building student engagement – blog.college-counseling.com

Explain it in 100 Words: Say Less, Engage More – Faculty Focus

I teach Media Writing at a small community college in southeast Texas, and although that may sound remote, my students – like most young students – are quite tech-savvy. I am always on the hunt for better ways to engage them in the art of writing. I regularly refer to Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling, and Tobias’s 20 Master Plots to get the juices flowing, because what we write is largely storytelling. Mostly, I want them to focus on writing and re-writing. One day, while researching subject matter prompts for my class, something caught my eye. What was this “100-word story?”

When I was assigned to teach Media Writing, I was supplied with a textbook that focused on just writing for print and broadcast. But we all know that most of news writing leans on what the reader will see online as well. Plus, with the diversity of the internet, all media writing is not just for traditional news. Because the world has changed dramatically, I knew a pivot was in order. Remembering my creative writing class from long ago and far away, I drew on an exercise we did in that class. It is called free writing, and I thought it would be a motivational technique for my students.

Free writing is a writing technique that has no form or structure. You just write your thoughts on a certain subject for a set period of time. I challenged my students to engage in this practice on a weekly – if not daily – basis.

Editing is a big part of writing a 100-word story. To get started, one could just free write. With free writing, my students resisted at first. But once they got the hang of it, their thoughts would flow. The ultimate challenge was to go back and make sense of it!

So, let’s say you’ve done a little free-writing on a topic. You have been writing for 20 minutes, so your topic may look like mush. Now you have to make sense of it. You pull out the best thoughts, and make spelling and grammar corrections, and you could possibly have an article. And going a step further, you may want an “introductory piece” to your article. That’s where a 100-word story comes in. Pull out the best parts to “tease” your article, then edit it down to 100 words.

Although a 100-word story is useful when writing an article, your “story” can also introduce course subject matter and set the pace – sort of a “tease” – to pull the reader in.

Here are just a couple of ways to use the 100-word strategy:

Introduction to a course or module. We know attention spans are shrinking, so pull them in with a short course introduction, and short intros to your teaching modules. Students will appreciate the “chunks” you present in a way that gets them engaged in the topic.

Use the 100-word strategy for assignment guides and explaining assessments. You would be surprised at how quickly you can get your point across by condensing instructions.

As a former producer at a local TV station, I was charged with creating news topicals (current news stories) that involved reading reporters’ complete stories, then explaining the content in exactly 4, 15, or 30 seconds. Sounds intimidating, but after my trial and error period, I could read the story, confirm the highlights with the reporter, and write a 4-second tease. So, 100 words would have seemed generous to me.

Now, some might contend that there are better ways to write an article introduction, or introduction to a chapter study or lecture, and I won’t argue with you! This is just one option. It is a way to condense and simplify your message. Even if I don’t always stick to a strict 100-words, I keep it close, because let’s face it, this style of chunk writing is easily digestible and works to strengthen a student-reader’s attention span. According to Books Calculator, it takes a reader about 24 seconds to read 100 words. You can effectively grab the reader’s attention with 100 words, and if you can do that, you can begin the learning process.

Even outside the classroom, leading with a 100-word story has its advantages. Let’s say you are promoting a speaker for your school and you are creating a flyer, you can use this concept to make your pitch short and sweet. For example:

Join us on Tuesday February 4, when we welcome multi-media journalist Brandi Smith from Rice University’s Office of Public Affairs. Previously, Brandi worked at KHOU 11 in Houston, Texas where she executed “Living in the Lone Star – Hidden Gems,” a TV segment that offers 11 different ways to see and learn about Houston. Brandi earned her bachelor’s degree in Electronic Media from the University of Oregon after receiving her Associates degree in Journalism from Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. Come and hear her unique story of perseverance as part of our Speaker Series in the Library at 2:00 P.M.

You just read a 100-word story!

Lastly, I would be remiss if I did equip you with an all-the-rage AI tool or two, for those of you that still get stuck and need more assistance – or just want to explore what AI has to offer:

So, there you have it. A few tips on using the 100-word story. I think you will grow to adore this concept as much as I do. Have fun exploring!

Denise Bates is an Instructor in the Communications Department at Alvin Community College in Alvin, TX. She has been teaching at Alvin Community College since 2019. She enjoys teaching communications courses because it is fascinating how the media industry grew and developed in the 20th Century and how it all changed when the Internet disrupted everything and forced us to embrace the technologies in the 21st Century.

References

100 Word Story (n.d.) https://100wordstory.org

100 Word Story. (n.d.) The Fanciful Story of 100 Words, Lynn Mundell, Writer and Editor https://lynnmundell.com/100-word-story/

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January 23, 2026

Day 1 is Hard: Reflections on Being a First-Year Student (Again) – Faculty Focus

It is that time of year again. I am staring longingly out the window while I sit indoors, on my computer, tweaking syllabi in anticipation of teaching again in the coming semester. This ritual feels different this year because I am coming back from a sabbatical, part of which I spent as a student (again). At this time last year, I was preparing to learn basic statistics for my research as a student, because my chemistry undergraduate degree was curiously bereft of training in statistics. So, I (again) registered for a first-year class as a student. My Day 1 experience as a student (again) was enlightening. My brief foray into the freshman experience, while not quite a full experience including living in a dorm room and eating in the cafeteria (Nathan 2006), gave me a chance to critically reflect on what students experience in my own classes. I would like to share a few of my experiences, what I learned from them, and what I aim to change in my own Day 1 routine in the coming year, with the hope that it helps some of you too.

Facing Day 1 Anxiety

One of the most profound shocks of being a student (again) on Day 1 was the sense of anxiety I experienced before the class started. I knew I was very rusty on the prerequisite material; it has been almost 25 years since I took high school math! I was not feeling at all confident that I still “had it” in terms of my ability to succeed as a student. Looking back now, I realized that my own students must also feel the same way. How many of them have not retained all the prerequisite knowledge they learned a while ago? While probably not a quarter of a century ago, I am certain they do feel like their high school education was a long time ago by the time they are in my class. Similarly, how many of them were always near the top of their classes, and now suddenly realize that might no longer be true?

My Takeaway: Give Students Early Support and Reassurance

My experience reminded me that there is no such thing as too much review of prerequisite material, either in the first few classes at the start of my course or as informal reminders when I am introducing a brand-new concept. My students probably feel it has been a long time since they had to activate that prior knowledge that I am trying to build upon, and I guess some don’t feel anywhere near as confident in their ability to succeed as they did even a year ago. Little reminders and lots of reassurance will go a long way this coming fall when I am back in the class as an instructor.

The Novice Moment

But my anxiety did not only manifest before the class started. On my first day back as a student, I fully panicked when a ‘fellow student’ asked a question of our instructor (“Professor, is that variable nominal, or ordinal?”). I panicked because I realized I had absolutely no idea what the question even meant, and I realized how hard it was being a novice again (Mulnix 2023)! I also missed the answer to the question because I was so busy trying not to get visibly upset in the middle of a crowded lecture hall. I am not somebody prone to panic attacks or severe anxiety, but the sudden realization of how unmoored I felt taught me a valuable lesson.

My Takeaway: Build Student Confidence Day 1

This coming semester, I will be more attentive to how simple questions or off-the-cuff remarks could easily hit my students in unexpected ways. For students already feeling unprepared or uncertain in my class, innocent queries or comments might subtly reinforce underlying feelings that my class will be beyond their capabilities. Phrases such as “this should be easy” or “something you should all know already” shall be completely stricken from my vocabulary. Especially as we seek to educate a generation suffering from higher rates of diagnoses for anxiety and panic, I need to find ways to make sure my students remember that they probably know more than they think. Prerequisite classes, while perhaps feeling long past for them, have provided them with everything they need to succeed in my class. Part of my job is to encourage them to engage in the hard work and remind them that they do fit in my class. Whether this involves an easy content-related quiz on the first day of classes or some similar confidence-building exercise, I now realize how important confidence-building is for the first day of class.

Feeling Out of Place

The last key experience from Day 1 of my second time being a first-year student was linked to my discomfort when I entered the lecture hall. I suspect most of us still remember the shock of walking into our first big lecture hall and being stunned by the sheer size of the hall, and number of other bewildered students. But what I felt was discomfort disconnected from the size of the lecture hall. Rather, I walked into the lecture hall and instantly felt like I did not belong. The grey in my beard was a clear signal to other students that I was different, and they subtly found ways to avoid sitting near me or meeting my eye. I believe these behaviors were unconscious reactions on the part of others, but it felt very real. As a White male living in Western Canada, I have not often felt the sensation of walking into a room and realizing I don’t automatically fit in with other people.

My Takeaway: Ensure Every Student Feels Welcome and Included

I realized some of my students must also feel when they walk into my classroom and are visibly different from their peers or their instructor. That sense of alienation is subtle, but it is very real when you are the one who stands out. In my classes, I have always talked about, and tried to put into action, the message that everybody is welcome. But this semester, I will be trying much harder to convey that message, both implicitly and explicitly. My students who are part of traditionally underrepresented groups based on race, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, age, or some other feature, they need to feel welcome in my class. My syllabus language will be tweaked to be more directly inclusive. My friendly greetings on Day 1 shall be clearly directed to all my students to avoid whatever unconscious biases I may harbor. I will endeavor to arrange the physical classroom to make it easier for everybody to sit next to somebody else, and I will make sure my first day of class icebreaker gives people a chance to talk to each other (Weimer 2017). Even if it is just to exchange pleasantries, getting my students talking to each other is the best thing I can do to help them realize they are all feeling similar anxieties, in addition to excitement at how that first class will go.

As the semester continued and I settled in to learn about things such as the differences between a z-test and a t-test, my experience on Day 1 of being a first-year student (the second time around) stood out as particularly important. What I experienced as a student in statistics gave me a great deal to think about how my students might be feeling when they enter my 1^st-year general chemistry classroom this fall. So instead of staring out the window, I had best get back to preparing that course syllabus to incorporate all those non-statistics things I learned this past year.

Brian Rempel, PhD, joined the University of Alberta’s Augustana campus where he primarily teaches general and organic chemistry as an Associate Professor. Brian developed a love for teaching chemistry during his PhD work on enzymology at the University of British Columbia and brought that passion to his teaching-focused role at Augustana in 2009. Brian’s research studies the impact and student perceptions of unique means for evaluating student knowledge, with a particular focus on finding equitable ways of evaluating student knowledge to reduce student anxiety.

References

Mulnix, Amy B. 2023. “Being a Novice Again.” The Teaching Professor, February 27. https://www.teachingprofessor.com/topics/professional-growth/being-a-novice-again/

Nathan, Rebekah. 2006. My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student. Penguin Books.

Weimer, Maryellen. 2017. “First Day of Class Activities That Create a Climate for Learning.” The Teaching Professor, July 19. https://www.teachingprofessor.com/topics/for-those-who-teach/first-day-of-class-activities-that-create-a-climate-for-learning/

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January 16, 2026

Supporting Students Through Feedback: Approaches for Faculty – Faculty Focus

Student success and socio-emotional well-being, including coping and adjusting to college life (particularly during their first year) continue to be pervasive issues (van der Zanden et al., 2018; Welle & Graf, 2011). Social support received from a variety of sources (including faculty) are linked to better physical and emotional well-being and academic performance (Hartung et al., 2015; Mattanah et al., 2012; Micari & Pazos, 2012; van der Zanden et al., 2018; Walton et al. 2015). In particular, building rapport and relationships with faculty, and even informal interactions with faculty have all been found to contribute to various positive outcomes including greater student engagement, achievement, motivation, and socio-emotional functioning (Decker et al., 2007; Halawah 2006; Pascarella & Terenzini 2005; Thompson, 2001; van der Zanden et al., 2018; Woodside et al., 1999).

Supporting students is important for their success and this task is not a singular activity completed by a single person. There are various people in positions at the institution which contribute to supporting students and their ultimate success, including but not limited to, faculty, student advisors, student support services (writing center, library, accommodation office, etc.), department administrators, etc. One avenue within the faculty role that is important to highlight is our everyday communications, interactions with, and feedback to students.

Our focus here is on student feedback and how that can contribute to their success, broadly defined, which includes both meeting academic milestones, and mental health and well-being. We use the term feedback here to refer, quite broadly, to a number of linguistic interactions with students which might be verbal or written, delivered synchronously or asynchronously. Because, when we really consider all of our interactions with students, many of them are feedback-like without being tied to an assessment or improving their work (i.e., providing them with a way to gauge how they’re doing in this role of student which they fulfil on our campuses). For example, we may provide advice on study strategies or balancing their out-of-class obligations with their studies, or other advising conversations which could be included under the umbrella term of feedback. Similarly, faculty feedback can serve as intervention strategies to adjust student behaviors if they are struggling with their course work and/or the overall transition process.

Applications

Foster Early Communication and Connection

Starting the semester with a sense of community, building rapport between students and instructor as well as among students is important. One way to build this is to encourage students to post an introduction on the learning management system (LMS) with a photo and a “hidden fact” (e.g., they have an interesting family situation such as many siblings, an identical twin, etc., they work in a unique place, their hometown is far away, etc.). In response to these posts, I always ask a genuinely curious question (“What breed of dog is that?” or “Do you still play/have you always played that position in hockey?”). The purpose of these follow-up questions is twofold. First, genuine curiosity conveys interest and can foster open communication in building individual relationships with students. Second, that feedback on their introduction can also serve to highlight areas of the introduction where students could have been clearer and might improve future writing skills without seeming overtly critical.

Reimagine Office Hours

Another early-semester intervention relates to office hours. Attending office hours is beneficial to students and helps them connect with their professor. We can “force” students to attend (required for credit or bonus point or only strongly encouraged) by framing it as a get-to-know-you opportunity. I had a colleague who called it “Tea with Me” and, although it was not required (nor did it involve tea), students enjoyed engaging with their instructor in this informal manner (the optional nature of the activity was also intentionally not made explicit when students were sent a link to register for “tea” time during the first two weeks of the semester).

Additionally, “office hours” is not really the most inviting or descriptive label for this valuable time where faculty are available for students, so these can be re-named to be more explicit about what the purpose of office hours are or to make them more inviting to students. A quick request to your favorite generative AI tool might propose new names such as Brain Breaks & Beverages; Curiosity Café; Study & Support Session; Curiosity Hour; Prof Pop-Ins; Connect & Reflect; Recharge & Reach Out; Growth Hour, along with many clever personalized alliterations.

As a bonus tip, students don’t always know where our offices are, so offering a bonus point for taking a selfie at our office door may also encourage them to find it and possibly stop by while we’re there. Anecdotally, some first-generation students, who were unfamiliar with academic culture, mistakenly assumed “office hours” were designated times that the faculty member was not available, as these hours were set aside for specific tasks, such as research or grading. Emphasizing that these hours are “open door” policy for students may clarify the purpose of these designated times and encourage them to use these hours for their benefit.

Use Feedback to Build Rapport

When grading assignments and providing students with the traditional content-related feedback about their mastery and performance, you can also use this opportunity for feedback to build rapport with students. For example, you might include information they previously shared with you in person (about their dog, their work, their future aspirations, etc.) in your text where you can, even if it takes the form of an emoji (e.g., a dog to accompany the grading rubric or overall general comment). Using emojis in our feedback may also help make us instructors seem more relatable and approachable to students and make the positive feedback we provide seem less formal.

Maintain Regular Communication

Regular communication/touch points can play an important part in supporting students, such as personalized LMS announcements (using replace strings to personalize students’ names) or emails about class attendance or performance. As Chapman and Kennette (2021) point out, regular positive communication, for both struggling students as well as those who are successful, is important. Some of this work can be automated (e.g., using intelligent agents in the Brightspace LMS), individual (sending each student a personalized email at certain points in the semester), or semi-automated with batch emails sent to students based on some performance measure (e.g., midterm emails for low-performing, acceptable performance, and good-performing students). If using batch emails, remember to BCC students for privacy.

Conclusion

Building additional touchpoints with students can help them to succeed academically as well as support their mental health and wellness. Faculty are encouraged to consider implementing some of the examples above to build additional support for students by way of their interactions and feedback as a method of community building and supporting a culture of collaborative learning.

Lynne N. Kennette is a professor of psychology at Durham College (Oshawa, Ontario). She earned her Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Wayne State University (Detroit, MI) and has varied research interests including bilingual language representation, memory, supporting student learning, and numerous other topics related to teaching and learning (SoTL).

Phoebe S. Jen Lin obtained her PhD in social psychology from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. She has conducted research on prejudice and stereotyping, attitude-behavior consistency, and role model influence. Her current scholarly interests are in anti-racism in higher education and inclusive teaching practices. She is currently a professor at Framingham State University.

References

Decker, D. M., Dona, D. P., & Christenson, S. L. (2007). Behaviorally at-risk African American students: The importance of student–teacher relationships for student outcomes. Journal of School Psychology, 45(1), 83-109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2006.09.004

Halawah, I. (2006). The impact of student-faculty informal interpersonal relationships on intellectual and personal development. College Student Journal, 40(3), 670–78.

Hartung, F.-M., Sproesser, G., & Renner, B. (2015). Being and feeling liked by others: How social inclusion impacts health. Psychology & Health, 30(9), 1103-1115. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2015.1031134

Kennette, L. N., & Chapman, M. (2021). Providing positive student feedback in an online environment. Academic Letters, Article 203. https://doi.org/10.20935/AL203

Mattanah, J. F., Brooks, L. J., Brand, B. L., Quimby, J. L., & Ayers, J. F. (2012). A social support intervention and academic achievement in college: Does perceived loneliness mediate the relationship? Journal of College Counseling, 15(1), 22-36. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1882.2012.00003.x

Micari, M., & Pazos, P. (2012). Connecting to the professor: Impact of the student-faculty relationship in a highly challenging course. College Teaching, 60(2), 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2011.627576

Pascarella, E. T. & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How college affects students. Jossey-Bass.

Thompson, M. D. (2001). Informal student-faculty interaction: Its relationship to educational gains in science and mathematics among community college students. Community College Review, 29(1), 35-57. https://doi.org/10.1177/009155210102900103

Woodside, B. M., Wong, E. H., & Wiest, D. J. (1999). The effect of student-faculty interaction on college students’ academic achievement and self concept. Education, 119(4), 730-730.

van der Zanden, P. J. A. C., Denessen, E., Cillessen, A. H. N., & Meijer, P. C. (2018). Domains and predictors of first-year student success: A systematic literature review. Educational Research Review, 23, 57-77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2018.01.001

Walton, G. M., Logel, C., Peach, J. M., Spencer, S. J., & Zanna, M. P. (2015). Two brief interventions to mitigate a ”chilly climate” transform women’s experience, relationships, and achievement in engineering. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107(2), 468-485. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037461

Welle, P. D., & Graf, H. M. (2011). Effective lifestyle habits and coping strategies for stress tolerance among college students. American Journal of Health Education, 42(2), 96-105. https://doi.org/10.1080/19325037.2011.10599177

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January 14, 2026

“Say My Name, Say My Name”: Why Learning Names Improves Student Success – Faculty Focus

“Yes, Iris,” my Chicana/o Studies Professor spouted as he acknowledged my raised hand for a comment about the reading. “He knows my name?” I thought distractedly as I tried to refocus on the thought I had wanted to share. Attending a university with over 20,000 students, and class sizes often ranging from 200 to 600 students, I wasn’t used to my professors knowing me by name. I wasn’t used to my professor even knowing I existed aside from a percentage in a gradebook. I sat up a little taller in class, became more attentive, and sought to improve my writing skills over the quarter. Could the simple act of an educator knowing their student’s name change the trajectory of the student’s learning and perhaps their overall perception of the course? Research suggests yes.

In a study conducted by Cooper et al. (2017), 85.4% of the students surveyed stated that it was important for their instructors to know their names. When asked why this was important, the most common replies centered on feeling valued. The results also indicated that students whose names were known were more likely to seek help from the instructor and that they felt more invested in the course. What this tells us is that by using a student’s name, we are validating their existence and contribution to the class, and in turn, they feel more invested and motivated to do well or to seek help.

Now that we know learning students’ names is a simple yet powerful tool for building rapport and improving learning outcomes, how exactly do we remember all their names?

1. Name Tents

Yes, those little folded pieces of cardstock with a person’s name written on them. These can be your golden ticket to calling a student by name and, hopefully, in the process, eventually committing it to memory. Interestingly enough, some research suggests that a percentage of students with name tents perceive that their name is known by the teacher when in fact, it is not. Ergo, simply calling on a student by name using their name tent as an aid can improve the student’s perception of how much a teacher cares (Cooper et al., 2017). So, ask your students to bust out those markers and glitter and get creative.

2. Self-Quizzing

When we discuss evidence-based practices that enhance the learning and retention of materials taught, we inevitably emphasize the importance of self-quizzing. Well, now is your time to put all that teaching into practice. Most schools will have a student photo associated with the student on their learning platform. Use this as a tool to quiz yourself by covering up the student’s name when looking at their photo and trying to guess their name. Practice, practice, practice.

3. Chunking

If your students sit in rows, use the time before class or during breaks to go through one row of students’ names. Do this each class time. Breaking up the number of names you need to commit to memory into chunks of 7-9 students increases your likelihood of storing that information as short-term memory with the hopes that it transfers to long-term memory (“How Memory Works,” n.d.).

4. Get Creative

Create an assignment at the beginning of the course where students upload creative content about their name to their learning platform. This can take the form of visual art, video, audio, or writing, allowing them to express their name and, if they choose, share its meaning or a personal story related to it. Make this content available to their fellow students as well by posting it to a forum or discussion board, as this can be a helpful tool for students to learn their classmates’ names.

Conclusion

While there are many methods for improving student engagement and building rapport, learning students’ names is a great way to start. Some practical tools for learning names can simplify this process and reduce the cognitive load on faculty. The results are typically mutually beneficial, with students feeling appreciated and thereby contributing more, and faculty gaining insight into students’ perspectives and having “buy-in” of course content and assignments.

Iris Villanueva, DMSc, PA-C, is a Professor for the Physician Assistant (PA) Program at the University of the Pacific and a practicing PA. She is passionate about providing holistic and compassionate patient care while also equipping the next generation of PAs with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive. Her current research focuses on understanding how physician assistant students perceive burnout and on developing strategies that promote student wellness.

Dr. Julia VanderMolen is a Professor for the Public Health program at Grand Valley State University and a Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor with the University of the Pacific, School of Health Sciences. Her research examines the benefits of assistive technology for individuals with disabilities in public health. She serves as a board member of the Disability Advocates of Kent County and is an active member of the Disability Section of the American Public Health Association (APHA). Her current research focuses on exploring the health and medical services available to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

References

Cooper, K., Haney, B., Krieg, A., & Brownell, S.E. (2017). What’s in a name? The importance of students perceiving that an instructor knows their names in a high-enrollment biology classroom. CBE life sciences education, 16(1), ar8. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-08-0265

Derek Bok Center, Harvard University (n.d.). How Memory Works. https://bokcenter.harvard.edu/how-memory-works (Access the article here: https://www.scribd.com/document/700827279/how-memory-works)

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January 9, 2026

“Say My Name, Say My Name”: Why Learning Names Improves Student Success – Faculty Focus

“Yes, Iris,” my Chicana/o Studies Professor spouted as he acknowledged my raised hand for a comment about the reading. “He knows my name?” I thought distractedly as I tried to refocus on the thought I had wanted to share. Attending a university with over 20,000 students, and class sizes often ranging from 200 to 600 students, I wasn’t used to my professors knowing me by name. I wasn’t used to my professor even knowing I existed aside from a percentage in a gradebook. I sat up a little taller in class, became more attentive, and sought to improve my writing skills over the quarter. Could the simple act of an educator knowing their student’s name change the trajectory of the student’s learning and perhaps their overall perception of the course? Research suggests yes.

In a study conducted by Cooper et al. (2017), 85.4% of the students surveyed stated that it was important for their instructors to know their names. When asked why this was important, the most common replies centered on feeling valued. The results also indicated that students whose names were known were more likely to seek help from the instructor and that they felt more invested in the course. What this tells us is that by using a student’s name, we are validating their existence and contribution to the class, and in turn, they feel more invested and motivated to do well or to seek help.

Now that we know learning students’ names is a simple yet powerful tool for building rapport and improving learning outcomes, how exactly do we remember all their names?

1. Name Tents

Yes, those little folded pieces of cardstock with a person’s name written on them. These can be your golden ticket to calling a student by name and, hopefully, in the process, eventually committing it to memory. Interestingly enough, some research suggests that a percentage of students with name tents perceive that their name is known by the teacher when in fact, it is not. Ergo, simply calling on a student by name using their name tent as an aid can improve the student’s perception of how much a teacher cares (Cooper et al., 2017). So, ask your students to bust out those markers and glitter and get creative.

2. Self-Quizzing

When we discuss evidence-based practices that enhance the learning and retention of materials taught, we inevitably emphasize the importance of self-quizzing. Well, now is your time to put all that teaching into practice. Most schools will have a student photo associated with the student on their learning platform. Use this as a tool to quiz yourself by covering up the student’s name when looking at their photo and trying to guess their name. Practice, practice, practice.

3. Chunking

If your students sit in rows, use the time before class or during breaks to go through one row of students’ names. Do this each class time. Breaking up the number of names you need to commit to memory into chunks of 7-9 students increases your likelihood of storing that information as short-term memory with the hopes that it transfers to long-term memory (“How Memory Works,” n.d.).

4. Get Creative

Create an assignment at the beginning of the course where students upload creative content about their name to their learning platform. This can take the form of visual art, video, audio, or writing, allowing them to express their name and, if they choose, share its meaning or a personal story related to it. Make this content available to their fellow students as well by posting it to a forum or discussion board, as this can be a helpful tool for students to learn their classmates’ names.

Conclusion

While there are many methods for improving student engagement and building rapport, learning students’ names is a great way to start. Some practical tools for learning names can simplify this process and reduce the cognitive load on faculty. The results are typically mutually beneficial, with students feeling appreciated and thereby contributing more, and faculty gaining insight into students’ perspectives and having “buy-in” of course content and assignments.

Iris Villanueva, DMSc, PA-C, is a Professor for the Physician Assistant (PA) Program at the University of the Pacific and a practicing PA. She is passionate about providing holistic and compassionate patient care while also equipping the next generation of PAs with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive. Her current research focuses on understanding how physician assistant students perceive burnout and on developing strategies that promote student wellness.

Dr. Julia VanderMolen is a Professor for the Public Health program at Grand Valley State University and a Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor with the University of the Pacific, School of Health Sciences. Her research examines the benefits of assistive technology for individuals with disabilities in public health. She serves as a board member of the Disability Advocates of Kent County and is an active member of the Disability Section of the American Public Health Association (APHA). Her current research focuses on exploring the health and medical services available to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

References

Cooper, K., Haney, B., Krieg, A., & Brownell, S.E. (2017). What’s in a name? The importance of students perceiving that an instructor knows their names in a high-enrollment biology classroom. CBE life sciences education, 16(1), ar8. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-08-0265

Derek Bok Center, Harvard University (n.d.). How Memory Works. https://bokcenter.harvard.edu/how-memory-works (Access the article here: https://www.scribd.com/document/700827279/how-memory-works)

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January 9, 2026

6 Effective Ways to Build Attention and Boost Student Participation – Faculty Focus

Any educator can attest to the mounting challenge of maintaining student attention in the classroom. Students’ exposure to digital media from a very young age has both diminished their capacity to pay attention and led them to crave interactions with devices during times when their use is not essential.

Yet, engagement matters. Students’ capacity to participate in activities and “be present” serves as a powerful indicator of how they will fare in engagement with people and academics. Here are a few ways to foster that engagement, despite the challenges:

1. Igniting Curiosity and Relevance

Students should be taught lessons with thought-provoking questions. The more inquisitive the mind, the more in sync they are with dealing with real-world problems and building connections later in life. It’s important to have teachers who help students see value in what they’re learning. To help students discover that value, allow them to draw connections by using current events, surprising facts, or personal stories as examples. Incorporating movement and multiple modes of learning in day-to-day classroom life helps to build active inquiry. The idea is to foster greater participation and sustained focus. Relating students’ learning to their lived experience will help you boost interaction, spark curiosity, and keep students invested in their learning journey.

2. Create a Safe and Supportive Environment

Countless studies have shown that psychological safety acts as a foundation for participation; encouraging a culture where all contributions are respected builds that much-needed safety net. An essential key to building this safety net is establishing your classroom as a stable structure that can hold student curiosity, experimentation, and mistakes. Take care to build consistency between sessions. Using callbacks to past discussions, maintaining a classroom journal, or introducing a themed narrative across lessons helps students to stay engaged and makes their learning journey more cohesive. Strategies such as think-pair-share or anonymous responses can help students build confidence, especially as they grow into less familiar areas of learning.

3. Use Storytelling and Creative Expression

Consistent use of storytelling in the classroom can deepen students’ connection with one another, their teachers, and their voice. Storytelling allows students to express novel ideas in a familiar format. It also helps to make abstract topics more accessible and memorable. But storytelling isn’t all about comfort and familiarity. Surprise elements, such as unusual prompts, playful props, music, or themed challenges can keep your students invested in the art of making narrative. Surprise and innovation also lead to improved memory and a sharper capacity to synthesize abstract concepts.

4. Incorporate Movement and Sensory Engagement

Integrating interactive elements such as hands-on activity, physical movement, and visual aid helps to combat student restlessness and increase their enjoyment of a lesson. If your material requires lecture, break it up with quick, student-centered activities; a movement break; or an opportunity for students to give feedback. Incorporating movement and sensory engagement helps to keep the energy levels up and supports varied learning styles.

5. Give Students Voice and Choice

Offering multiple ways to approach an assignment or allowing students to help determine class discussion fosters an invaluable sense of agency and control. Invite students to prepare and lead part of a lesson; they’ll integrate their perspectives into the experience, which benefits their teachers, their peers, and themselves. The resulting sense of autonomy will increase their ownership and investment in learning.

6. Be Flexible and Empathetic

It’s important that teachers and caregivers for students understand and respond to individual learning rhythms and needs. Having flexibility with pace, deadlines, and participation formats helps to build trust, reduce anxiety, and support engagement. Teaching students the importance of empathy from a young age helps them grow into more responsible and emotionally mature adults.

Conclusion

Student attention and participation need to be nurtured through intention, empathy, and creativity. It’s important to have an all-around approach towards student-centered learning. It is important that we encourage our teachers to experiment, listen, and evolve with their students. As teachers and caregivers, we can empower students to embrace the learning process and build confidence by infusing joy and curiosity into the daily routine.

A happy, comfortable classroom invites deeper engagement and holds its students in consistent positive regard. Introducing short activities like gratitude journaling, music, and light-hearted check-ins, while adding a bit of humor to them, creates a welcoming atmosphere where students are more likely to speak up, stay focused, and enjoy the learning process.

Mallory Hellman (she/her) is a writer, educator, and advocate for youth creativity. Since 2015, she has served as the Director of the Iowa Youth Writing Project, where she leads programs that bring free, high-quality writing opportunities to young people across Iowa. Mallory graduated from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop (MFA in Fiction) and Harvard University (BA in English and American Literature) and has taught creative writing at the University of Iowa, the Duke University Talent Identification Program, and in schools, shelters, and community centers throughout the Midwest. Her nonfiction has appeared in publications such as Tuesday Magazine and Forbes. In recognition of her leadership and community engagement, she received the Bravo Award from the Coralville Chamber of Commerce in 2015. In 2024, she co-founded the Experiential Education Collective, an organization devoted to promoting student-centered learning and hands-on creativity in schools and other educational spaces.

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November 19, 2025

How Building Rapport Helped My Students Take Risks – Faculty Focus

One of my quietest students once came up to me after class and said, “I’ve never felt comfortable speaking in English before this course.” That single sentence reminded me that what we build in the classroom goes far beyond lectures or grading. It’s the atmosphere we create that allows learning to happen. For this student, the turning point wasn’t grammar drills or vocabulary tests. It was trust.

As educators, we often focus on the what and how of teaching. But who the student in front of us matters just as much. In my experience, building genuine rapport is one of the most overlooked yet powerful strategies for helping students feel safe enough to participate, take risks, and grow.

What Rapport Really Means

Rapport is not about being the “fun” professor or trying to be everyone’s favorite. It’s about creating a space where students feel respected, seen, and supported not just academically, but as people.

In my classrooms, especially with my work with adult ESL learners in Kuwait, rapport means:

Greeting students by name and with warmth

Encouraging participation without pressure

Acknowledging their challenges as second-language users

Listening actively to their concerns and ideas

When students feel this kind of connection, they are far more willing to ask questions, attempt difficult tasks, and take ownership of their learning.

How I Build Rapport (and How You Can Too)

Here are five practical habits I’ve developed that have made a noticeable difference in student engagement and classroom climate.

1. Be Present Beyond the Podium

I make time before and after class for informal conversations, even brief ones. A simple, “How’s your week going?” can open doors. Students need to know we are not just grading machines. We are humans too.

2. Learn Names Quickly

It seems like a small detail, but using students’ names early in the semester changes everything. When I call on “Fatima” instead of “you in the third row,” I signal that her presence matters.

3. Use Encouragement Thoughtfully

When a student takes a risk, especially with speaking, I make sure to acknowledge the effort. Saying, “That was a great attempt,” helps build confidence and normalizes the learning process.

4. Normalize Mistakes

Learning is full of errors. I often point out my own slips and laugh with the class. This sets the tone that mistakes are part of the process, not something to fear.

5. Ask for Feedback and Act on It

I regularly ask students what’s helping and what’s not. If I change something based on their feedback, I let them know. This builds trust and shows them that their voices shape the learning experience too.

A Moment I’ll Never Forget

I remember one student, Yousef, who barely spoke during the first few weeks of class. He sat near the back, avoided eye contact, and never volunteered. I made a point to greet him by name each class, ask simple follow-up questions, and check in privately after group work. Slowly, he started opening up. First, he answered yes-no questions. Then, short phrases. By the end of the semester, he stood up and gave a short presentation in English. It wasn’t perfect, but it was powerful. Afterward, he told me, “You made me feel like I could do it.” That comment stays with me to this day.

How Rapport Transforms Feedback

One area where rapport makes a real difference is in how students receive feedback. Constructive feedback is essential for improvement, but it only works if students feel it comes from a place of support.

Once, I had to correct a student’s repeated grammatical mistake. It could have felt embarrassing, but because we had already built trust, she laughed and said, “I knew you would catch that.” She didn’t feel attacked. She knew the correction was about helping her grow.

This kind of response isn’t automatic. It comes from creating a consistent environment where feedback is expected, respected, and grounded in care.

The Ripple Effect of Strong Rapport

The impact of strong rapport is not limited to one assignment or one semester. I have seen students who once hesitated to speak now take initiative in group discussions, volunteer for peer mentoring, or continue English practice long after the course ends.

Rapport also builds community. When students see the teacher modeling kindness, encouragement, and open communication, they begin to do the same with each other. This shifts the classroom from a silent space to one that is collaborative and supportive.

What You Can Try This Week

If you’re looking to build rapport in your own classroom, here are three simple practices you can try immediately:

Learn and use student names within the first two weeks. Use name tents if needed. If you’re at mid-semester, consistent use of student names shows you care and value their presence which helps strengthen classroom connections.

Ask for anonymous feedback midway through the term. Just two questions: “What’s helping you learn?” and “What would you change?”

Set aside two minutes at the end of class to praise a risk taken, a great question asked, or a quiet win. This reinforces the kind of behavior you want to see more of.

These small actions compound over time. They send a clear message to students that they matter and that their growth is the shared goal of the classroom.

Final Thoughts: What They’ll Remember

As educators, we hope students walk away from our courses remembering the material. But what they often remember most is how we made them feel. Did they feel respected? Encouraged? Safe enough to take a risk?

If the answer is yes, then we have done more than teach. We have helped them build confidence, resilience, and the courage to use their voice.

That is the kind of learning that stays with them long after the final exam.

Fahad Ameen is a PhD researcher in Applied Linguistics at the University of Nottingham and an English language instructor at Kuwait University’s College of Education. His work focuses on student motivation, gamified learning, and building meaningful teacher–student relationships in Arab ESL contexts.

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November 10, 2025

How Building Rapport Helped My Students Take Risks – Faculty Focus

One of my quietest students once came up to me after class and said, “I’ve never felt comfortable speaking in English before this course.” That single sentence reminded me that what we build in the classroom goes far beyond lectures or grading. It’s the atmosphere we create that allows learning to happen. For this student, the turning point wasn’t grammar drills or vocabulary tests. It was trust.

As educators, we often focus on the what and how of teaching. But who the student in front of us matters just as much. In my experience, building genuine rapport is one of the most overlooked yet powerful strategies for helping students feel safe enough to participate, take risks, and grow.

What Rapport Really Means

Rapport is not about being the “fun” professor or trying to be everyone’s favorite. It’s about creating a space where students feel respected, seen, and supported not just academically, but as people.

In my classrooms, especially with my work with adult ESL learners in Kuwait, rapport means:

Greeting students by name and with warmth

Encouraging participation without pressure

Acknowledging their challenges as second-language users

Listening actively to their concerns and ideas

When students feel this kind of connection, they are far more willing to ask questions, attempt difficult tasks, and take ownership of their learning.

How I Build Rapport (and How You Can Too)

Here are five practical habits I’ve developed that have made a noticeable difference in student engagement and classroom climate.

1. Be Present Beyond the Podium

I make time before and after class for informal conversations, even brief ones. A simple, “How’s your week going?” can open doors. Students need to know we are not just grading machines. We are humans too.

2. Learn Names Quickly

It seems like a small detail, but using students’ names early in the semester changes everything. When I call on “Fatima” instead of “you in the third row,” I signal that her presence matters.

3. Use Encouragement Thoughtfully

When a student takes a risk, especially with speaking, I make sure to acknowledge the effort. Saying, “That was a great attempt,” helps build confidence and normalizes the learning process.

4. Normalize Mistakes

Learning is full of errors. I often point out my own slips and laugh with the class. This sets the tone that mistakes are part of the process, not something to fear.

5. Ask for Feedback and Act on It

I regularly ask students what’s helping and what’s not. If I change something based on their feedback, I let them know. This builds trust and shows them that their voices shape the learning experience too.

A Moment I’ll Never Forget

I remember one student, Yousef, who barely spoke during the first few weeks of class. He sat near the back, avoided eye contact, and never volunteered. I made a point to greet him by name each class, ask simple follow-up questions, and check in privately after group work. Slowly, he started opening up. First, he answered yes-no questions. Then, short phrases. By the end of the semester, he stood up and gave a short presentation in English. It wasn’t perfect, but it was powerful. Afterward, he told me, “You made me feel like I could do it.” That comment stays with me to this day.

How Rapport Transforms Feedback

One area where rapport makes a real difference is in how students receive feedback. Constructive feedback is essential for improvement, but it only works if students feel it comes from a place of support.

Once, I had to correct a student’s repeated grammatical mistake. It could have felt embarrassing, but because we had already built trust, she laughed and said, “I knew you would catch that.” She didn’t feel attacked. She knew the correction was about helping her grow.

This kind of response isn’t automatic. It comes from creating a consistent environment where feedback is expected, respected, and grounded in care.

The Ripple Effect of Strong Rapport

The impact of strong rapport is not limited to one assignment or one semester. I have seen students who once hesitated to speak now take initiative in group discussions, volunteer for peer mentoring, or continue English practice long after the course ends.

Rapport also builds community. When students see the teacher modeling kindness, encouragement, and open communication, they begin to do the same with each other. This shifts the classroom from a silent space to one that is collaborative and supportive.

What You Can Try This Week

If you’re looking to build rapport in your own classroom, here are three simple practices you can try immediately:

Learn and use student names within the first two weeks. Use name tents if needed. If you’re at mid-semester, consistent use of student names shows you care and value their presence which helps strengthen classroom connections.

Ask for anonymous feedback midway through the term. Just two questions: “What’s helping you learn?” and “What would you change?”

Set aside two minutes at the end of class to praise a risk taken, a great question asked, or a quiet win. This reinforces the kind of behavior you want to see more of.

These small actions compound over time. They send a clear message to students that they matter and that their growth is the shared goal of the classroom.

Final Thoughts: What They’ll Remember

As educators, we hope students walk away from our courses remembering the material. But what they often remember most is how we made them feel. Did they feel respected? Encouraged? Safe enough to take a risk?

If the answer is yes, then we have done more than teach. We have helped them build confidence, resilience, and the courage to use their voice.

That is the kind of learning that stays with them long after the final exam.

Fahad Ameen is a PhD researcher in Applied Linguistics at the University of Nottingham and an English language instructor at Kuwait University’s College of Education. His work focuses on student motivation, gamified learning, and building meaningful teacher–student relationships in Arab ESL contexts.

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November 10, 2025

How I Used the Parking Lot to Turn Quiet Rooms into Engaged Classrooms – Faculty Focus

When students of different years of study share a common class, their levels of experience and confidence differ. Students from lower years of study may hesitate to speak up in the presence of those in higher years, while more experienced students may contribute more freely. These dynamics are common and, if left unaddressed, can reinforce a power imbalance that discourages active learning.

The same challenge shows up at the start of a semester. When students meet a lecturer for the first time, the unfamiliarity often makes them cautious. Most hold back. It is not because they lack curiosity, but because they are unsure how their answers or questions will be received.

This hesitation can hold back meaningful participation. I have come to learn that all it takes is a simple, intentional tool to change the energy of a room and give every student the confidence to contribute.

One such tool that has had a lasting impact on my teaching is the “Parking Lot.”

Discovering the Parking Lot

The Parking Lot is a simple but powerful active-learning tool: a dedicated space, physical or digital, where students can “park” their questions, comments, or reflections for later discussion. This allows a session to keep its flow while assuring students that their contributions will be acknowledged.

I first encountered this tool during a two week professional development course on Competency-Based Education and Training (CBET) delivery organized by my university.

I left the training with many ideas for making my teaching more interactive, but the Parking Lot stayed with me as a practical, low-cost strategy I could implement immediately.

A few months later, in early September 2025, I have the privilege of leading an inaugural 40-Hour Mediation Training and Certification program, a capacity-building initiative for students and staff members.

As project lead, I handled admissions and could tell from the applications that we had a mix of students from different years and one staff member. I worried that students from lower years might hold back and that quieter voices might be lost. I wanted every participant to feel their questions, comments, and opinions mattered.

During the pre-training meeting, I asked the trainers if I could introduce the Parking Lot as a way to encourage engagement, and they graciously agreed.

Bringing the Parking Lot to Life

On the first day of the training, I wrote PARKING LOT on a manila sheet, taped it to the front wall near the exit, and placed sticky notes on each participant’s table. The trainers invited me to explain how it worked.

I explained the purpose of the parking lot and encouraged participants to write their questions on sticky notes at any point in the day, during sessions, breaks, or even early the next morning, if they were not ready to raise their hand.

The results were immediate and encouraging. By the end of the first day, the Parking Lot had several notes posted. The trainers reviewed and addressed them the following morning, and participants continued to engage with it throughout the week.

Some who started by writing anonymous notes eventually became confident enough to ask questions aloud. The trainers later confirmed that the Parking Lot had improved participation and enriched the discussions.

This success made me curious to see what would happen if I tried it in my regular semester classes, which were about to begin the following week.

Applying the Parking Lot in My Classes

It was my first class of the semester, and I wanted to set the tone for participation. I was teaching a fourth year second semester class on Alternative dispute Resolution.

This time, I didn’t use the Parking Lot just to collect questions — I used it to invite feedback and spark discussion.

The first question I asked was “What rules should govern our class this semester?” Students wrote their suggestions on sticky notes, and we created a “social contract” for the semester, another active learning technique I am experimenting with.

I read the suggestions aloud and asked students, “What does this rule mean for us as a class?” or “How might we apply this rule in practice?” Their answers led to rich discussion, and I saw the power of shared responsibility as play when we agreed on the class rules, their application and consequences for both the students and the teacher.

I then used the Parking Lot to ask questions to introduce the course I was teaching that semester: “What do you think is conflict?”, “What do you think is a dispute?”, “What is the difference?” Reading their answers helped me identify and gently correct misconceptions without putting anyone on the spot. The class became so interactive that students were surprised when time was up.

Motivated by the positive results, later that same day, I used the Parking Lot in my first-year, second-semester on Legal Research & Writing class.

I asked students to write down on the sticky notes why they chose to study law and what they hoped to do with their degree. I told them that their reasons could serve as a compass something to help them find direction, stay true to their path, and never lose sight of their reason for being in law school when the journey becomes challenging.

I read their answers aloud, offered encouragement, and connected their aspirations back to the course outcomes. For example, I reminded them that to become a defender of human rights, one must not only know how to find the correct law but also be capable of writing clearly and persuasively.

This exercise gave even the quietest students a voice and set a tone of openness and shared purpose for the rest of the semester.

Lessons Learned

In the three instances I have applied the Parking Lot with different groups of students, I have seen it:

Activate students’ thinking early as they process the material and reflect on what they are learning.

Open up discussion by creating a safe space where every student’s voice can be heard.

Reveal misconceptions and allow them to be addressed gently, without putting anyone on the spot.

Connect student contributions to learning outcomes, helping them see why what they wrote matters to the course.

Encourage students to take ownership of their learning, which builds confidence and keeps them engaged.

Create opportunities for mentorship, by affirming students’ ideas, encouraging them, and guiding them as they think about their future career paths.

Reflection

This experience brought me to the realization that innovation in teaching, even in public universities where resources are often limited, does not need complicated technology or big budgets.

A manila paper sheet, some sticky notes, and a willingness to listen can transform the classroom.

Most of all, this experience affirmed why I teach: to create spaces where every student, confident or quiet, can grow.

Seeing students engaged, sharing openly, and losing track of time because they are so absorbed in the conversation is one of the most rewarding experiences I can have as an educator.

What You Can Do Tomorrow

Bring a manila sheet and sticky notes to class, tape the sheet where students can see it as they leave, and invite them to post their questions, answers or reflections.

Review and address a few notes immediately or at the start of the next class. You may be surprised how quickly even the quietest students start to contribute.

J. Muthoni Mwangi, LL.B, PGDip Law, LL.M, is an Assistant Lecturer at JKUAT School of Law – Karen Campus, an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, an Associate Member of CIArb, and an Accredited Mediator with SDRC. She served as Project Lead for the inaugural JKUAT 40-Hour Mediation Training & Certification and is passionate about learner-cantered legal education, mentoring the next generation of mediators, and promoting access to justice.

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November 3, 2025