Good information and advise to help an instructor recognize the tatics and challenges he/she may be facing from a students way of manipulating authority and challenging an instructors abilities to maintain focus in a classroom.
It is with making a difficult decision which must be made if the instructor has to have a disruptive student removed from the classroom. However, an instructor must demand respect and maintain control of his/her classroom.
Asking a student to leave my class sounds like a very difficult day.
Oftentimes, as an instructor, we can see something fishy is happening but will ignore it out of fear of retaliation from the student. It can be a slippery slope when accusing any person of something. So we must be very careful to make sure we are 1. not compromising our own or other students' safety. 2. we don't cause strife in an innocent person's life. Be sure to know you are right when making accusations and always document everything.
I can listen to each student and meet them where they are at, be it; angry, silent, loud, etc.
Addressing students behaviors is necessary for the well being of all students in the class. It is not fair to you or the class to allow an individual who is not following through with the policies of either the class or the institution to continue down a destructive path. whether the infraction is cheating , loud angry outburst or any other act of unprofessionalism, Ignoring the behavior will not result in changes that can be sustained long-term. The obvious impact is that the situation will get worst , sending a message to the other students that the behavior is acceptable or at least tolerated.
Behavior comes mostly from dealing with things outside of class so make sure you hear students out to get their side of the story so you can understand better why their behavior is the way it is.
I learned that being a good listener instead of a good responder is what many students need. They want to be heard and instructors need to do what is right for the student.
Have not experienced many issues addressed in this module. It was all very insightful to learn about these adverse situations in the classroom.
Comment on Soijett Blue's post:
I completely agree with you. Giving the student a chance to vent, listen and then react seems to be the best option available.
There were several things that stood out. I love the idea of combining frequent assessments as the final. I also agree that if we prevent opportunity for cheating or disruptive behavior, we can get ahead of an issue before it arises. It's so difficult, but I love the idea of self reflection and not automatically assuming the student is the problem. My goal is to be a better listener and providing more opportunity for discussion rather than just immediately shutting their ideas down.
Excellent information! This will be a challenge for me, in that I like to believe that people are honest and are in school to succeed.
Need content on how to deal with other students who raise a concern about a student who is disrupting the class.
Comment on Shelley Freshman's post: Final exams are required at Triangle Tech.
Informing your students at the start of the class what the expectations are and what the consequences are for not meeting them then at least your students are informed and you can manage better. Being fair and consistent throughout your class I believe is a key, of course I do realize that there will almost always be a curveball thrown at some point.
I hate being in class when student start to get test results and their final score. I always try to be fair when assessing grades and listening to students.
Angry students can be challenging.
Let angry or confused students to talk and explain themselves without interruption. This usually will solve problems.
Listening is a good before engaging in a difficult conversation when it comes to students that are angry or are found cheating. Consistency is key to being fair with all students according to the expectations written out in the course syllabus.
Making sure the expectation of student behavior is clearly presented from the very beginning of the class is very important. Knowing the expectation you have of the students will help them understand when there are consequences for their behavior.
