Teaching Large Classes

Large classes pose unique challenges for faculty and students. To name a few, class management, interaction, communication, teaching styles, learning styles, assessment, and attrition. Are there techniques and strategies that actually enhance teaching and learning in large classes? Yes, but they vary of course depending on the class. The resources on this site are here for you to explore some of the possibilities.

If you have suggestions or comments for this site, please contact us via the Comments or Suggestions section below.

 

 

Sections on this Page

Comments or Suggestions?

If you would like to comment or make suggestions on any of the material in this site, click on this icon to access the comment form. The icon is located at the bottom of each page of this site.

Faculty Survey Results for Teaching Large Classes

The information in this site was prompted by the results of a survey that was sent to faculty in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences in February 2007. See the results of the survey.

Lecture, Communication, and Interaction

The large classroom at first seems to stifle teaching and learning. What techniques are there that could break down some of the teaching and learning barriers? Topics in this section are

  • Lecturing and Active Learning
  • Guiding the Learning Process
  • Teacher Immediacy
  • Group Work and Collaboration
  • Communication in an Online Class

Read more about lecture, communication and interaction.

Assessments

How do you assess students in a large class? Do you use exams as an assessment tool or a learning tool? Do you give guidelines to your students? Can you promote higher order thinking/critical thinking with multiple choice questions? Can you have students do group or collaborative work in large classes? Topics in this section are

  • Clear Guidelines
  • Purpose of Exams
  • Exams (Quizzes) in WebCT Vista
    • Quizzes
    • Self-Tests
    • Surveys
  • Formative Feedback
    • Assessing Student Knowledge for Instructor Feedback
    • Assessing Student Knowledger for Student Feedback
    • Assessing the Course, Teaching, and Materials
  • Constructing Multiple Choice Tests for Critical Thinking

Read more about assessments in large classes.

Online Technology and Large Classes

Blended Instruction

Blended instruction is a combination of face-to-face classroom instruction that makes use of online technologies such as WebCT Vista to enhance class participation.

Large Face-to-Face Classes vs. Distance Learning

What is the difference between teaching a large class and teaching a class completely online? They share certain similarities, but there is probably better compliance with assignments and learning outcomes in online classes.

WebCT Vista for Large Classes

WebCT Vista (as you probably know) is an online course management system. It allows you to teach fully or partially online. It can also be an effective way of supplementing a large classroom. Scared of technology? Don't want to go there? Well, maybe not, but if you knew how much it could help you teach large classes, you might change your mind.

Read more on how technology could enhance teaching and learning in large classes.

Links to External Sites on Teaching Large Classes

The following sites were selected based on content that was relevant to teaching large classes. They are simply here to inform you that you are not the only person in the world teaching a large class, and that other institutions have put some thought and time into the problems associated with teaching large classes. If there were no problems, these sites wouldn't exist, right?

  1. CIPD's Video Resource for Large Class Instructors
  2. Video on Teaching Large Classes (Requires RealPlayer)
  3. A Survival Handbook for Teaching Large Classes
  4. Handouts from the 1/15/04 Faculty Roundtable "Humanizing large classes" - University of California, Davis
  5. Teaching Large Classes - University of Western Ontario
  6. Center for Teaching Excellence - University of Maryland
  7. Center for Teaching Excellence - University of Montana
  8. Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching - Iowa State University
  9. Preparing to Teach the Large Lecture Course - University of California, Berkeley
  10. Teaching Large Classes Project - The University of Queensland, Australia
  11. Large Class FAQ - Indiana University, Bloomington