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Faculty Comments

“I find it really fascinating how much [my student consultant] is able to observe, which I cannot from my vantage point, and I mean this not only figuratively but also literally, as she has a line of sight into the space of the classroom which I do not have from where I stand. Her observations have helped to open up for me the space in the classroom in ways which I have not seen before.”

“I like that [my student consultant’s] presence—her comments, but her presence itself too—not only gives me the benefit of her lighthouse-like observations, but makes me observe from the same kind of remove, even as I am engaged in the everyday work of teaching the class. This split experience of my class as an immediate act and experience, but also a larger narrative that I’m looking down upon, is something I hope to carry into all my teaching.”

Student Comments

“This experience has made me increasingly alive to both the professor’s perspective and to my own responsibilities as a student in creating and maintaining a positive and effective learning environment for all members of the class.”

“My involvement [as a student consultant] has allowed me to view the experience of learning when I am not engaged in that role [of learner] myself.  If I don’t understand something that the professor is explaining, I try to figure out why I don’t understand it, as opposed to struggling how to write the course content in my notebook. This feeling provides a clear space for me to think about how a professor teaches and I learn, as opposed to what is being taught and learned.”

“The biggest change in myself is appreciating what everyone does on campus. Because during my freshman year I think I just kind of went through, I didn’t really make connections. I mean, I made connections with ������̳ students, but not staff members. And that’s really the biggest change in myself, saying that extra ‘thank you,’ really appreciating what everyone does—housekeepers and every staff member. It’s really a huge change in myself.”

Continue reading: Deepening awareness and engagement