While it is easy to focus on your students as consumers of your content, making a connection with your students can foster classroom engagement by increasing rapport and reinforcing course content.

At the base level, you can understand your students by exploring their generational context. Take time to understand the Millennial generation by exploring current music, television shows, video games, social media apps, and technology. For example, many students enjoy watching The Big Bang Theory. I try to incorporate relevant clips into our first-year seminar, not only to reinforce the lesson, but to demonstrate that I can connect with their interests. Or, if something funny happens during class I might say, "There’s your next Yik Yak post!"

Next, you can understand your students as a specific population. Your institutional research or assessment office will have data related to your specific students. For example, based on data for our institution, I know students did not have to spend much time studying in high school to be successful. In the first-year seminar, I ask them whether they studied much in high school (even though I already know the answer). Now that I have connected with their background, I can proceed to explain that college will be very different and that they must learn new skills in order to succeed.

Finally, you can understand your students as unique individuals. Each student has a story of how he/she arrived at your institution, in addition to personal interests and hobbies, involvement in organizations, and aspirations for the future. As a direct approach, one of my favorite activities for the first day of class is to play Two Truths and a Lie. As an indirect approach, I ascertain more about my students through their homework assignments. For example, when students track their time, I can see what their interests are outside of the classroom. (Note: be sure to exercise caution when sharing personal information.)

To follow up on any of these ideas, please contact me at fglazer@nyit.edu. This Weekly Teaching Note was adapted from a contribution to the Teaching and Learning Writing Consortium hosted at Western Kentucky University and organized by Seneca College and New York Institute of Technology.

Resources

• Bart, M. (2011). The five R’s of engaging millennial students. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/the-five-rs-of-engaging-millennial-students/
• DeVaney, S. A. (2015). Understanding the millennial generation. Journal of Financial Service Professionals, 69(6), 11–14.
• wikiHow. How to play two truths, one lie. Retrieved from http://www.wikihow.com/Play-Two-Truths,-One-Lie

Contributor:
Sarah A. Forbes, Ph.D.
Director of Data Management and Reporting
Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
forbes@rose-hulman.edu
www.rose-hulman.edu/irpa