Listening to Frustrations
I liked reading the information about listening to frustrations. I have a tendency to always want to solve problems so I jump too quickly to giving advice about what I think the student should do. Sometimes that’s appropriate, but other times I should stop and just listen for a while. Then I can ask the student what should be done next to determine if s/he is looking for answers or for a friendly ear.
Hi Lolita,
Listening is learning. By doing just what you mentioned, taking a second to pause and listen you are learning more about your students each time you meet with them. Continue on this path and you are going to experience great teaching success.
Gary
I agree, Lolita.
I care very much about the well-being of my students. I think those of us who are drawn to teach in a post secondary setting--especially with many older than average students--have the natural desire to want to help those who have less time/schedule flexibility than a fresh out of highschool student.
I enjoy hearing feedback from studens regarding other situations here at school that are a big part of their life. I certainly cannot fix their problems, but even a 5 or 10 minute brainstorming for solutions session that can result from a student's concerns really helps the students a lot. It's nice to know what else is happening with their education in other areas, and they really appreciate being able to talk with someone who will be unbiased and perhaps direct the student in the right direction, or offer ideas they may not have thought of without further discussion.
I agree. I am working hard to just listen and offer them suggestions on who can help them. I try to have students talk about these things during a break or before/after class so that it does not take away from the class. Many times I find students just want someone to listen and care about them.
There's a balance of listening to your students and becomning too "chummy" with them. You want them to respect you but also be able to come to you.
Hi Annie,
Good point and every instructor has to be aware of where that line is and not cross it. If they do then they may have class management issues to deal with since the students may take unfair advantage of the relationship.
Gary
I agree very much with your points and overall post and echo these same thoughts. I like to understand the environment and perception of the learning environment the students have and develop. I especially like your point on liking to know what is happenining in other areas of the students education. Students are aware when instructors really care and are well-informed in respect to the experiences students share.
Hi Frank,
Good point. Education is a total process that involves not only the cognitive, but the emotional and physical as well. By having the big picture instructors can be more supportive to their students.
Gary
My main frustration about fielding student frustrations is recognizing when the concerns are real. After teaching for a long time, sometimes I lose my sympathy. This can be a bad thing. I've found the best way to not fall victim to this lack of compassion is to set aside time to listen to student frustrations. Many times students want to address you as soon as you walk into the classroom or as everyone is exiting the classroom. These are not good times to listen. Making an appointment (in your office) immediately after class is best. This way each party and be open to discuss in detail and with listening ears.
Hi Seth,
This is an excellent strategy to follow for several reasons. One, if at the beginning or end of class the students start to unload they are taking time that could be better spent help them with advice or input on their projects. Another, is by having them set a time for an appointment they are expending some effort to talk with you. If they can't expend such effort to set an appointment then maybe the problem that they want to talk about isn't that important. My point is by setting an appointment they have a little time to think about the situation and may decide that it isn't worth the time to talk with you about. I have found that in the serious cases the students will make a sincere effort to talk with me and we then can work on a solution, so I haven't neglected them or their problem.
Gary
Concur. Providing the opportunity to discuss concerns gives the class a chance to either chime in ban frequently turn up answers from other students who already experienced the issues.
It may take a few minutes away from the class material but its worth that dialogue.
I think this is an excellent point. The entire class can learn that you value everyone's time while remaining compassionate to individual concerns.
I liked this portion too, Lolita. I think many of our instructors try to 'save' the situation. Many of our instructors also have administrative roles as well, so it's not exactly out of their comfort zone to support students with regular policy concerns. However, as an instructor, sometimes the best thing to do is just listen and then as you say, determine if s/he is looking for an answer or just wants a friendly ear.
I agree just being the one person that listens to the student concerns is very important. I though would welcome advice as sometimes just taking this 5-10 minutes to "listen" turns into a flood gate of student complaint issues. I listen and then attempt to set up for a representative from administration come to address their concerns. The problem is that the students often come back and say that in spite of these meetings that they don't feel as if their issued are being addressed.How do we proceed when pulled into this circle of frustration for the students?
Hi Joan,
It is not uncommon for students to "pile on" when given an opportunity to voice complaints about the college, student services, parking or whatever they are upset about. When a discussion in class start this direction I stop it and tell them to write down their complaint to make it formal. You would be surprised at how many complaints go away or at least is don't seem as important when they have to take the time to write down exactly what the complaint is. If they do write the complaint down I tell them to take it to the Student Services office and file it with them. This takes me out of the complaint process which means they can't accuse me of not following up on their complaints.
I give my students 3X5 cards when projects are turned in, presentations completed, and quizzes taken if I want feedback on how they perceived the handling of these class components. They write down their comments without signing the cards so they can be candid with their comments. I get really good feedback from them without receiving petty comments.
This approach means I can keep the college issues for the most part outside of my classroom because I can't really do anything about them and keep the feedback I need that relates directly to the class coming to me. The students respect the fact that I am empowering them to be a part of the total learning process.
Gary
I teach online, so my listening is some what limited. I'm not able to get tone, body language and often times even emotions. Listening online requires asking even more clarifying question than classroom settings.
