How to cope with awful classrooms
I teach at a culinary school where the tall metal tables are meant for cooking demonstrations, although I teach composition. I am under five feet tall and I find that I often feel at a diminished position of power due to the height of the desks. Next semester, I will be teaching in an even worse classroom that has a huge structural beam that is about three feet by three feet in the middle of my classroom, which will inhibit my ability to make eye contact with my students, and create a sense of inclusion and grouphood. Any suggestions on how to deal with these issues?
Albert,
yes, you can run but you can't hide!:) In sincerity this is a great strategy especially if you have structures like this in the room & another consideration is to make sure if a student gets stuck behind these columns that they can still see the media screen and/or white board.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I once taught in a classroom with columns going down one side of the room. I found that walking around the columns and finding alternate positions to engage my students was quite helpful. It also helped engage the students who intentionally 'hid' in that part of the room.
