Overcoming Academic Cynicism: Some Suggestions for a Joyful Teaching Experience

Author(s): David M. Newman

Source: Teaching Sociology, Vol. 19, No. 1 (Jan., 1991), pp. 48-53
Published by: American Sociological Association
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 OVERCOMING ACADEMIC CYNICISM: SOME SUGGESTIONS
FOR A JOYFUL TEACHING EXPERIENCE*

DAVIDM. NEWMAN
DePauw University

Many explanations have been offeredfor the sorry state of undergraduateeducation. One
that has been overlooked is the attitude toward students and the philosophy of education
brought to the classroom by the instructor.Cynicism, indifference, and low expectations
pervade the undergraduateteaching experience. An alternativephilosophy thatfocuses on
positive expectations and mutual respect is offered here. I recommendtechniques that are
designed to make sociology courses enjoyable, noncompetitive,nonstratified,and relevant
to the lives of students.

Recently Rau and Baker (1989) discussed
quite persuasively how the goals of large re-
search institutions underminequality under-
graduateeducation.Theirsis the latestillustra-
tion of a growingprofessionalconcernwith the
stateof the contemporarycollege learningen-
vironment(e.g., Sykes 1988). Explanationsfor
the problemsof undergraduateeducationcen-
teraroundsuch issues as university-levelfiscal
concerns,which producesuch impedimentsto
teachingas largeclass sizes andbudgetarycon-
straints(Bassis 1986);facultymembers'inatten-
tionto teachingandtheprivatizationof theclass-
room(Associationof AmericanColleges 1985);
and, of course,an academicmission thatover-
emphasizesresearchto the detrimentof quality
teaching(Brooks 1987; Clark 1986; Goldsmid
andWilson 1980).Solutionslikewisehavebeen
numerous,rangingfromcalls forsweepinginsti-
tutionalchanges(e.g.,RauandBaker1989;Bas-
sis 1986) to tangibleclassroom-levelmodifica-
tions (e.g., Billson 1986; Browne and Litwin
1987; Friedrichs1987; Goldsmid and Wilson
1980; Pestello 1987).
FACULTYATTITUDESTOWARDSTUDENTS
Although useful and important, these ap-
proachesoverlooka moretroublesomebut less
obvious aspect of the problem. I refer to the
solidificationof a ratherdisdainfulprofessional
attitudetowardstudentsand,by implication,to-
wardtheedllcationalprocessitself.It hasbecome
all too commonforinstructors to approachteach-
ingwiththebeliefthatstudentsgenerallyaredefi-
* The author is grateful to Jodi O'Brien, Susan
Pitchford,JamesMannon,andthreeanonymousreviewers
for theircommentson earlierversions of this paper.
cient in overall preparation,are increasingly
more self-concered and vocationallyoriented
(Bassis 1986), and lack the skills to evaluate
sociologicalconceptscritically(Fredericksand
Miller 1985;Sullivan1982).
These beliefs have become a drivingforce
behindmuchof college instruction.In combina-
tion with declining administrativesupportfor
teaching,more and more facultymembersare
experiencing a sense of helpless resignation,
indifference, and alienation (Bassis 1986).
Otherscome to loathe their time in the class-
roomandresentits intrusionon moreimportant
careerconcerns.This situationhas led some to
embracethe rathersinisternotion that if their
studentsaren'tmiserable,they aren'tlearning:
"No pain, no gain."l Too often the perceived
anxietylevel of studentsbecomes a measureof
teaching effectiveness. The instructorbeams
with pride when he or she hears how much
students dread the examinationsand feels a
sense of professionalfulfillmentwhen thisrep-
utationbecomes part of the common knowl-
edge thatmakes up the studentculture.
As a consequence,the joy of teachingand
learning has disappearedfor many students
and instructors.I am arguing,quite simply,for
1
Certainly a meaningful learning experience in-
volves some pain. A degree of discomfort must be in-
volved in discovering troubling facts about one's world
and one's life. One of the unique blessings of sociology
(or curses, depending on one's perspective) is the ability
to help "comfortable"studentsconfront the realities of a
society characterizedby injustice, inequity, and ideolog-
ical half-truths. I am suggesting here that this can be
accomplished withoutarbitrarilyimposing on the student
an autocratic pedagogical method that he or she soon
grows to dread. Hence "pain" here refers to the
instructor's overall approach rather than to the rocky
course of self-discovery experienced by the student.

48 TeachingSociology, 1991, Vol. 19 (January:48-53)

OVERCOMINGACADEMIC
OVERCOMINGACADEMICCYNICISM
CYNICISM
a change in pedagogical philosophy: a new
attitudebuilt on mutual respect and positive
expectationsas well as on a concertedeffort to
maketheclassroomapleasurableand challenging
experience.I suggestthatthesolutionto theprob-
lems of undergraduateeducationlies as much
in addressingthe instructor'sperceptualworld
as in changing the structureof academe. Our
beliefs, expectations, and attitudes motivate
much of our social behavior (Lindesmith,
Strauss, and Denzin 1975). Surely our ap-
proachto the classroomis no exception.Unless
we speak to these factors, calls for structural
changes in the edncation industry (e.g., Rau
and Baker 1989) will fall on deaf ears.
I presentthe following simple principlesin
order to help make teaching and learning a
gratifyingexperience. None of these are new.
Several have been mentionedby othersin dis-
cussing particularteaching techniques.To my
knowledge, however,these principleshave yet
to be presented explicitly as elements of a
single overall philosophyof education.
PHILOSOPHYOF EDUCATION
LEARNING
DOESNOTHAVETOBEA DREADFUL
EXPERIENCE
Much as we hate to admitit, instructorsare, to
varyingdegrees, parteducatorand partenter-
tainer. If presented in a vapid manner, the
greatestinsightin the worldwill be lost in a sea
of yawns and lifeless stares. Conversely, all
flash and no substancemay earn an instructor
high markson course evaluationsbut will not
create a substantial learning experience for
students.Thus one of the majortasks we face
is to make the materialexciting and informa-
tive while not allowing it to be overpoweredby
"bells and whistles."
As countlessothersbeforeme have argued,
all aspectsof a course, with a little thoughtand
preparation,can be made thought-provoking
without being tedious and challenging and
without being painful. Billson (1986) offers
severalpracticaltechniquesfor makingteach-
ing moreinteractiveandtherebyimprovingthe
classroom experience. Friedrichs(1987) dis-
cusses ways in which instructorscan make
their classes more personal by using experi-
ences from their own lives to illustratepartic-
ularconcepts. Browne and Litwin (1987) pro-
49
vide a series of methodsdesigned to facilitate
critical thinkingin the classroom.
One technique that I have found particu-
larly helpful is the use of small-groupdiscus-
sions anddemonstrations.These easily can add
spice to a course while also relieving the in-
structorof the burdenof daily monologues. In
view of the breadthof materialthat sociology
touches, it is easy to find topics that students
want to discuss or thattap contemporarycon-
troversy.Forexample,studentsin smallgroups
canbe askedtoreachconsensuson someimport-
ant or controversial area such as factors that
predictmaritalsuccess (Watcke1982), theper-
ceived seriousness of certain deviant acts
(Lovely 1985), the subjective and biased na-
ture of social control (Huff 1985; Klemke
1985), or how far individualsare willing to go
in their zeal to restorelaw and order(Rogers
1986). I have found these exercises to be most
successful when studentsfirst work on a task
alone and thenmeet in small groupsto discuss
theirideas and attemptto achieve some agree-
ment within the group. This process enables
students to give some thought to their argu-
ments before coming togetherto discuss them
with others. After 20 minutes or so, groups
reporttheirresults to the rest of the class; this
step leads to furtherdiscussion.
Anotherareathatcanbe madeless fearsome
andmoreenjoyableis examinations,thebaneof
studentand instructoralike. I have found that
much of students'troublewith examinations,
particularlyessay examinations,arisesfromex-
ternallyimposed time constraints.To alleviate
the problem(andstill obtaina reliablemeasure
of theirperformance)I providestudentswith a
set of essay questionsone week before the ex-
aminationdate. I encouragethemto studywith
others and/orto consult with me during their
preparation.On examinationday I choose a
subset of these questions,quoted verbatim,to
constitutethe test
This approachhas several importantbene-
fits. First, it reduces the pressure to create
answers under the clock. The cognitive work
that must be done upon initial exposure to a
questionshouldhave takenplace already.Sec-
ond, it maintainsthe expectationthat students
become conversantwith all facets of the mate-
rial.Unless they havefail-safepsychicpowers,
they do not know which questions will be
chosen; hence they must be well-preparedin
all areas. Third,students'uncontrolledaccess
to previousexaminations(e.g., from fraternity
50
or sororitytest files) becomes a nonissue be-
cause different subsets of questions can and
should be chosen each term.Finally,and most
important,students enjoy this approach.Not
only do they appreciate that the element of
surprisehas been removed from the process;
they also are willing to accept sole responsibil-
ity for theirperformance.
In sum,partof our taskas instructorsshould
be to provide studentswith an enjoyable and
comfortableatmospherein which to learn.This
can be accomplishedwithout sacrificingaca-
demicrigor.Studentswho look forwardto com-
ing to class and who know what to expect will
be in a frameof mindconduciveto learning.The
following principleselaborateon this ideal.
LEARNINGDOES NOT HAVETO BE
COMPETITIVE
A byproductof living in this individualisticera
is a belief that classroom performanceis a
zero-sumgame. Thatis, if a certainnumberof
people are to succeed a certain number by
necessity must fail. The unfortunateconse-
quenceis thatstudentsare encouragedto com-
pete against one anotherratherthanto cooper-
ate with one another.Some critics might argue
thatthis situationsimply preparesstudentsfor
the "realworld,"where competitionis essential
forsurvival.In thecontextof education,however,
extremecompetitivepressuresmay increasethe
likelihoodof destructiveaction (e.g., hoarding
limited common resources such as reserve li-
braryreadings).
Instructorsarenot immuneto thebelief that
a certainnumberof studentswill do well and
a certain number will do poorly (Pestello
1987), hence the prevalent use of the bell-
shapedcurve. The "curve"arbitrarilyimposes
a particulartypeof distributionwhen we do not
and cannot know whethersuch a distribution
exists. Moreover,it leads to a certaindegreeof
caprice in grading practices. The notion that
the majorityof the class will receive Bs andCs,
for instance,creates excessively artificialcut-
off points and gradeallocations.
In my courses, students'gradesdependen-
tirely on their own masteryof the material.If
everyone gains a thorough understandingof
the material, everyone will receive a good
grade.The motivationto compete with others
for scarcehigh gradesis removed.Thereforeit
is in the students' best interest to help one
TEACHING
TEACHINGSOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY
anotherwhen necessary,a point stressedheav-
ily throughoutthe term.
To facilitatethe atmosphereof cooperation
I use an anonymouspeer critiqueapproachto
writing assignments. The procedure usually
workslike this:A few weeks into the semester,
studentssubmita one-pagedescriptionof their
papertopic. They are free to choose any topic
if it is relevantto course material.I ask themto
pose a specific question that they will answer
systematicallyin theirpapers.A roughdraftof
the paper is due about two-thirdsof the way
throughthe course.
At thatpoint the studentshandin two cop-
ies of theirdraft:one goes to me and the other,
whichdoes not includetheauthor'sname,goes
to another student in the class for critique.
Before the exchange of papers I hand out a
three-pageevaluationguide that studentsuse
to assess the paperthey arereading.It consists
of a seriesof Likert-typeitemspertainingto the
clarity of expression and the content of the
paper as well as to overall impressions (e.g.,
did they like it? Did they learnanythingnew?
Did it seem as if the authorknew what he or
she was writing about?). Students also are
askedto Trovideadditionalcommentsandsug-
gestions. A week or so after turningin their
drafts, they receive two sources of feedback
about theirwriting:one from a fellow student
andone fromme. Thentheyareencouraged(or
required,if the class is small enough) to meet
with me to discuss the commentsand sugges-
tions thatthey received on theirpapers.
Althoughat firststudentsdo not thinkthey
will like this procedure-because it appearsto
them that they are writing two term papers
insteadof one-they soon realize thatit helps
their writing immensely. Because others, in-
cluding their peers, are reading and judging
their work before it is to be graded,they start
to take more pride in their writing. As a side
benefit they derive a greatdeal of insightfrom
theirrole as evaluator.Studentsrarelyreceivethe
opportunityto see whatclassmatesare writing
aboutor, moreimportant,how they write.This
2A copy of the peer evaluationform is availablefrom
the author.If theinstructorisconcernedaboutthe students'
ability to critiquea fellow student's paper adequately,it
would be wise to devote some class time to lessons in
evaluatingpapers.I havefoundthatstudentssometimesare
reluctantto judge theirpeers' academicperformance,so a
mini-workshopon whatto look for in the contentandstyle
of someone else's writing and a lesson on the value of
honest constructivecriticismare often helpful.
OVERCOMINGACADEMIC
OVERCOMINGACADEMICCYMCISM
CYNICISM 51
51

exercise allows them to scrutinize a class- unknowingly may possess a fair amount of
mate's writing.Furthermore,they come to re- sociological insight. For instance, they all
alize thatwritingis a process, which cannotbe come from families of some sort;they have all
done well in a vacuum(i.e., withoutfeedback been through a formal educational system;
from others),and thatconstructivecriticismis they all interact with others and care what
not a sign of failure. othersthink.Thereforethey have muchto offer
Although this method works quite well, I and we have much to learn from them. My
mustpoint out some potentialdifficulties.One studentsin a marriageand family course once
obvious problem is the difference in students' spent an entireclass periodteachingme about
critical abilities. Some students will be as- contemporarydatingpatternsand attitudeson
signeda criticwho offers in-depthanalysisand college campuses.
valuable suggestions. Others, however, will Successful teachers are those who probe
have a criticwho gives thepaperonly a cursory into the untestedand unknownby challenging
reading.Unfortunatelythisproblemis outof the not only the students but themselves. Such
instructor'scontroland is subjectto the whims probing is possible, I believe, only if the
of randomassignment.I deal with it as well as teacheris willing to abandonthe role of "teller
I can by stressing the importance of honest of truth,"admit deficits in knowledge, and
criticismand,as mentionedearlier,by providing approach others (including students) to fill
instructionon how to evaluatepapers. these deficits.
A second problem is that this procedure One of the most importantand most diffi-
favors studentswho have access to computers cult tasks, then, is to breakdown or at least to
or word processors.They can make revisions weaken the authority structureof the class-
and adjustmentseasily, whereas studentswho room withoutlosing the students'respect and
have no such access must rewrite their drafts without losing respect for them. Early in the
for final submission. For this reason, I allow term I spend a great deal of time bridgingthe
studentsto handwritefirst draftsif they wish. gap between teacher and students. From the
Finally,there is a potentiallogistical prob- first day of class I admit that I am not the
lem. Whenthe firstdraftsare submittedI gather ultimateexperton theparticularsubjectwe are
upall thepapers,checkthenamesof thestudents studying:althoughthe studentsmightnot real-
who turnedthem in, and redistributethemran- ize it, they have been "amateursociologists"
domlyfor critique.Only studentswho handin a for many years. I tell them thatI want to learn
first draft receive another student's paper to as much from them as (I hope) they will learn
evaluate. This simple procedurecan become from me. I also stress thatlearningis an inter-
problematicif a studenthandsin a draftafterthe active process,a give and take, a dialogue,not
exchangehastakenplace.Therefore it is essen- a monologue.
tial to stressthe timelycompletionof theassign- The goal of this classroomsocializationis
mentand,if necessary,to imposestrictpenalties the developmentof rapportTo thisend, person-
on writersof late papers. alizing the classroomby bringingin one's own
life experiences can be extremely helpful
LEARNINGDOES NOT HAVETO BE STRAIFIEED (Friedrichs1987).Itshowsthestudentsthatthey
are trustedwith intimatepieces of information.
Because we have received far more training Furthermore, it enablesthe instructor to break
thanour students,it is temptingto claim a down the artificialbarrierbetweenpersonaland
monopoly on wisdom. We overlook the fact professional life-to become, if you will, a
that our students have hands-on experience "real"person.A few weeks into thetermwe are
with many of the topics covered in class and sharinglife experiencesand,moreimportant, an-
alyzing them for their sociologicalrelevance.
3 I have found this method to be Another technique for creating a non-
equally effective in
both upper-and lower-divisionclasses (althoughthe older stratifiedlearningenvironment is theuseof mid-
studentsare somewhatmore sophisticatedin their critical termcourse evaluations,which give studentsa
abilities).I also have triedto use this procedure"non-anon- senseof sharedresponsibilityfor the class. It is
ymously."Unfortunately,however, studentsaremuch less common practice at most institutionsto hand
willing to offer criticism when their identities are known. out evaluationformsto studentson or nearthe
Hence I have found the anonymousprocedureto be more
effective, althoughI still give studentsthe option of meet- last day of class. Results usually are not re-
ing with their critics if both partiesare agreeable. ceived until well into the next semester. By
52 TEACHINGSOCIOLOGY

then, however, it is too late to make adjust- make them aware of how they came to think
ments in the evaluatedcourse and too late to in that way and to acknowledge the existence
implementchanges for the following term. of alternatives.
More important, this heavy reliance on Moreover, the creation of a "low threat"
end-of-term appraisals devalues feedback environment(Billson 1986) can makestudents
from students, who come to feel that their comfortable enough to share this process of
opinionsand commentsaboutthe class arenot self-examinationwith the rest of the class. To
takenseriously.Mid-termevaluationsgive stu- aid them in their introspections,I encourage
dents the opportunityto offer suggestions for them to write papers in which they analyze
improvingthe course duringthe term,when it personalexperiences using sociological theo-
mattersmost. This practice reinforces the be- ries andconcepts learnedin class (e.g., experi-
lief that the course belongs to all involved, ences with prejudiceor discrimination,the dy-
studentsas well as instructor.After I collect namics of their intimacies, instances of self-
theirevaluations,we usually spendsome class presentation).
time on theircommentsand suggestions. Sociology also concerns the world around
Viewing studentsas peers (albeitless well- us. A glance at any newspaperon any given day
informedpeers) is loathsometo many instruc- will reveal many stories of sociological im-
tors, who fancy themselves erudite peda- portance.Studentscan be encouragedto learn
gogues and spendan inordinateamountof time thatsociology can help them to understandthe
on a Goffmanesquepresentationof theacademic importantissues of theirworld.I alwaysdevote
master.This shouldcome as no surprise.After the firstfive to ten minutesof class (which tend
all, we have too much invested in a profes- to be lost anyway because of late-arrivingstu-
sional identity to allow ourselves to become dents and paper shuffling) to a currentnews
chums with our students;certainly I am not story thatrelateseitherto specific topics being
advocatingit. InsteadI am suggesting thatthe discussed in class or to sociology in general.
facade of academicelitism can and often does By the end of every semester I have taught,
interferewith learningand thata nonstratified several studentshave reportedthatthey learn-
approachmay be helpful. ed more about the world aroundthem during
those 10-minute periods than they had ever
LEARNING DOESNOTHAVETOBEIRRELEVANT imaginedpossible in a sociology course. Some
even admit to tearing articles out of papers
themselves (to the chagrinof family or room-
Sociology, quite simply,is aboutus. One of our
goals as teachersshouldbe to provide students mates, I imagine)and occasionallybringthem
with the tools to analyze their lives and the to me to sharewith the class.
social worldthey inhabit.Frequently,however,
instructorsmiss the opportunityto help stu-
dents see themselves in what is being studied;
therebytheylose an invaluablechance to make CONCLUSION
the classroom as well as the course material
personallyrelevantand applicable. I present these four principles in an effort to
Making sociology personally relevant to help instructorsmake their courses more en-
studentscreates a potential problem.The dis- joyable and more successful. I have no empir-
cipline is inherently threatening in many ical dataon the effectiveness of implementing
ways. The traditionof benign disruptionhas this philosophy.My judgmentsof its value are
a long history (Goldsmid and Wilson 1980), based primarily on students' comments, re-
and it is true that "a gain in knowledge is a sponses, and evaluations,but also on my own
loss of innocence." Trying to induce students sense of efficacy andthepleasureI derivefrom
to see themselves in what they are studying teachingthe courses.
or to face "inconvenientfacts" (Weber 1958) To some readers these suggestions might
may lead them to question strongly held as- appear to be excessively pollyanaish-or,
sumptions about how the world works. This worse yet, to be an exercise in naive sociology.
process can be uncomfortable and can pro- Some might say that arguing for changes in
voke frustration.I assure students, however, instructors'attitudesandperceptionsis simple-
that my task is not to preach or to make them mindedin view of the institutionalnatureof the
change the way they think, but simply to problem. Certainly subjective intentions and
OVERCOMING
OVERCOMINGACADEMIC
ACADEMICCYNICISM
CYNICISM
values are influenced strongly by structural
arrangements(Weber 1958). The externally
imposedpressureson ourowncareersfrequently
leave us little time or energyfor improvingour
teaching(Bassis 1986). Nevertheless,I believe
that we must take some responsibilityfor im-
proving the situation. Accordingly this paper
has been less an argumentfor a majorrestruc-
turingof sociology courses than an appealfor
a change in subjectivefocus. My specific sug-
gestions are less importantthanan assessment
of one's own philosophyof educationandgen-
eral attitude toward students. I present these
techniques because they have helped me
achieve the goals I set for myself. Othersmay
find different methods more suited to their
particularstyle of teaching.
In light of the tendency for established
beliefs and schemata to persevere (Fiske and
Taylor 1984; McGuire 1985), a change in the
perceptual approach to teaching will not be
easy. In the absence of external incentives,
manywill choose the low-riskoption of teach-
ing as they have always taught.If the prophe-
cies of doom are accurate,however, we must
go beyond paying lip service to improvingthe
quality of undergraduateeducation; we must
attend to the things that we personally can
controland change.
4I wishto acknowledgethecommentsof ananonymous
reviewerfor stressingthe importanceof this issue. Unfor-
tunately,however, I am undermy own set of constraintsin Rogers,J.W.1986. "TeachingCriminology."
addressing the problem more fully. Those interested in
pursuingthe more generaltopic of institutionalvalues are Sullivan,T. 1982. "IntroductorySociology ThroughLitera-
encouragedto consult Weber(1975).
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David M. Newman is an AssistantProfessorof Sociol-
interests include marriage and family, deviance, social
self presentationalstrategieswithin intimaterelationships.
Addresscorrespondenceand requestsfor reprintsto David
DNEWMAN@DEPAUW.