I. Introduction
A. The presentation has 5 parts.1. This brief introduction.
2. Objectives/purposes of the first class meeting.
3. Preparation for the first day.
4. The first day.
5. The 10 Commandments for the first day of class.B. Discussion is encouraged.
C. A word of advice. Use what fits your needs, not everything! We will, on occasion, belabor the obvious, but you will find a few things to try next semester.
II. Objectives/Purposes of the First Class Meeting
A. Communicate the nature and content of your course.B. Introduce yourself.
C. Explain why students should take your course and how they will profit from it.
D Emphasize anything else you believe is important.
E. May differ depending on your goals, level and size of class, etc.
- Students have differing needs. First year students may need more detail and support.
F. Set a tone.
G. Gather data from students.
H. Assume that students will not retain details presented during the first class meeting. Repeat crucial information later.
III. Preparation for the First Day
A. Visit the classroom if you have not taught in it before to learn how to use the lights, sound system, computer equipment, etc. Do you need chalk, or a marker for a whiteboard?B. Decide on seating arrangements; lighting, music or silence; whether you will talk with students before you begin.
C. Think carefully about your goals.
- Do you see the first class meeting as mostly housekeeping, drawing students into the intellectual realm of the course, emphasizing the affective (interesting, students will like it), beginning your coverage of course material, or all four?
D. Write and update handouts and syllabus, and have sufficient copies printed.
IV. The First Day
A. Beginning1. Arrive early.2. Dress professionally. Many sources recommend this, and you can always dress down later.
3. Make sure all students belong in the course.
4. Ask if anyone wants to add the class, and either sign them in, start a waiting list, or tell them you cannot consider them, before doing anything else.
5. Start slowly. Students often have several first classes in one day.
- Help them settle down and focus on your course.
- Or, do something dramatic to help them focus on your course.
6. Bring copies of required texts/materials.
7. Obtain student e-mail addresses if you will be contacting them via e- mail or will have an electronic course bulletin board.
B. Basic Identifying Information (if included in syllabus, review it)
1. Course title and section, number of credits.2. Room and time(s) where class meets.
3. Room and times for examinations.
4. Prerequisites.
5. Important drop dates.
6. Information on TAs, if using them.
C. Instructors' Personal Information
1. Name and title.2. Office hours, e-mail address, phone, and web page address.
3. Office location (and directions with map if difficult to locate).
4. Policy on home phone number and calls, and times to call (if you wish).
5. How you wish to be addressed (e.g., Dr. Smith, Professor Smith, Ms. Smith, the Grand Guru Smith, the Great and Powerful Oz).
6. Educational background and professional experience and interests, particularly as they relate to this course.
7. Personal information you want students to know.
D. Texts and Other Materials
1. Text title, edition, author, date.
- State which texts are required or recommended and why.
- Tell students why you chose this text (e.g., author's credentials, readability).
- Tell students to buy the book.
- Ask if available in bookstore.
2. Location(s) of other assigned materials (e.g., reserved reading desk at library, web).
- Conditions for obtaining them (e.g., purchase, two-day reserve at library).
- If on reserve, number of copies.
- If using electronic materials (e.g., WEB sites), how and when you will assist students in accessing if they never have before.
3. Other required materials (e.g., purchase of calculator).
E. Course Description
1. Basic information regarding what the course is about (do not assume students have opened the text).2. Place in curriculum [why should I take this course (general education, major requirement?)].
3. Type of course (e.g., lecture, discussion).
4. Briefly review course objectives (important for emphasis on assessment).
- Cognitive (student understands "X" material).
- Affective (student appreciates "X").
- Behavior (student can do "X").
5. Any out-of-class opportunities (e. g., field trips), whether required, and cost.
6. Extra costs (e.g., laboratory fees).
7. Distribute and review your syllabus.
F. Course Requirements (you need not cover the entire syllabus verbally, but emphasize the following)
1. Explain exactly what a student is expected to do.
- Identify any required reading not lectured on.
- Estimate the student work load (how much time and preparation the course will require).
2. Reading assignments.
3. Attendance policy.
4. Number and type of tests or laboratory exercises.
- Study aids (will practice exam questions or outlines be provided?).
- How changes will be communicated (e.g., date of exam).
5. If films and videos are used, are students tested on their content?
6. Number and type of papers, expected content.
- Hand out a model paper, or place copies on reserve or on web.
7. Class participation (e.g., in-class, e-mail bulletin board).
8. Oral presentations.
9. Group work.
10. Important dates to highlight in syllabus (e.g., assignments, reviews for exams, tests, guest speakers).
G. Grading Procedures and Scales - Course Policies (you need not cover all but decide what to emphasize)1. Grades to be used (e.g., A/B, B/C, C/D).2. Use of absolute grading standards, curves, etc.
3. Policy on incomplete grades (e.g., "incompletes only given due to extreme circumstances").
4. Consider presenting grade distributions from previous classes.
5. If attendance is required, % of final grade.
6. % each paper and other projects count toward final grade.
- What contributes to a paper's grade (e.g., intellectual level, quality of writing, level of referenced material read).
- If you use a scoring grid for papers, distribute it.
7. % each exam counts toward final grade.
8. Use of letter grade for each exam or total points.
9. Types of exam.
- Multiple choice, short answer, matching, essay.
- Can students drop an item?
- Can students contest items? If so, describe procedure.
10. If there will be reviews prior to exams, discuss.
11. Rules for exams.
- No radios, tape players or headsets. In large classes, a picture ID? Other.
12. How you handle students missing class/exams because of academics, athletics, ill children, weather, etc.
13. Policy on makeup exams (e.g., "no makeup exams given unless the student has talked with the instructor. It is the student's responsibility to initiate this meeting. All makeup exams are given in room ____, on Tuesday, May ____ from 3:00 - 5:00 PM).
14. Policy on grades on makeup exams (e.g., instructor may deduct up to 10 points depending on reason exam was missed).
15. Quizzes, surprise or scheduled (can they be made up?).
16. How group work is graded.
17. Penalties for late work (e.g., "All assignments due at beginning of class on listed date. Grade penalized one letter grade for each day the assignment is late").
18. Extra credit policy (if any).
19. Policy on exams or assignments missed and not made up (e.g., fail the course, pass the course but receive an F on that assignment).
H. Academic Honesty Policy and Cheating
1. Review the academic dishonesty policy statement in your syllabus.2. Define how cheating is defined in the course (e.g., crib notes, plagiarism on papers, turning in someone else's work as own, purchasing term paper).
3. Talk about your efforts to minimize cheating and why doing so is important (e.g., responsibility to general society to emphasize moral behavior).
4. Tell students you reserve the right to meet with them about their assignments/exams and behavior (and will do so in private).
I. Course Rules
1. May students tape record lectures?2. Food in class.
3. Class decorum.
4. Assigned seating? No sitting in back rows of classroom if small class.
5. If in a laboratory, music, or art studio review, safety rules (for students and instruments' protection).
6. If teaching a laboratory or studio, give a tour if necessary, explaining use of equipment and rules as needed.
J. Student Questions (Many times students are reluctant to ask, so consider the following):
1. Content (what is the subject matter/content of this course?)2. Difficulty (can I do the work?)
3. Is the course fair?
4. Will you help students?
K. Tips On How To Do Well
1. Distribute or read letters to successors.2. Most learning occurs out of class.
3. How many times students should read each chapter.
4. How to prepare for each class.
5. Use study guide if available.
6. Come to class and take good lecture notes.
7. Review lecture notes for content and organization within a day of taking them.
8. Ask questions, discussion encouraged (if it is).
9. Obtain a tutor (does your honor society or club have a list?).
10. Study with academically strong peers.
11. Expected time devoted to class (rule of thumb is 2 or 3 hours out of class for each class hour).
12. Copy overhead material if instructor does not distribute a copy, or if not found in text or other readings.
13. Invite students with special needs (e.g., older student returning to school, foreign student, transfer student) to meet with you early in the semester.
14. Address of text Web page.
15. List of important and relevant campus resources (e.g., counseling center [test anxiety]), reading study center, writing center).
16. Ask students to obtain names, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of 2 or 3 classmates to be used for obtaining lecture notes, or anything missed when absent.
L. Setting the Tone
1. Concern for content. Begin lecturing or a class discussion?2. Make an assignment for the next class (relevant and important, never Mickey Mouse).
3. Concern for teaching quality and rapport. Do pet peeves exercise.
4. Relevancy exercise (e.g., something which shows students relevancy of course).
5. Learn students' names, call each student by name from a class list.
6. Getting to know students. Ask who is a major, a minor, etc.
7. Pre-test of some kind?
8. Ask students what they have heard about the class. Dispel myths about the course.
9. Ease student anxiety about the course (structure and clarity are most important).
- Use of humor (instructor receives 10% of all chocolate brought to class), or (I received my Ph.D. from Michigan State University, bonus points for wearing MSU apparel).
10. Emphasize student participation - have a discussion.
11. Ask questions that students can/will answer, to get them used to getting and answering questions.
12. Emphasize writing - have students write something.
13. Ease Student Concerns - an Icebreaker.
- People getting to know each other--have students introduce selves, year in school, major, hometown, hobbies, etc.
- Ask what their first day rituals are.
- Ask students what they are feeling the first day of class, and then share what you are feeling.
- Ask students to identify something they want to learn about in the course.
M. Other
1. If Department has work study moneys, ask who is eligible and tell students who to contact.2. If concerned about advising, ask who is an undeclared major and offer help with advising.
3. Announcements on honors society/club/important bulletin boards with information.
4. If student opinion/evaluation data will be gathered at a later date, mention this.
V. The Ten Commandments For The First Day of Class
1. Identify your goals: How you want to use the time, and why.2. Set the tone for the class, both by arranging the setting and by personal example.
3. Be organized and well prepared.
4. Arrive early.
5. Be prepared to stay after class to meet with students and answer even more questions.
6. Give students structure, describe the course clearly.
7. Avoid the implicit. If something is important, overtly cover the details.
8. Be patient. Beginning of semesters can be difficult for students.
9. Be calm. Despite any and all student behavior avoid sarcasm and aggressive verbal behavior
10. Be respectful of your students!
Recommended Readings
Davis, B. G. (1993). Tools For Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Diamond, R. M. (1998). Developing a learning-centered syllabus. In R. M. Diamond. Designing and Assessing Courses and Curricula: A Practical Guide (pp. 191-202). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Johnson, G. R. (1995). First Steps to Excellence in College Teaching (3rd ed.). Madison, WI: Magna Publications.
McKeachie, W. J. (1994). Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and theory for College and University Teachers. (9th ed.). Lexington, MA: D. C. Heath.
Nilson, L. B. (1998). Teaching At Its Best: A Research-Based Resource for College Instructors. Bolton, MA: Anker.
Perlman, B., & McCann, L. I. (1999). Student Perspectives on the First Day of Class. Teaching of Psychology, 26, 277-279.
Pica, T., Barnes, G. A., & Finger, A. G. (1990). Teaching Matters: Skills and Strategies for International Teaching Assistants. New York: Newbury House Publications.
Wolcowitz, J. (1984). The First Day of Class. In M. M. Gullette (Ed.). The Art and Craft of Teaching (pp. 10-24). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.