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In today's episode of Let's Talk Facilitation, I share with you my top five strategies for building real community in class.
In last weekâs episode, I talked about the importance of students experiencing belonging as a central factor in their willingness (or lack thereof) to engage in your class, and I talked in detail about how to position the cultivation of belonging as a cornerstone of your pedagogy.
How do we inspire feelings of belonging?
Through community building.
Today I am following up with the concrete, tangible, practical steps you can take to build community in your class.
If you have been struggling to get your students to do the work, to show up to class, and to participate in your discussions and activities, you are going to want to listen to last weekâs and this weekâs episodes!
My top five community-building strategies share a number of qualities in common. They allâŠ
Center opportunities for meaningful relationship buildingAre humanizingAllow you and your students to see one another as real peopleProvide space for building genuine connectionsProvide support for vulnerability, which is key to developing trustHereâs what these strategies donât do: They donâtâŠ
Involve silly gamesForce impersonal activitiesKeep everything surface levelRequire a performancePrivilege small talkMake shy students miserableInstead, the practices Iâm talking about are purposeful and strategic. They are designed to support the kind of relationships that enable students to show up to class and be valued as their authentic selves.
Enjoy!
FREE BONUSES
In today's episode, I talk about establishing and using group norms as part of the process of building community in your class. If youâd like some ideas of how such group norms might be described, you can download a copy of my FREE PDFs âSample Class Discussion Guidelines Statementâ and âSample Anti-Racist Discussion Guidelines Statementâ.
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If you are like most college educators in the U.S. who have been teaching during the pandemic, you're experiencing a very particular challenge when it comes to teaching your classes:
Students arenât showing up!
The lack of recent student engagement has educators feeling helpless and stuck.
They are asking:
What do I do when my students arenât doing any of the work?How do I respond to the students who do complete their work, but who submit it at the last minute, and clearly didnât pay attention to what the assignment asked of them?What do I do about the record number of students at risk of failing my class?How do I deal with all the students who donât show up???As an educator devoted to helping other college educators to become outstanding class facilitators, I find myself therefore asking:
How can we get more students to show up to class, pay attention, and do the work, so that facilitating a meaningful classroom experience is even possible?
Few things in life have a single, simple solution.
But this one, my friends, I am pleased to report... does.
That's right. I believe there is one single factor that determines whether or not your students are likely to show up and engage.
In todayâs episode of Letâs Talk Facilitation, I share with you a powerful factorâthe number one most vital factorâyou must have if there is any hope for getting your students to show up and engage enthusiastically with your activities.
If you're among the countless educators who have been experiencing lower-than-usual student engagement, youâre not going to want to miss this one!
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Want more ideas for inspiring students to participate in class? Get your free copy of the PDF "Ten Powerful Tools to Get Your Students Excited to Talk in Class." Download your copy here!
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In today's episode I talk about the unsustainable amounts of work and inadequate compensation weighing down many college educators, resulting in burn out and a mass exodus of faculty leaving academia across the U.S.
I share with you a strategy I've honed for saving tons of time on class preparation. Not only does this strategy save time, but it can make the discussions we lead even better as well.
Time-saving hacks are not the same as dismantling the capitalist system. But we need to save up our energy in the short term in order to persevere for the longer fight. Hopefully todayâs episode will help towards that goal.
In addition to my time-saving strategy, I also offer a few hard won lessons about taking care of yourself as best you can when your labor conditions are dehumanizing and you havenât yet found a feasible opportunity to leave.
Some of those lessons includeâŠ
Getting yourself an advocate.Learning to say âno.âRemembering you may love your job, but your job does not love you back. Setting clear work times and off duty times if you work from home.I hope this episode provides you a bit of relief.
FREE BONUS
Want a copy of the class agenda template that I reference in today's episode? Get your free PDF "Sample Class Facilitation Agenda Template" and save yourself tons of time on class prep!
Get your free copy here!
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When the Covid19 pandemic hit, were you among the majority of college educators who had to make an abrupt switch to teaching online?
Despite how many educators began teaching through Zoom and other online meeting platforms, very few ever received formal training in remote pedagogy.
Most were simply thrown into the deep end and forced to figure out how to swim on their own.
As a result, many attempted to recreate an in-person experience through an online platform, and were not satisfied with the results.
Today, I address two of the biggest challenges that facilitators struggle with when making the switch from an in-person to an online environment:
Creating an equitable opportunity for everyone to participateFiguring out how to âread the roomâI share with you exactly what to do to get your students interacting and using their voices during your remote discussion, so you donât have to be stuck with the frustration of talking to yourself in front of a bunch of empty screens.
I also give you a step-by-step game plan for deciphering studentsâ level of understanding, interest, mood and other important information that students often communicate through nonverbal cues that can be challenging to pick up over the computer.
By the end of this episode you are going to have specific tools to get all of this same information from your students over zoom that you are used to gathering in person, with a new and effective set of online adaptations.
I also share some tips about what to do when, despite all your best efforts, students just donât want to engage.
FREE BONUS
Don't have a pen and paper handy while listening to today's episode? No worries! I've created a simple checklist of all of the strategies covered today in a FREE PDF you can download to keep on hand for later.
Get your free copy of my "Checklist: Online Engagement Plan" here!
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Of all the challenges teachers say they struggle with, trying to facilitate a discussion when students arenât engagingâor arenât engaging meaningfullyâseems to come up the most often.
One of the most common reasons students are hesitant to share their ideas in class is because they are worried that what they have to say is âwrong.â
In other words, they think that to participate effectively in class discussion they are supposed to answer the teacherâs questions correctly.
They donât actually understand what is expected of them as a participant in a purposeful discussion, dialogue, or debate.
They are intimidated by a process that doesnât make sense to them.
In todayâs episode of Letâs Talk Facilitation, I talk about why some students are confused about their role in class discussions and how exactly to support them to speak up, and to speak up effectively.
So grab your pen and paper, pop in your ear buds, and get ready to make a plan with the concrete steps I offer to inspire more engagement in your classes.
FREE BONUS
Want more ideas for inspiring students to participate in class? Get your free copy of the PDF The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk. Download your copy here!
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Whether you are outgoing, shy, or âitâs complicated,â when we find something we are excited about and in the mood to talk about and we get into the zone⊠any one of us can go on and on and on!
There is nothing more fun (if I do say so myself) than talking at length about a subject you care deep;y about, especially when you are with others who also share your enthusiasm.
And there are certainly times, in the classroom included, when you should be in the spotlight, pontificating and storytelling and musing at length so that others can learn from your expertise and insights.
But there are other times, especially during class discussions, when the students are better served by your measured guidance and active listeningânot so much your prolific speaking.
When the facilitator talks too much, it eats up time that students could otherwise be speaking.
It can intimidate certain students who worry their contributions could never equal your own and so it can therefore discourage some students from speaking up even when the floor is open to them.
And when you speak too much, it can actually derail the discussionâfocusing attention on you and where you want the discussion to go, not necessarily on what is piquing the interests of the students and what they are wanting to explore.
In other words, when you talk too much, you risk interfering with your studentsâ learning.
So how do you step back and let go a bit as a facilitator?
In todayâs episode of Letâs Talk Facilitation, I have a heart-to-heart with my listeners who struggle with finding the right balance of talking, guiding, and listening in their classes.
I share three mistakes overly talkative facilitators make that inadvertently shut down conversation, and what you can do instead.
Of all the problems facilitators have to work through, and as challenging as this may be for some, learning to step back is a pretty great place to be working from. After all, it means you are super enthusiastic about what you are teaching!
And thatâs a wonderful gift for your students.
Today, Iâll just help you finesse it.
FREE BONUS!
Want even more ideas for inspiring meaningful engagement in you classes? Be sure to check out my free PDF, The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk, for additional strategies you can implement right away.
Get your free copy: The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk
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What do you do when youâve worked hard to get everything ready for your class to have an amazing discussionâpicking out interesting readings, creating provocative discussion prompts, making a plan for leading interactive activities to engage those questions about the readingsâand then you get to class only to discoverâŠ
Many of the students HAVENâT EVEN DONE THE READING, so there is no way for them to participate well, if at all!
In todayâs episode I share a series of pedagogically sound approaches to encourage students to do the readings and be ready to participate in class discussionsâno begging or threatening needed!At the end of the day, students are their own people and will make their own choicesâit isnât our place to force anyone to do anything. And with the covid19 pandemic still underway, a lot of peopleâour students and usâare exhausted, stressed out, or grieving.
Cutting everyone a little extra slack (and coming prepared with a plan b if students just havenât done the readings) can go a long way.
But to provide the greatest opportunity and increase the likelihood that students who have the capacity to do the reading actually make the effort to do so, you can make some specific, concrete choices in how you run your class.
Check out the strategies I offer today and try them out. You just might get more engagement than before!
FREE BONUS!
Want even more ideas for getting more students to speak up? Be sure to check out my free PDF, The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk, for additional strategies you can implement right away.
Get your free copy: The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk
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Picture it:
Youâre teaching a discussion-based class. It could be anythingâa first year seminar, an intermediate tutorial for majors, a capstone groupâwhatever.
Youâve got a certain amount of material to cover and have worked hard to create an agenda that, if you can get the timing right, will help the group arrive at the biggest take-aways by the end of the class period.
Despite your best efforts to keep everyone engaged and on track, there are a few students who often shift the discussion off topic and derail the class.
With each anecdote, rumination, or pontification they offer, the group is carried further and further away from the agenda you so carefully crafted.
Each time one of them starts up on another tangent, you can feel your own frustration and exasperation setting in.
You struggle with how to welcome their input but also shut down these unproductive side quests.
Sound familiar?
Keeping a discussion on track is one of the biggest challenges facilitators share with me.
Maintaining focus can often be challenging because kind-hearted facilitators who want to make space for all of their students to learn, arenât always sure of how to find an effective balance between welcoming everyoneâs contributions and limiting contributions that take away from the discussion goals.
In todayâs episode of Letâs Talk Facilitation, I share five simple, practical, and effective tools to stop one or several talkative students from derailing the group.
Just think about how good it will feelâand how much time you will save and stress you will avoidâwhen youâve figured out how to nip this problem in the bud!
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Even experienced educators who consider themselves decent discussion facilitators can get stressed out during difficult discussions, and are always looking for ways to improve their skills.
In todayâs episode, I focus on the kind of discussions that are difficult because a class is talking about injustice of some kind, and privileged students and facilitators (unknowingly or not) perpetuate the injustice through their means of engagement.
This oppressive behavior creates conflict, as the students (or facilitators) who are targeted by the injustice are forced to defend themselves against harm or disengage.
It might be tempting to say that the âdifficultyâ lies in everyoneâs experience of the conflict, but that isnât so.
Such conflict may be âdifficultâ for privileged facilitators and students who are uncomfortable as they figure out how to navigate through a process of preventing or resolving the conflict.
But for the students or facilitators who are targeted by the injustice, the conflict isnât simply âdifficult.â It can be traumatic.
So while everyone in a discussion has the ability and potential to contribute in ways that positively influence the dynamics of a group, those with relative privilege carry a great deal of the responsibility for doing so.
Despite a commitment to creating classroom spaces that disrupt unjust patterns and that inspire transformative change, facilitators can still find it daunting when such difficulties emerge. And it can be equally challenging to know how to respond effectively to students when that happens.
So in todayâs episode I talk about how to respond effectively to students during difficult discussions, and I share five concrete strategies for what you can do when youâparticularly as a facilitator with comparably more privilege than your studentsâfeel overwhelmed.
FREE BONUS!
At the end of the episode, I share information about a free PDF I created for you which includes the text of class discussion guidelines I wrote and have used on a number of my course syllabi to set the stage for the responsibilities students have towards one another. If you would like an idea of how you might word your own such statement, feel free to copy mine in its entirety, or revise and adapt it for your own needs.
Get your free copy: Sample Community Guidelines Statement
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What do you do when youâre passionate about teaching for justice, but your students are just not there for it?
If youâve ever wrestled with how to bridge the gap between your radical ambitions and your studentsâ more conservative inclinations, todayâs episode of Letâs Talk Facilitation is for you!
In it, I share with you the go-to strategies you can use in discussions with students who would rather simply be told what they need to know, take the test or write the paper, get a good grade, and get out. You knowânot be so⊠political.
I also provide a quick overview of âcritical pedagogyâ so everyone, whether seasoned practitioners or interested beginners have a way to tap into this discussion and find a first step.
FREE BONUS!
At the end of the episode, I share information about a free PDF I put together for you which includes a list of sample problem-posing questions with examples of how those questions could be adapted to address different topics. Check it out and grow your toolkit for transformative teaching!
Get your free copy: Sample Problem-Posing Questions
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Most big-hearted educators I know recognize that as vital and rewarding as social justice work can be, it can also be difficult, messy, and intimidating.
One of the reasons facilitators may experience stress in anticipation of a difficult discussion around injustice is because they are relying on their good intentions to carry them, but they donât always have all the tools they need to deliver on those good intentions. In other words, there is a disconnect between what they value in theory and how those theories translate into effective practice.
In todayâs episode, I share what I believe is the biggest mistake facilitators make when students want to debate about injustice, and I offer tools to approach your work with greater confidence and effectiveness in response.
I donât want you, or your students, to be in the position I was once in as a well-intended, but ill-equipped facilitator, unintentionally causing more harm despite trying to prevent it.
Want to know what the mistake is, and what you can do instead? Tune in now to find out!
FREE BONUS!At the end of the episode, I share information about a free PDF I created for you which includes the text of anti-racist discussion guidelines I wrote and have used on a number of my course syllabi. If you would like an idea of how you might word your own such statement, feel free to copy mine in its entirety, or revise and adapt it for your own needs.
Get your free copy: Sample Anti-Racist Discussion Guidelines Statement
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What would it mean to facilitate a transformative, socially just experience for your students, rather than simply paying lip service to the âinclusionâ buzzword?
Many educators are full of conviction about wanting to create inclusive spaces, but donât have the tools to do so effectively.
Today I talk about how to make class discussions inclusive, for real. Not just stating the intention and going about business as usual, but actually changing how we may be used to engaging.
In particular, Iâm going to help you identify three foundational strategies for taking concrete action to cultivate a radically inclusive, or transformative, space for class discussion.
FREE BONUS!
One of the strategies I discuss involves creating a class community guidelines statement. I put together a free PDF for you which includes the text of such a statement I wrote and have used on a number of my course syllabi. If you would like an idea of how you might word your own such statement, feel free to copy mine in its entirety, or revise and adapt it for your own needs.
Get your free copy: Sample Class Community Guidelines Statement
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Do you aspire for your class discussions and activities to be more inclusive, but feel confused about what exactly to do beyond trying to be kind and fair to everyone?
One of the reasons educators have a hard time creating inclusive learning spaces is because they donât have a clear idea what inclusion means. Indeed, the words âdiversity and inclusionâ are thrown about pretty frequently on college campuses without any real attention to defining what that means. As a result, a lot of people talk about being inclusive, but donât have practices to back up their intentions.
In todayâs episode, I am setting the foundation for the next episodeâs discussion of practical strategies by talking in depth about what âinclusionâ actually means. I will talk about why the concept of inclusion is actually inadequate for truly just, transformative spaces, and will offer a more powerful alternative in its place.
With a clear and robust vision in mind, you will be better positioned to develop strategies and assess your effectiveness when you facilitate.
FREE BONUS!
Donât have a pen handy to take notes on the terms defined in todayâs episode? Iâve got you covered! For your ease of future reference, I put together a free PDF for you titled âAn Alternative to the Inclusion Buzzwordâ which covers each of the terms and definitions discussed today.
Get your free copy: An Alternative to the Inclusion Buzzword
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Do you love the idea of leading discussions and interactive activities but worry students might not get all of the important takeaway knowledge they would if you were to lecture?
Lecturing has its time and place. In fact, if you stay tuned, youâll hear me talk about reasons why, for certain purposes, lecturing is important. But I donât want you to resort to lecturing just because you donât trust your ability to teach in a different way.
To support you in teaching confidently with more interactive methods, I talk in todayâs episode about facilitating purposeful conversations to ensure students are learning. In particular, Iâm going to share two simple yet powerful tools that you can put into practice right away.
FREE BONUS!
As a supplement to todayâs episode, I put together a free PDF to help you organize and plan for a purposeful interactive class meeting. Iâve done a lot of the work for you, so all you need to do is plug in your specifics to the template and be a big step ahead as you prepare for your next class.
Get your free copy: Sample Class Facilitation Agenda Template
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Do you dream about becoming an even stronger facilitator but donât really know where to begin?
The difference between having a dream and having a goal is that a goal has an action plan and a timeline connected to it. In the spirit of setting new yearâs resolutions, in todayâs episode I talk about taking purposeful first steps towards your facilitation goals.
To do so, I walk you through my 3-part method for developing a plan of action that is personalized to your particular opportunities for growth and that is manageable given your unique context and commitments.
Facilitation is beautiful and rewarding. It is both a politics and an art. Facilitation growth, however, doesnât need to be overwhelming. With a little clarity and articulated purpose, you can begin to grow with confidence.
Once youâve clarified your goals, if youâd like more resources to help you achieve them, visit www.lauragreenfield.com to check out my offerings, and subscribe to my email list to get updates when new resources become available.
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Do you find yourself avoiding facilitating important discussions because you worry you wonât be able to handle any conflicts that might emerge?
Do you feel guilty when you shy away from addressing important topics or posing important questions because you know such conversations are necessary for change?
In the last episode I talked about how to prepare for difficult conversations. Purposeful preparation can minimize the risk of conflicts emerging. Nevertheless, discussions will sometimes still be messy.
In todayâs episode, I will address three common conflicts that can emerge in difficult conversations, especially those about systemic oppression, and I will share tools to navigate those moments with more confidence.
With these tools at your fingertips, you can cultivate courage to take on the hard topics.
FREE BONUS!
As a supplement to this episode and the last, I put together a free PDF for you which includes the text of a community guidelines paragraph that you can use to communicate expectations around class discussions. If you would like an idea of how you might word your own such statement, feel free to copy mine in its entirety, or revise and adapt it for your own needs.
Get your free copy: Sample Class Community Guidelines Statement
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Is the fear of messy conflict holding you back from bringing up difficult topics or questions for your class to discuss?
Difficult discussions can be intimidating. They are a particular sticking point for facilitators who feel nervous about their ability to effectively guide a group when there is discomfort, tension, or outright conflict.
I donât want you to be stuck feeling guilty by shying away from difficult discussions, because you know remaining silent perpetuates the problems your discussions might otherwise help solve.
Rather than waiting until conflict emerges to figure out a fix, we can take purposeful steps to minimize the potential that messy conflicts show up in the first place.
In todayâs episode I am talking about how to do that preparation work. I am going to share with you my go-to method for supporting a group that can handle the hard stuff.
The tools I offer here should help you feel more confident leading those difficult discussions, knowing that you have a clear method for building strong dynamics.
FREE BONUS!
As a supplement to this episode, I put together a free PDF for you which includes the text of a community guidelines paragraph that I wrote and have used on a number of my course syllabi. If you would like an idea of how you might word your own such statement, feel free to copy mine in its entirety, or revise and adapt it for your own needs.
Get your free copy: Sample Class Community Guidelines Statement
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Raise your hand if youâve ever facilitated a discussion where one or a few students talk and talk and talk to the exclusion of everyone else!
Dealing with dominating students is one of the most common sources of frustration that facilitators share with me. They care deeply about creating equitable and accessible spaces for all of their students, but worry about causing harm to overly talkative students by shutting them down.
Students themselves report that this is one of the most frustrating dynamics that facilitators handle poorly, so if you want students to feel satisfied with their experience in your classes, this is a problem you are going to want to learn how to address effectively.
In todayâs episode, Iâm going to share with you five reasons why certain students tend to dominate, and then five simple strategies for what you can do in response.
Getting to the âwhyâ behind this phenomena will help you respond much more strategically when it emerges in your class, and my straightforward strategies should help you hit the ground running.
FREE BONUS!
Reigning in the dominant speakers is only a piece of the puzzle. Getting the rest of the class to speak up is the other! Be sure to check out my free PDF, The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk, for additional strategies you can implement right away.
Get your free copy: The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk
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Do you ever get frustrated when you come prepared to teach your class full of interesting discussion prompts, and your students just stare at you with blank faces?
In today's episode, I dive right into how to get students to talk in class. In particular, I share three of the biggest mistakes I see facilitators make when students are quiet, and what you can do instead.
Most college educators are eager to get more students engaged. And while we are all experts in our subjects, and intuitively talented teachers, many of us did not get the support we needed in graduate school to learn best practices for class facilitation. As a result, we've had to learn to be great teachers on the job. It can be hard enough guiding a group discussion that results in meaningful learning. But if students arenât talking at all, itâs impossible!
I don't want you to be frustrated any longer, or to mistakenly use well-meaning but ineffective approaches to getting more students engaged. So listen in for some new ideas to go from crickets to lively conversation!
FREE BONUS!
Want even more ideas for getting more students to speak up? Be sure to check out my free PDF, The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk, for additional strategies you can implement right away.
Get your free copy: The Ultimate Quickstart Guide to Getting Students to Talk
