From “Sit Down and Shut Up” to Big Classrooms, Big Camaraderie
Solis, O. J., and Turner, W.D., Virginia Tech
Abstract: Although large classes are practical for universities, they can be challenging for
students and instructors. Students in large classes may feel as if they are merely a number and the
instructor has little to no interaction with them. Instructors may perceive that students are not
highly motivated, satisfied, or engaged. Despite the growing body of literature on best practices
for teaching large classes, there still remains a need to fill the gap of knowledge on the relationship
between positive student-instructor interactions and student engagement. The potential benefits
draws attention to the need for instructors to go beyond their subject matter and curriculum to
possess an additional layer of skill: the ability to establish connectedness with students. In the
context of higher education where large classes are more frequent, it is important to consider
strategies that will accomplish the same outcomes desired in small classes. This interactive session
will show you how to put aside those age-old assumptions of lecture-mode teaching in order to
engage, motivate, and challenge students.
Literature Review
One of the most common teaching approaches for large classes is the longstanding lecture format. Though pragmatic
for universities, large classroom settings present students with a plethora of opportunities to become disconnected
from learning (Smith, 2001). In the literature, researchers have not come to a consensus about how to define the size
that constitutes a large class. Large classroom settings may vary from 50 to 500 students, while the number that
qualifies a class as “large” depends on the individual instructor’s viewpoint. In a large class, students may very well
perceive that they are merely a number and the instructor does not know their names much less whether they are
even present. As a result, student attendance in large classes tends to decline throughout the course (Christopher,
2011). Another common perception held by students is that the instructor has little to no interaction with students
and simply stands at a podium or in front of the classroom to lecture for the duration of class.
Effective teaching goes beyond having expertise in content and delivery. In order to be effective in the classroom,
instructors need to meaningfully engage with students, connecting them with the content and with their peers
(Francis, 2012). Instructors enhance student engagement by expressing messages of inclusion, appreciation, and
willingness to communicate (Mottet, Martin, & Myers, 2004). The quality of interaction between instructors and
students is determined by a number of factors, including the instructor’s compassion, understanding,
approachability, helpfulness, responsiveness, and concern, as well as how these traits are perceived by students.
Research informs us that students are more likely to be academically successful and to engage with instructors who
demonstrate leadership skills and are sociable, supportive, intelligent, and objective (Furnham & ChamorroPremuzic, 2005). Moreover, an effective engaging instructor has the ability to make a large class feel smaller.
Students learn more they are engaged. When instructors intentionally utilize strategies to create positive studentinstructor interactions, students are held accountable for class attendance, which in turn promotes increased student
performance. Instructors benefit from positive interactions with students by having (a) attentive and engaged
students in their classes; (b) students who feel more comfortable talking to them; and (c) an interactive and engaging
course. Likewise, when students have positive interactions with their instructors, they are more likely to give
positive feedback about large classes and the university experience, which can in turn increase enrollment in
courses. Thus, positive student-instructor interactions not only benefit students, faculty, and the department, but the
university as well. When considering student-instructor interactions, Frisby and Martin (2010) recommend that
student recruitment, retention, engagement, and involvement are outcomes that should be studied further. Seidman
(2005) suggests that student dissatisfaction with the class experience and/or instructor may negatively influence
retention.
Goals and Objectives
Participants attending this session can expect to:

Identify instructional strategies that promote positive student-instructor interactions in large classes;


Participate in interactive strategies intended to develop positive student-instructor interactions in large classes;
and
Understand how to develop and incorporate strategies for positive student-instructor interactions in their own
classes.
Description
Participants attending this session will be introduced to instructional strategies intended to create positive studentinstructor interactions in large classes through a series of interactive activities. First, participants will identify
instructional strategies that promote positive student-instructor interactions in large classes (Yes, teachers in large
classes truly can feel connected to students). Second, participants will engage in role-playing in order to practice—
and leave the session equipped with—strategies to develop positive student-instructor interactions in large classes.
Participants can return to the classroom prepared to transform their pedagogy from “blah” to “aha!”
Discussion
Often, instructors perceive that students in large classes tend to be unmotivated, unsatisfied, and disengaged. In
response to this perception, we suggest that building positive student-instructor interactions can promote student
engagement in large classes. In university settings where large classes are more frequent, instructors should consider
strategies that will tender the same outcomes desired in small classes: student engagement and effective learning.
The effectiveness of positive student-instructor interactions in large classrooms as a tool for meeting the needs of the
students and the institution will depend upon using multiple strategies and using them consistently. Simply put,
while it is doubtful that students will remember a PowerPoint lecture, they will remember the interactions they had
with their instructors.
References
Christopher, D. A. (2011). Interactive large classes: The dynamics of teacher/student interactions. Journal of
Business & Economics Research, 1(8), 82-98.
Francis, R. W. (2012). Engaged: Making large classes feel small through blended learning instructional strategies
that promote increased student performance. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, 9(2), 147-152.
Frisby, B. N., & Martin, M. M. (2010). Instructor-student and student-student rapport in the classroom.
Communication Education, 59(2), 146-164.
Furnham, A., & Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (2005). Individual differences in students’ preferences for lecturers’
personalities. Journal of Individual Differences, 26(4), 176–184.
Mottet, T. P., Martin, M. M., & Myers, S. A. (2004). Relationships among perceived instructor verbal approach and
avoidance relational strategies and students’ motives for communicating with their instructor.
Communication Education, 53(1), 116-122.
Seidman, A. (2005). The learning killer: Disruptive behavior in the classroom. Reading Improvement, 42(1), 40-46.
Smith, K. A. (2001). Strategies for engaging students in large classes. Retrieved from
http://www.ce.umn.edu/~smith/docs/umnadt401ho.pdf