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Navigating Challenging Moments

Are you concerned about disruptions related to current events occurring in your classroom? Are you unsure of what to do if a discussion on a complex topic goes awry?

This page provides some strategies and resources for navigating challenging moments so that student learning remains at the fore.

Be Proactive

The best strategy is to prepare. This begins with establishing a classroom environment that fosters trust and common purpose among students.

Develop community agreements for engagement.

Revisit the community agreements throughout the semester.

Adopt a Disposition for Dialogue

You, the instructor, set the tone for classroom discussion. Your disposition—the behavior you exhibit, and the language you use—serves as a model for students. Often, when students make a comment that we regard as problematic, what is needed from us is guidance so that we can engage students in thinking more carefully and critically about topics, and about their use of language.

Try these behaviors and language to demonstrate productive dialogue.

Behavior Language Demonstration

Stay curious

 “Tell me more.” This is an invitation for students to elaborate on and clarify their comments. This gives you more information about the students’ view so that you can respond more fully.

Reflect back

 “This is what I heard you say—is that what you meant?” This is an invitation for students to self-correct if the words they used don’t match their intentions. Similar to staying curious, this approach gives students a chance to rethink and restate their view—or to confirm it.

Bring focus

 “What led you to this point of view?”

This is an opportunity to get behind the words that were stated to the progression of thought and experience that may be at the foundation of their view. Bringing focus helps to provide context that is sometimes missing when opinions are shared.

Clarify

 “Can you say that in another way?”

This invites students to choose the best language to frame their views without censoring them.

Call forth

 “What are your thoughts on what you’ve been hearing?”

This is a way to bring in other voices, especially when one person or view has dominated the discussion. Calling forth opens a path for students who need more time to articulate their views or need some encouragement to share.

Redirect

 “I notice you feel strongly about this. What makes it important for you?”

This is a way to temper strong emotions that could potentially derail a discussion. It is also a way to shift energy away from conflict between students and toward reflection and context.

Anticipate topics that might generate conflict

Review your community agreement in advance. Explain how the topic ties to course objectives. Design discussion prompts that invite students to consider multiple perspectives and to probe more deeply their chosen beliefs. Provide students with tools for accessing data and source material to build their knowledge of the variety of perspectives around the topic. Identify in advance those opinions that are not in consideration because they lack evidence or have been debunked by the discipline.

Some resources offering excellent models for organizing dialogue across perspectives include:

Know When to Pause

Sometimes, despite our best efforts to be proactive and to model a disposition for dialogue, a disruption occurs. Tensions between students reach an impasse. The topic derails into chaos, making it impossible to salvage a discussion. A single voice dominates causing other students to disengage. Your leadership of the class is undermined, making it impossible to continue.

In these instances, it is best to pause.

Acknowledge the disruption. Indicate that the class needs to pause. Ask students to take five minutes to write quietly and anonymously about what they observed and how they are feeling in the moment. When the allocated time has ended, decide what the appropriate next steps might be:

Invite students who wish to share aloud what they wrote, making sure to let more reticent students speak first.

Ask the class how they want to move forward from the pause and what they need to resume a productive learning environment.

Dismiss the class, indicating that you will be available in your office if anyone needs to talk. Then, before resuming for the next class session, communicate your reflections about what happened and how you want to move forward.

Revisit your objectives and desired outcomes for the discussion and share those with the class.

But what if a student instigates conflict?

If you assess that a classroom disruption is due to a conduct issue, you are advised to document what happened and share it with your department chair, as well as share your concern with Student Conduct.

If you believe that a students’ disruptive behavior may be instigated by a group external to the university, and that you are being targeted based on the content of your scholarship, teaching, clinical care or service, consult the Faculty Support Guide available on the Faculty Affairs website, for resources for how to respond.

Need Timely Advice?

Consider these resources from our colleagues: