Plato In Class

College students focus on the content presented to the in their courses like understanding the difference between mitosis and meiosis or what exactly Plato meant in his writings. Rarely do students take the time to step back from their studies and analyze the organization of their classes and how that may affect their performance in the course. It is extremely interesting to get a chance to look back on the courses I have taken and analyze their culture rather than content. I will be looking at the dynamics of three different classes, one for each year that I have completed at Xavier, and assessing the influence of each setting on the students. The names of the professors have been changed and I will be using feminine pronouns to refer …show more content…
There was no schedule outlining the information that would be covered each day or PowerPoints containing lecture material. Instead, each class meeting was a discussion concerning the assigned reading. Professor B started off the discussion with a few questions, but after that the students took control of the conversation. It was obvious which students had read the night before and which had not depending on their participation in class. As the semester progressed, it became assumed that the few constant contributors would lead off the discussion and then others would give their input. As long as you contributed to the discussion at least once a week, you were safe from being called on when no one else would speak up. The students who consistently read enjoyed coming to class and sharing their thoughts with the class. On the other hand, those who did not read sat there praying they would not get called on to answer a question. I enjoyed listening to my classmates ideas, but I did not willingly offer my own opinions because I am intimidated by sharing my ideas with a large …show more content…
There was no hesitation when it came to asking questions because Professor C took the time to ensure everyone understood the material. Professor C always responded with positive feedback to the questions asked, which eased the anxiety students generally had when asking questions. The fact that the students have been in many of the same classes together for the past few years also contributed to the comfortability of the students. Working in small groups gave students who shy away from large group discussion a chance to contribute in a less intimidating