When Teaching Goes Bad - First Day Activities

Date

2016-04-09

Authors

Curtis, Drew A.
Cordell-McNulty, Kristi L.
Sport, Brooke J.
Good, Cody
Downing, Tyler J.

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Abstract

Some first day of class activities are inspiring; others are not, but does the quality of a first day activity influence student motivation and engagement? Some suggest that the first day of class matters, it sets the stage for the semester, and deserves forethought (McKeachie & Svinicki, 2006). Researchers have suggested that first day activities influence student engagement (Curtis & Hart, 2013) and in particular, activities may be helpful for increasing student self-perceptions and instructor impressions compared to going over the syllabus (Curtis & Cordell-McNulty, 2015). The purpose of the current research study was to investigate the effects of a good or a bad first day teaching activity on student self-perceptions, first impressions of an instructor, perceived autonomy support, perceived competence, and relatedness.

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Keywords

teaching pedagogy, self-perception, perceived autonomy support, relatedness to instructor, first day of class, college

Citation