Author: Minnie Teng

The majority of students indicated that feeling connected to the instructor is important to their wellbeing. One student mentioned that “just [having] that personal connection or like to actually speak to the professor one on one promotes my wellbeing more” (Science student). In addition to creating a sense of belonging, having a personal connection with the instructor supports student wellbeing in other ways. Feeling connected to the instructor enhances student’s perception that the instructor cares about student learning and wellbeing. This may enhance student motivation to succeed in the class, and increase the likelihood that students will seek additional support when required. Being friendly will help to foster the instructor-student relationship.

Students have identified a number of ways that instructors may foster student-instructor relationships in the classroom. As one student indicated, “It’s fine if [instructors] have office hours/email availability, but if they aren’t approachable, it makes it harder to use these resources.” (Student, 2016 UES). Learning and using student names seems to be a particularly powerful way of fostering a connection with the students as well. Addressing students by name “…shows that [the professor] is invested in the class and the students [because] they’re actually willing to make a connection” (Arts student). Using student’s names also makes it easier for the instructors to start conversations in the classroom, which in turn makes the class more interesting and enjoyable for the students. Participants recognized that small class sizes make it easier for instructors to learn student names. However, it appears that even when large class sizes preclude instructors from learning the names of all students, the effort to do so is noticed and appreciated.

From both our surveys and in the focus groups, students indicated that it is easier to feel connected to their instructor when the instructor is friendly and approachable. These traits also make it easier for the instructor to support the whole student and for the instructor to foster a safe classroom environment.

Here are some Teaching Practices that Promote Instructor-Student relationship

• Learning and using student names
• Having short, informal conversations with students
• Encouraging students to attend office hours
• Introducing themselves
• Displaying their passion for the subject
• Sharing personal anecdotes
• Smiling
• Having an easygoing attitude
• Using humour as appropriate
• Allowing students to call the instructor by his/her first name

Now, I am sure you would like to talk about your opinions on the above teaching practices and how they may relate to your teaching. What are your thoughts on learning all your students’ names? We would like to create a dialogue around how we, as instructors, can foster student-instructor relationships. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Peer social connections have a major effect on student mental health and wellbeing. In our study, students indicated that feeling connected to one’s peers is important because it increases confidence, happiness, helps students face challenges, supports learning, and motivates them to do well academically.

When students have friends in a class, they feel more connected with the bigger group of classmates. One student described the sense of care his classmates and friends gave him “if you have the support network, you can really weather whatever storm may come your way.” (Science student). Another student talked about the academic benefits of having this support network, saying “the more connection you have, the stronger you feel that you’re part of the group and that’s a reassurance …  you feel like you have something to fall back on when your grades aren’t that high and when … you don’t know something that you’re supposed to know.” (Science student).

Interactive teaching practices (i.e. group work and in-class discussions), smaller settings (e.g. seminars, labs, discussion groups and tutorials), and repeated contact with the same group of students on a regular basis (i.e. standard timetables, activities with peers the same major) all help foster peer relationships.

On the other hand, a few participants felt that students would develop friendships regardless of whether the instructor did anything to facilitate the process. “I don’t think they really should be worried about that. It’s not their job to make friends for us” (Student 29, line 7-125).

Here are some ways you can foster Peer-to-Peer relationships in your classroom:

• Group work and in-class discussions (especially when it is not for marks)
• Maintaining the same groups throughout the term
• Incorporating a lab, discussion group or tutorial
• Incorporating small-group discussions
• Icebreakers
• Field trips
• Offering bonus marks for students to attend course-related community events
• Fostering a safe classroom environment

Have you tried any of above in your classroom? When you were a student yourself, did you appreciate it when your instructor tried to foster friendship among students? Tell us your thoughts!

What do we mean by the “whole student”? By using this phrase we would like to introduce the concept of viewing the student as a holistic individual with lives outside of the classroom, rather than another student number on the roster.  Outside of the classroom,  students may play intramural sports, experience  mental health challenges, go through  a breakup, or be integrating into Canadian culture.    From the findings of our study, we found the following three themes that students and instructors identified as being influential insupporting students holistically, and thereby positively promoting their wellbeing:

1. Recognizing that students have lives outside of academics

By recognizing and acknowledging the complexity and business of a student’s life, faculty are also supporting a student’s wellbeing.  For example …

2. Openly discussing mental health and wellbeing

Faculty can discuss wellbeing in multiple ways – sharing information about wellbeing (e.g.,how stress or sleep affect learning), sharing personal experiences (e.g., talking about their own wellness), inviting students to approach them if they  non-course related topics (e.g., need help), or connecting students with resources (e.g., Counselling or Student Health Services). Faculty indicated that it is important to know their own level of comfort before opening the invitation to students.

3. Creating a safe classroom environment

A safe classroom environment helps students engage with the material, the faculty and their peers. Students reported a safe classroom environment as one where they could make a mistake or hold a different opinion without feeling judged. Students also described  a safe classroom environment as one where they could participate in a way that they were comfortable.

As always, our goal is to create dialogue around teaching practices and how they affect student wellbeing, and how we can do so in bigger and better ways. We hope this is not a boring lecture to you… tell us your thoughts! We’d love to hear them!

 

Having social connections is a key driver of student wellbeing. Since students spend so much time in the learning environment, it is not surprising that their wellbeing is supported when they feel connected to their instructors and to their peers.

The student-instructor relationship

For students, getting to know their instructors fosters a sense of belonging, which has a direct impact on their wellbeing. Fostering the student-instructor relationship also promotes student wellbeing in other ways:

• It makes it easier for students to reach out for academic help (when necessary) – Having a relationship/getting to know the students makes instructors seem more approachable
• It motivates students to do well in the course – students seem to feel more responsibility for their learning when they can connect with the instructors (having a relationship also makes it easier for instructors to choose examples that will interest and engage their students)
• It makes it easier for the instructor to support the whole student, as they have a better understanding of the issues that students might be experiencing.

Among the instructors we interviewed, getting to know their students makes the teaching experience more rewarding. Here’s what one instructor had to say about this!

Note: a few students indicated that feeling connected to their instructor had no impact on their wellbeing – as long as the instructor could teach effectively.

Peer-to-peer relationships

Peer to peer relationships promote student wellbeing by increasing students’ level of confidence, promoting happiness, helping students to face challenges, supporting learning, and motivating students to do well academically (source).

Students indicated that they formed most of their friendships within the academic context, and that this process is facilitated when they interact repeatedly with the same group of students (e.g. as part of a standard timetable or once they enter their major). Group work and interactive teaching practices create opportunities in the classroom for students to get to know their peers.

Now that you have learned more about how social inclusion plays a role in student wellbeing, we’d like to hear what you think! What does social inclusion mean to you in the classroom?

Consolidating all the data and data analysis, our team has come up with a checklist for faculty and instructors to see if they are employing teaching practices that are instrumental to student wellbeing.

Download a reflection tool for faculty exploring teaching practices that promote student wellbeing

Student wellbeing is supported when students are motivated to learn and feel that they are learning effectively.

From our analysis of the UES, focus group and interview data, we identified several ideas relating student wellbeing and their motivation to learn and their perceived effectiveness of learning. Student wellbeing is supported when:

• Students find the subject matter is interesting, relevant, or otherwise meaningful to them.
• Student find that the learning experience interesting, engaging and enjoyable.
• The course structure supports learning – that is, students understand how to succeed.
• The student feels they are learning effectively in class.
• The instructor support student learning outside of class.

These themes align with the concept of motivation presented in How Learning Works (Ambrose, 2010). According to Ambrose, “There are two important concepts that are central to understanding motivation: (1) the subjective value of a goal and (2) the expectancies, or expectations for successful attainment of that goal.” (2010, p. 69). Relating this to our findings, students are more motivated to learn when they find value in the material and the learning process (point 1 & 2 above), and when they believe that that they will learn effectively (points 3, 4 & 5 above).

The graphic above is adapted from Ambrose’ model (in grey) of how value and expectancy create motivation, drive goal-directed behaviour, and improve learning and performance. Our findings (in colour) suggest that that value, expectancy, and the attainment of the learning goal all contribute to student wellbeing.

Our analysis of the UES, focus group and interview data identified the following themes relating to students’ abilities and their motivation to learn effectively.

What are some ways you could help students find value in the subject matter?

This can be accomplished by connecting the material to world events, other courses, a student’s future career or other student interests.

Even if the subject matter isn’t particularly interesting to the students, students can still be motivated if the learning process is enjoyable. The vast majority of students report that an interactive learning process is more engaging, and fosters a sense of community and belonging which further increases motivation (a few students prefer passive learning environments).

What are some ways you could support student learning? How can we facilitate learning among students given that they expect to succeed in class?

Instructors can support student learning by:

• Delivering the material clearly and effectively in class (i.e. clear examples)
• Supporting students outside the classroom (i.e. office hours, responding to emails, providing extra resources)
• Being clear about the mechanics of the course (i.e. what needs to be handed in and where, structure of the exam, providing grading rubrics)

Do you agree with the teaching practices used to help support student learning in this post? Have you tried any of these strategies? Did they work? Did they not work? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Overall, our team have collected 4 separate data sets for the entire project:

• The 2015 Survey (n=5591 quantitative and ~2000 qualitative responses)
• 7 focus groups with a total of 29 students
• 16 semi-structured interviews
• The 2016 Survey (n=5548 quantitative and ~873 qualitative responses)

That was a lot of data to analyze and interpret! However, thanks to our hard-working team and student volunteers, we were able to do so and 3 main ideas emerged. We found that student wellbeing is supported when students…

1. Experience human connections

Research shows that social connection, belonging, and human connections support wellbeing. It is not surprising that students have indicated that their wellbeing are supported when they feel connected to their instructors and their peers.

2. Are learning effectively

Students are (usually) at the university to learn. Their wellbeing is supported when they are motivated to learn and when they feel that they are learning effectively.

3. Are supported as a whole student

Students learn in the context of their lives. Student wellbeing is supported when their instructors recognize that they have lives outside academics, openly discuss mental health and wellbeing, and create a safe classroom environment.

Over the coming weeks we will be exploring each of these ideas in more depth, so stay tuned!

Just like in 2015, we asked students to move beyond the 14 questions we asked and to suggest other teaching practices that promoted their wellbeing. 873 students provided qualitative input. Their suggestions were coded inductively and grouped into the following categories:

1. The instructor uses engaging and interactive teaching methods, such as in-class discussions or other activities (n=190)
2. Instructor goes out of their way to support student learning outside the class (n=166) For example, by scheduling office hours at a convenient time for students (or offering them online), suggesting study strategies and by providing a variety of learning resources
3. Instructor effectively teaches the course material (n=154) For example by giving clear explanations and examples, and by providing students with complete and organized course resources
4. Subject matter is meaningful and relevant to the student (n=91) For example, students may see how the topic connects to a world event or their future career, or the material may simply be intersting to the student
5. The instructor is clear about expectations for success (n=88) For example, by providing practice problems with solutions, grading rubrics and sample answers of a particular grade, and outlining the format/topics for exams
6. Instructor accommodates student wellbeing needs (n=87) For example, by connecting students to resources or by setting a grading scheme that allows students to succeed even if they experience a bad day/period (i.e. extensions or dropping the lowest mark)
7. Instructor is approachable (n=49) Students perceive instructors as approachable when they get to know the students, have easy going attitudes, are patient, kind and friendly, and use humour
8. Instructor takes time to get to know the students (n=48) For example, by learning and using student names or by sharing personal stories
9. Instructor provides students with regular feedback (n=44) by returning assignments promptly (with comments) and by offering multiple assessments throughout the term
10. Instructor fosters peer interactions (n=39) with group work (preferably not for marks) and icebreakers
11. The instructor is organized and prepared (n=32) For example, by starting and ending lectures on time, posting information where it is easily accessible, and setting key dates early and communicating them clearly
12. Instructor is passionate and enthusiastic about both teaching and the subject (n=31) 
13. Instructor fosters a safe classroom environment (n=28) For example, demonstrating respect to the students, and not judging students for making mistakes
14. Course difficulty and pace is appropriate for the student (n=18) (of course, this means going faster and slower all at the same time…)
15. The instructor fosters critical thinking and a love of learning (n=17)

What do you think of these suggestions made by students? Do you have other ideas that are not listed above? Or perhaps there are challenges to implementing these practices? Please comment below and let us know your thoughts!

We have recently hosted the Thrive event, Design Lab: Let’s talk teaching practices and student wellbeing. Using a dotmocracy, we asked students to rate which teaching practices they felt were important to their wellbeing and found that the two most important teaching practices that students identified as instrumental to their wellbeing are:

• Subject matter is relevant/valuable/meaningful to me, and
• The instructor recognizes that students have a life outside academics.

Our audience consisted of students, faculty, and staff alike. We engaged our audience with discussions about how teaching methods impact student wellbeing. Our qualitative results identified teaching practices that were not included in our UES surveys, so we decided to ask students whether they found the teachings practices identified from the qualitative data important to their wellbeing (for more information on qualitative interviews please visit here). During the event, students and instructors both commented on how having research evidence that these simple and yet effective methods promote student wellbeing is a positive progress towards enhancing student wellbeing on campus.

Stay tuned for the results from our study! Next week we will be sharing the final set of findings from the 2016 UES, and following that we will be sharing integrated results from the project. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading our blog so far – please feel free to comment and provide any suggestions!  

In addition to asking students about their preferences for different teaching practices, we asked students how often they experienced the 14 teaching practices. The three most commonly experiences teaching practices among the 5548 respondents were:

• When the instructor is accessible outside of class (i.e. office hours, email)
• When the instructor creates/fosters a safe classroom environment
• When the instructor is clear about the course objectives

When analyzed by demographic group (year level, gender, faculty and international student status) the top three remained constant, however there was some variation between the order of the top two.

We also compared the student experience of different teaching practices to other questions asked on the UES. The data shows a small, statistically significant positive correlation between all 14 teaching practices and their level of satisfaction with their UBC experience.

Of the top 3 most important teaching practices listed yesterday – the following percentage of students experienced it (raw data here):

Top 3 most important Teaching Practices	Percentage of Students who reported experiencing this practice
1) When the instructor is clear about the course objectives	56% of student report experiencing this either frequently or always
2) When the instructor takes complicated assignments and breaks them into smaller components	26% of student report experiencing this either frequently or always
3 When the instructor is clear about the course objectives	70% of student report experiencing this either frequently or always

There is a discrepancy between teaching practices that students identified as contributing most positively to their wellbeing, and the teaching practices that they experience most frequently. What do you think of the findings? What contributes to this discrepancy? We’d love to hear your thoughts!