Reciprocal Interview Activity

The first few class sessions set the tone for the rest of the semester. Starting off on the right foot not only makes for a better learning environment, it can improve student motivation, confidence, and learning. Many strategies on capturing attention, challenging students, and encouraging active learning in the first few weeks of class have been studied and shown to have lasting positive effects throughout the rest of the semester. One such technique is the reciprocal interview activity (Foster & Hermann, 2011). This activity treats the class like a new job and the instructor explains the outcomes and policies as an employer would to new employees. In turn, students establish a voice for themselves by “interviewing” the instructor about her or his expectations for the class. The overall goal is to create an open and supportive class environment that will persist throughout the semester. Foster and Hermann detail the process in their article and give us these discussion topics and guidelines.

Instructor-led interview discussion topics (10–15 min. discussion; 15–20 min. interview)

1. What are your goals for this course? To learn new skills? To become better educated? To learn the subject matter? To fulfill a requirement? To get a good grade? To apply your leaning to other aspects of your life? Something else?
2. How can the instructor best help you achieve your goals? Lectures, exams, discussions, practice, office hours (think back to excellent professors/courses you’ve experienced)?
3. What, if anything, have you heard about this textbook and/or course from others?
4. What reservations, if any, do you have about this course?
5. What is the best thing that could happen in this course? What is the worst thing?
6. What resources do you bring to this course (e.g., prior experience, prior courses)?
7. What norms of behavior or ground rules should we set up to ensure that the course is successful (e.g., mutual respect, question asking, punctuality, etc.?)

Student-led interview discussion topics (5–10 min. discussion; 15-minute interview)

1. The instructor’s objectives for this course — what does he or she hope to accomplish?
2. The instructor’s theory of learning (i.e., how do people learn?)
3. The instructor’s approach to evaluating student’s learning in the course.
4. The instructor’s expectations of you.
5. The instructor’s role in the course.
6. Anything else that may be important to you (e.g., aspects of the syllabus, assignments, text, exams, etc.)

Foster, D.A., & Hermann, A.D. (2011). Linking the first week of class to end-of-term satisfaction: Using a reciprocal interview activity to create an active and comfortable classroom. College Teaching, 59(3), 111–116. Retrieved from: http://www.wou.edu/~fosterd/papers/linking.pdf