Requiring Not Only Public But Private Class Introductions • by Cynthia Eaton (Professor of English, Eastern)

In all of my online and on-campus classes, I have students complete both public and private class introductions.

The JEDI approach is the private introduction in the private Brightspace discussions feature, which has been transformative in terms of my understanding of my students' identities, joys, and challenges. Students will share things in these private Brightspace discussions that they'd never share with me in person or via email (partly because my students tell me "email is for old people"). And the great thing is that I then have their info always handy to refresh my memory when they do express concerns and I can reach out to them when needed. With some students, I can privately chat back and forth with them all semester; they like having a private way to share their concerns.

PUBLIC CLASS INTRO

Like many colleagues, I ask for a public class introduction by way of an "icebreaker" activity, which is posted in our Blackboard class website discussion board and consists of three general questions (as well as a fourth that I tailor to each class's initial reading assignment):

  1. Where are you coming from? Where's your hometown? Are you transferring in from another college, are you a first-year student straight out of high school here at SCCC, or did another path lead you here? What brings you to SCCC?
  2. Where are you now? Share with us your major, your motivations for taking this course, and/or anything you'd like to let us know about your hobbies or interests, etc. What do you hope to gain from participating in this particular course?
  3. Where are you going? What are your academic goals? Are you hoping to transfer from SCCC to a four-year school, or do you have more immediate career goals, or another path forward?
  4. Question 4 varies based on the course and consists of what I hope to be a thought-provoking inquiry based on the first reading assignment

PRIVATE CLASS INTRO

As noted, then students complete a private class introduction, which is shared only with me. In on-campus sections, students write on index cards that I provide; in online classes, they use the private Brightspace discussions feature. If you need instructions for how to set up private discussions in Brightspace, try these instructions from Stony Brook or from Vanderbilt University. Contact the SUNY help desk if you need assistance: 1-844-OPEN-SUN (844-673-6786).

For the private introduction, I ask the following questions: 

  1. What would you like to be called? What is your full name as it appears on my roster? Do you have a nickname, e.g., if you prefer "Pat" rather than "Patricia" or "Alex" rather than "Alexander"? Do you have a chosen name that you prefer to be called? Please note that the college has a Chosen Name Policy by which you can formally request that your chosen name be reflected on faculty class rosters, on your college email, in Blackboard course websites, etc. Contact the College Associate Dean for Master Schedule/Registrar by phone (631-451-4008) or email (registrara@sunysuffolk.edu) to submit your request. If this request is in process, please keep me posted.
  2. What pronouns should we use when referring to you? she/her/hers — he/him/his — they/them/theirs — others?
  3. Is there anything you want me to know about you that might help me better understand your performance in this class? Are there family obligations, a work schedule, other factors you'd like to share?
  4. Do you need formal accommodations through the college, e.g., from the Office of Disability Services?
  5. Optional: If you wish, please feel free to share any identity markers regarding your race, ethnicity, country of origin, or documentation status; socioeconomic class status; gender identity, expression, and orientation; religious beliefs; and physical, mental, and intellectual ability. A few examples from previous semesters' students: "I'm Shinnecock Indian, but everybody just assumes I'm a black guy;" "I am working class bordering on poor... I work three part-time jobs including two overnight shifts so if I'm always posting at the last minute please know I'm doing my best;" "I'm an adult learner and very self-conscious about being 20 years older than everybody else;" "I am transgender male. It matters a lot to me that you use my chosen name and pronouns, not what's on your roster. I'm in the process of a legal name change."

MID-SEMESTER CHECK IN

Finally, around mid-semester I either hand out index cards again or ask my online students to check in via their private discussion. This time, I ask them to share anything they'd like me to know regarding what's happening in their lives, how they're doing in class, or any questions or "updated information" they might want to share.

At times, students will share things with me that they acknowledge they didn't feel comfortable doing earlier in the semester, before we got to know one another better or before they felt comfortable and safe enough (with me and/or with their clasmates) to do so. A private mid-semester check in also matters because it shows students that you care and it can serve as a nonthreatening (not grade related) communication avenue. They might share if they've experienced any uncomfortable moments in class, or if new issues have cropped up in their off-campus lives that you could help them address. 

So I rely on these private introduction conversations to link students to campus or community resources—or to simply share an encouraging, supportive message and thank them for being good thinkers. Sometimes we have individuals in our classes who aren't necessarily "good students" (in that they're still figuring out how to "do college") but many of them are good thinkers and good learners—and I think it's very important to let them know that I see them as good thinkers/good learners to help counteract any messages they might be getting elsewhere that they're not "good students."