You Belong: Building a Classroom Community

• In Event: Faculty Mind-Sets and Orientations Toward Students

Abstract

With so much content to cover and so little time, is it important for instructors to develop community building strategies within their classroom? Does community make a difference to students? In today’s climate of division, incivility, and isolation, this sense of community and inclusion gains greater significance. In this paper, the voice of students is heard in response to strategies and queries related to building community. Strategies designed to build community were integrated into classes, and feedback secured from a survey distributed at the end of each semester. Students indicated that it was important to them to be connected to their classmates; they felt supported by classmates; and this sense of community helped them learn more and perform better.

Author

• Linda Maier, Saint Martin's University