Are you looking at me???
Eye contact is very important to make with a student. It shows a sign of respect that goes both ways and helps to manage a classroom to it best potential.
Students need to be reassured all is good. Eye contact helps in this way and we need to do this daily. If you ignore a student, then that is disrespectful and iritates another human being being. So watch yourself!
I spend a great deal of time going around the room and engaging students. Maintaining eye contact seems to be most effective as long as it is in that 2-3 second time frame. Otherwise, it can be intimidating.
I believe eye contact is an essential component to communication, it not only shows you are interested in the what the individual has to say but it also shows you respect what they are saying!
Hi Kimberly,
As instructors, we should give our students the same respect that we would like them to give us. Also instructors should always strive to have a good student/teacher relationship. Try to figure out why the student is so angry so that the student can focus on learning instead of their anger.
Patricia Scales
I agree, I also think eye contact with everyone is very important. And we need to make sure we are not just contacting a few students, we need to make eye contact with all of them.
This is a great topic. Respect is a huge management technique. Sometimes students are angry because they feel lack of respect. Once this is given to them, then their anger subsides and they can focus their concentration on absorbing and applying the material.
It is hard to focus on what an instructor is trying to get across when you are filled with anger towards that figure; despite the reason behind those feelings.
It is better to actually state respect for a student as an individual and their right to their feelings, but that as professionals this cannot effect the learning of others or become disruptive because that respect extends to everyone.
This boils the behavior down to a choice that is the students alone. Would you like to work on this with me, using mutual respect for each other and your classmates, or should we come up with a different solution?
This can work well in getting across that the angry students behavior is disruptive and this is the sole reason they have "been singled out".
Hi John,
It is a sign when students will not look at you when you are looking at them. I normally have a conversation to find out what's causing the behavior. I always express the concept about having good eye contact.
Patricia Scales
At our school we have a lot of single mothers and our students do have their share of problems. There is s balance to keeping them focused on learning.
My work with my students takes time and patience. Overall, they are a good bunch to work with in class.
When I have any student who is angry or may have problems, I talk to them privately. Since I am a problem solver, I take it as my role to help my students [in any reasonable manner].
This has helped me with my classes and makes me a stronger teacher.
I agree; it goes directly to the little Harvard video in the course about ambiguous behavior. It also is a good early warning system for detecting potential problem students. If a student is reluctant to meet your gaze it can be anything from insecurity to anger to resignation. In any case it is time to speak with them (meaning listen to them, mostly) and figure out what the issue is before it disrupts the learning process.
John Stuckey
