Sara Heitlinger, Belen Barros-Pena and Miranda Melcher
In this talk we will present a case study about how we introduced a mechanism to deal with anticipated difficult and sensitive discussions in a large lecture setting. The module was called Computer Science, Ethics and Society. It is a first year, mandatory, undergraduate class, started one year previously, and currently with 265 students. In this module we discuss topics that include discrimination and bias, and which can touch on people’s lived experiences of these issues.
In the presentation we will discuss how and why we approached LEaD for support, drawing on our prior experience from the previous year, in which student discussions got out of hand. We describe how the lecturers (Sara and Belen) worked with Miranda from LEaD to introduce a co- created class charter, which we presented and worked with students in the first lecture. The aim of the class charter was to set expectations of behaviour in the class discussions.
We will discuss some prior published examples and literature from other institutions, from which we drew inspiration, including the University of Michigan, Harvard University, and Vanderbilt University. We will also describe the ways in which we introduced a voting process into the co- creation of the class charter, and a moderation mechanism to help manage subsequent behaviour. We will describe how we facilitated this process, how students responded to the charter, and what happened in practice when conversations verged into the problematic and transgressive.
Loading...
Reload document 
Open in new tab References
Herr-Perrin, A. (2021). Six Tips for Cultivating a Trauma-Informed Higher Education Classroom at the Beginning of Each Semester. [online] Faculty Focus | Higher Ed Teaching & Learning. Available at: https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/effective-classroom-management/six-tips-for- cultivating-a-trauma-informed-higher-education-classroom-at-the-beginning-of-each-semester/ [Accessed 13 Mar. 2023].
Liberman, A., Rotarius, T. and Fottler, M. (2001). Constructive engagement: an integrative method of involving students in the learning process. J Health Adm Educ, 19(2).
University of Michigan. (n.d.). Guidelines for Discussing Difficult or High-Stakes Topics | CRLT. [online] Available at: https://crlt.umich.edu/publinks/generalguidelines#rules.
Teaching Controversial Issues. (2004). Available at: https://diversity.humboldt.edu/sites/default/files/teaching_controversial_issues- center_for_faculty_excellence-unc_chapel_hill.pdf [Accessed 13 Mar. 2023].
Harvard University the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning (n.d.). Group Agreements. [online] Available at: https://bokcenter.harvard.edu/group-agreements [Accessed 13 Mar. 2023].
Vanderbilt University. (n.d.). Difficult Dialogues. [online] Available at: https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/difficult-dialogues/.
