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MCC Daily Tribune Archive

Civility in the Classroom


Understanding civility and how it relates to the student-instructor relationship is incredibly important in any classroom.  One of the first components, and definitely the most important one, is respect.  From the moment the students enter the classroom and from the moment the instructor engages with the students, there should be a mutual respect between parties.  Our students here at MCC have real lives.  They oftentimes have families of their own, are juggling multiple part-time or full-time jobs, are struggling with personal health problems, and the list goes on.  I think it is important that we as instructors recognize this fact and continuously work with our students on a case-by-case basis to ensure they are maximizing their own learning potential.  This, however, should not be taken advantage of.  It is a student’s duty to understand his or her own personal limitations.  College isn’t for everyone and sometimes even when it is, it may not be at that moment.  It is incredibly important for students to really take the time to decide how much he or she can actually handle in that period of his or her life.  Students cannot expect their instructors to constantly make exceptions to the rule.  Students must understand that each person in the classroom should be expected to produce quality work and that a lack of quality will have repercussions.  To expect anything different is simply illogical.

As for the instructors, it is important we create an understanding with our students from day one in the classroom.  The expectations must be set for the student so that there is no confusion.  It can be quite frustrating for a student when his or her instructor decides one day to encourage a particular type of behavior, but then discourage the same type the next day.  Consistency and follow through are key and should be expected of us.  When a student sees that an instructor is so easily swayed in decision-making or is easily persuaded, credibility tends to decrease and the instructor is therefore seen as weak.  There is nothing wrong with making reasonable expectations and demanding that students live up to those.  I feel that most students would agree that when an instructor lays out the course plan of action and explains what is expected of him or her, there is a sense of calm and an even greater sense of respect.  When a student has a productive instructor, one who demonstrates a mastery of his or her topic and has the ability to present those topics with utmost clarity, it becomes evident that the instructor has everything under control and has the students’ best interest in mind.

Regardless of whether you are a student or an instructor, it is crucially important to leave your judgments at home.  You are coming to a college campus where ideas are constantly flowing, cultures and backgrounds are excitingly varied, and education is ceaselessly spreading.  The focus is learning as much as possible and making the most you can from this life experience.  I think if we all as individuals would see what was really important, our education and college experience, then all other negative facets of human nature like ignorance, or gossip, or mischief would be much less prevalent.  If we truly treated each other with the respect we ourselves would want then how much smoother would college life be?  Bottom line, leave your judgments at home and start each day at MCC as another opportunity to produce amazing results in the classroom whether it be presenting an awesome lesson plan to your students or producing quality work for your instructor to acknowledge.  Take pride in yourselves and take pride in our MCC community.

Rachel Santiago
The Civility Project: Making Courtesy Common
12/04/2013