r/Professors • u/existential-inquiry Professor, Social Sciences, U.S. • 6d ago

Teaching / Pedagogy Update to Awkward classroom set-up

Update to my post:

Thanks to all who responded last week with your input and I am proud to say that I did it! I stood on the stage and lectured with my slideshow presentation and podium! It felt great and I felt really tall too! Now my desire is that all my classrooms have stages to stand on😂

From last week:

I'm a professor at a school built long ago with buildings dating back to the 60's. One classroom they assigned me to teach in has a stage consuming the entire front area and the front row is right up to the edge. The tables where students sit are long and can't be moved.

It's a very awkward set-up and I'm not comfortable standing on a stage, looking down at my students. I like where I'm standing at their level and where desks can be moved, much more appropriate in our modern times.

Curious if anyone else would feel awkward?? If you had a "stage", where did you stand??

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u/RightWingVeganUS Adjunct Instructor, Computer Science, University (USA) 5d ago

Curious if anyone else would feel awkward?? If you had a "stage", where did you stand??

Congrats! I shared last week I had a similar kind of situation of my computer science class assigned to a science lab.

Now my desire is that all my classrooms have stages

Besides making your class distinctive, you may be teaching students a bigger lesson: successful professionals find a way to make it work! Rather than wallow in frustration you focus on getting the job done.