Nurturing a “kind” generation
In every exam I give, I always add a bonus question on my students’ experience in the course. It helps me assess how I am doing as an instructor and what kind of learning environment I am building, even before I get actual student evaluation reports. Reading their answers has always been a nice experience for me — sometimes, for constructive feedback, but mostly, in all honesty, for affirmation and ego boost (We all need that from time to time, don’t we?)
But my recent trip to ‘check republic’ required an unplanned ‘crying stopover’ because of two notable comments that warmed my heart. “This is one of my few classes where I always felt welcome,” one student wrote. “Thank you for creating a nurturing learning environment, Ma’am,” the other said.
When I read those comments, I had to stop for a moment. More than mastering the content of my lessons and ensuring that I am articulate in delivering it, this has always been my goal — to create a classroom that students would want to enter and stay in, to deliver lessons that future world changers would desire to take in. More than wanting my students to learn, my higher objective is for them to want to learn first. I believe that a learner’s perception of a lesson and of the environment where the lesson is being delivered has a huge impact on how they will absorb it. And I really hope my fellow educators will also think about this.
For one, if our students view our classes as a place where they are free to express themselves and are invited to enhance themselves, we will see them in class, not just because of our policy on attendance, but because they really want to participate and learn.
Also, if our students see us as approachable, it is a lot easier for them to ask for advice. One of the admirable things I have noticed in today’s generation of college students is their willingness to ask questions, without fear of judgment or of being wrong. As a young professional, I’ve struggled with it early in my career, but I realized it is a necessary habit. As educators, we can encourage that habit by creating a learning environment where it is safe to admit that you know nothing or few just so you can know more.
A welcoming environment also encourages feedback, a very powerful learning strategy. When our students view us positively, it becomes easier for them to absorb constructive feedback, and sometimes, to even ask for more. It allows them to see that our comments and evaluations — which I hope are constructive, clear, objective, and well-thought of — are coming from a place of concern and support. When they do, we maximize this opportunity to learn.
Moreover, whenever we say we teach because we care about the next generation, I hope it goes beyond our lectures. I hope we put value in showing our students that we really care about them — not just their attendance, not just their grades, but their overall well-being, their health — physical, mental, and emotional. As educators, we know that our students’ learning is affected by many internal and external factors. Late submissions don’t necessarily equate to irresponsibility. Low scores don’t necessarily reflect incompetency. This can be proven by empirical evidence and our own experiences.
Caring about their welfare also means considering their situation even in the smallest class decisions — deadlines, learning modalities, class requirements and activities. It doesn’t necessarily mean we need to make it easier for them, but for learning to be effective, the environment must be conducive, and this means being tailored to the actual needs and situations of our students.
Let me give a disclaimer that creating a nurturing learning environment doesn’t mean giving our students anything they want. We do not want to raise a generation of brats. But this is about creating a space where our students will grow because they know they can and that they are meant to do so. This is about making learning more enjoyable and effective for these young people we are called to help. This is about raising the next generation of leaders who also encourages growth.
I am sure many educators, probably the more experienced ones, would most likely disagree with me on this. And it is not surprising, especially if we grew up in learning environments that forced us to thrive under pressure and we’ve seen it work for us. Maybe my experience is limited, but I believe I have experienced enough both as a student and as an educator, as a subordinate and as a supervisor, to realize what a nurturing learning environment looks like. I thrived the most under the turf of the kindest, most supportive, most approachable instructors and bosses. And when I look back, though I admire their technical expertise and extensive knowledge in their field, what I remembered the most is how they treated me, how they willingly answered my questions, how they believed I could do more and enabled me to do so. I owe my current and future career to these people, and this encourages me to pay if forward, to be the same kind of mentor to the generations after me. In the same manner, I want my students to remember me that way — not so they would smile at the thought of me, but so they would be inspired to do the same for those who will come after them.
When we create nurturing learning environments, we are not just producing competent and knowledgeable future leaders. To teach, to nurture, is to make a kinder, more supportive world.
