Dealing With Indifference

Jena at Gewgaw Writings asked me to post about dealing with indifferent students. Although, I don’t have any scholastic or research background in this area (educational psychology), I do have over 40 years of actual teaching experience (most at the college level, but four years at a high school) from which to draw.

So, Jena, I have been thinking a lot over the last few days, trying to remember how I handled or probably would have handled indifferent students. The first thought that crossed my mind was, “What does Jena mean by ‘indifferent’?” Apathetic? Quiet? Unmotivated? From a teacher’s point of view, “indifferent” could mean many things. However you define “indifferent,” you probably see an indifferent student as a problem for the teacher. Possibly, the student doesn't contribute to class discussion, or put forth much effort, or do well on exams.

It’s hard for a teacher to know why a student is indifferent. The student may be frightened of the class or of the teacher. The student may not like the subject or find the material difficult. The student may have other concerns that take precedence over classroom assignments such as family, job, or other classes--any or all of these.

My response to indifference in my classroom was typically measured. I didn't call out indifferent students, but I would try to talk to them privately to see what was happening in their lives that caused their indifferent behavior in class. More often than not, most were apologetic and invariably had a justifiable reason for their behavior. I reminded myself that although they were indifferent, they were at least there.

I worked hard to get indifferent students to become involved in the class—not by directly confronting them, but by encouraging class participation and making certain that each student’s contribution to class discussion was treated with respect. There was always a lot of discussion in my classes, but very little grilling. I wanted students to feel free to express their ideas (after all, if you can’t talk in a communication class, where can you?). Even so, some students would go the entire semester and remain mute. This did not necessarily mean they were indifferent, as I discovered when I read some of their impassioned essays.

I did some Internet searching, checking keywords such as indifferent, apathy, motivation, student, teacher, and learn. I looked at the popular press as well as academic research. At the college level, student apathy is typically concerned with campus political activism (probably not what Jena had in mind). I found lots of accounts from teachers at all levels offering personal suggestions to deal with student indifference--and many of these accounts were decades old, indicating to me that student indifference is not a new problem.

However, an overriding theme of many teachers' suggestions involved class activities that went beyond the classic two-way grading scheme in which students produce and instructors respond (with a grade). Many teachers suggested methods involving additional steps--possibly group activities, individual projects that are prepared and presented to a larger audience than just the teacher (the class?, family? the community?). When students begin to realize that what they do in class is relevant to their lives and that each step along the way (each assignment) prepares them for those lives, then hopefully they will become less indifferent--and more motivated.

I hope this helps, Jena. What about you? Were (are) you an indifferent student? What can teachers do to help students overcome their indifference? Jena and I would both love to hear any personal experiences you'd like to share.

(photo by herman_cm @ www.flickr.com)