First-day-of-term tips: a checklist

The first day of class is your opportunity to present students with your vision of the next few months. You must introduce yourself as a scholar, educator and co-learner, and provide insight into your teaching practices and what you expect them to contribute to the learning process. 

Several of your students may be “shopping” for a schedule during the first week of classes. In other words, they may be looking for a class that will fill a particular time slot, has a particular learning environment (ie, lab-based or lecture style) or a class with a certain workload to balance the demands of their other courses and extra-curricular responsibilities. They will appreciate a clear roadmap of what you will require of them over the semester. Model and scaffold, as specifically as possible, the classroom environment you intend to foster in the coming months. 

Create an inviting classroom

Use the first few minutes of class to introduce yourself and establish yourself as a unique individual sharing the classroom with other unique individuals. Other than your name and the name of the course you’re teaching, here is some information you may consider sharing:

Personal biography: information about your place of birth, your family, hobbies and sports, how long you have been at the university and your plans for the future

Educational biography: how you came to specialise in your chosen field, a description of your specific area of expertise and your current projects

Teaching biography: how long you have taught, how many subjects/classes you have taught, what level of class you normally teach, what you enjoy about being in the classroom, what you learn from your students and what you expect to teach in the future.

Next, allow the students to introduce themselves. Instead of just asking general questions such as their name and field/programme of study, ask them questions that are pertinent to the subject you’re teaching and the atmosphere you want to build. Here are some examples:

• In a geography or history class, you may want to ask students to introduce themselves and explain where they are from. You could mark these places on a map of the world as they speak
• In a maths class, you may want to ask the students to introduce themselves and state one way mathematics enriches their lives every day
• You may also want to have the students break into pairs, exchange information and introduce one another to the class.

This may be a good time to set your students an exercise that enables you to assess their knowledge level in the form of a survey/questionnaire.

• Resource collection: Enhance student engagement
• ChatGPT and generative AI: 25 applications to support student engagement
• A plan to prevent disengagement

Discuss and evaluate the room environment together

As your students are introducing themselves, ask them to comment on the room’s acoustics and remain conscious of how well you can hear and see each of them. Consider, with their input or alone, how you would change and optimise the seating arrangement. At the end of the introductions, ask students to move in whichever way that optimises communication and make note of unexpected needs for a microphone, lighting changes, new seating arrangements or anything else. 

Set the course expectations

Communicate the course overview: provide a map of where the class will start and end and what you expect students to understand by the end of the semester. 

Explain departmental requirements/expectations: if your department sets standards and requirements, you may want to establish to your students that you are required to work within those parameters. 

Outline your course material: tell your students how they can access the materials they need to be successful in class. Do you post web-based materials within your course shell in Canvas, or rely on electronic course reserves through the library, for example? 

Set expectations around what to expect in class: is the class discussion-based? Do you follow your syllabus or do you improvise? Do students need to bring their books every day? Tell them what they can expect and how can they interact within those expectations. If they will spend a good deal of time doing group work, you may want to break them into groups on the first day. Finally, have them collectively provide input on community ground rules for the class.

Set expectations for time commitments outside of class: tell students what they will need to prepare for the course in their own time. Will they need to turn in assignments electronically outside of class hours? Will your students have to schedule time during their evenings to watch films or attend performances? Give them enough information to help them organise themselves.

Be clear about your responsibilities: establish what you will provide your students with to enhance their chances of success. This may include in-class material, study guides, meaningful and prompt feedback on assignments, facilitation of discussion, attention to students with special needs and a positive and welcoming classroom environment.

Assert your boundaries: let your students know how to contact you and when. For example, communicate or provide your office hours, office phone number, availability for instant messaging, email and times you do not respond. If you are travelling during the semester, let students know the dates that you will not be available.

Set expectations around participation: explain to students whether attendance is required, participation is mandatory or you want them to read assignments before class. Explain policies on absences, emergencies and accommodating special needs. You may also remind them that they are responsible for their success and for communicating with you when they need assistance or have concerns. 

Establish forms of assessment: let students know whether you will assign them a grade at the end of the semester, and how many assignments you will grade. Explain your grading policies and marking rubrics. 

Finally, you may want to spend a few minutes explaining information about the university, your department, the library or other resources students have access to during the course of the semester.

This article originally appeared on the University of Colorado Boulder’s Center for Teaching and Learning site. 

Kalpana Gupta is a professional development lead for the Center for Teaching & Learning at Colorado Boulder.

If you would like advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the Campus newsletter.