existence.

Feeling like you exist is a big thing for students (and people of all occupations I’d imagine). Studies have shown that classrooms where names are commonly used tend to be more relaxed, comfortable, and engaging. Learning the names of students can help them feel less isolated and anonymous, factors that lead them to shut down or not participate in class. Since learning names is never easy—especially in large lecture halls—here are some tips to help you create that more personalized environment:  

• Use name tents-- ask students to write their names in large letters on both sides of a folded 5 x 8 index card and to keep this card on their desks for the first few classes.

• Ask students to give their name each time before they speak. This can be continued until everyone (instructor and the students) feels they know the people in the room.

• Strive to memorize a row of students per day. In the few minutes before class begins, review what you've already memorized and then add another row of students to that list.

• Students with the same name as another person the instructor knows can be associated with that person in the instructor's memory. This association is a good memory-jogging tool.

• For large classes—dividing the entire group into smaller "working groups" will help facilitate name recall. Classroom time can be used to give small projects for each group to work on. Only having to remember 8-9 people in a small group is much easier than looking at 250 faces. Work on visualizing which faces sit in which seats. Then work on memorizing every name from a particular group.

Be realistic with yourself and honest with the students: expecting to memorize every name in a lecture hall is unreasonable. However, learning students’ names is vital for creating an active classroom and making students feel worthy of your attention. 

Credit goes to http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/resources/studentnames.html for bulleted ideas. 

Tip contributed by Jon Pumper