Participants responded through email to questions developed by Nandeeta Bala, STEPP Student Coordinator, as a conclusion to their interviews.

What are your main learnings from STEPP?

Milo Mitchell, Class of 2021, Student Partner

My time in STEPP was fairly limited, as my student-faculty partnership did not transition to distance-learning. However, in the weeks prior to spring break in Professor Lowrance’s Introduction to Number Theory course, I broadened my understanding of student participation, particularly regarding how to interpret silence, in the classroom. STEPP also highlighted the importance of small-group in-class work and long-term planning/agenda-setting for working groups. Further, STEPP highlighted the contrast between learning in college and high school or even middle school, and the desire of college professors to break from hyper-competitive classrooms that were perhaps once a norm for many Vassar students.

Jens Astrup, Class of 2022, Student Partner

• I’ve learned that when a professor truly cares about their students, the class will reciprocate.

• I’ve learned that I can work with a professor in a partnership, not simply a teacher-student relationship.

• I’ve learned the importance of setting goals, and how the goals give you a lens to observe with. My professor and I set a goal to make more space for collaboration and peer relationships, going against the competitive nature of her department. Throughout our partnership, this goal gave me a sense of where we wanted to go, and which step we were in to get there.

• I’ve learned that the first step in potentially changing a classroom’s dynamic for the better, is admitting that it could change.

Adam Lowrance, Faculty Partner

I learned to think about course development from the perspective of the student. My STEPP partner helped me think about course planning and daily interactions with my students from the viewpoint of the student.

Eréndira Rueda, Faculty Partner

• It’s helpful to have someone to talk to about why you’re teaching the way you’re teaching,

• It’s helpful to think about the goals you have for the class and a particular lesson or unit and then discuss whether your approach is actually going to allow you to meet those goals

• It’s helpful to debrief/discuss what’s going on in class and whether there are things we can do to address whatever challenges are coming up.

Ananya Suresh, Student Partner

Collaboration has helped me get through the confusions and uncertainties related to COVID-19. The partnership helped me not only understand and appreciate the work of my professor but also the work of my fellow students in class. I was able to get a bird’s eye view of interactions and encounters in the classroom and moments of learning.

Karen Getter, Facilitator

I learned to remain positive and persist on finding unclear answers for the good of the program.

Jonathon Kahn, Faculty Partner

It is rare to have the opportunity to talk through my teaching goals with someone. Even rarer is to have the person in the class with me helping me to think about, analyze, and figure out ways to achieve those goals. My student partner was a wonderful support, joining me in a critical journey of self-reflection on my teaching and the nature of the classroom. Our conversations were honest, supportive, and, in the end, confidence building. Our work together encouraged me to be more honest with my students about my own pedagogical hopes and commitments, and that, I think, served as an invitation to my students to join me in a common classroom project. Especially valuable was the time the student partner had meeting with my class. I just had received that feedback when COVID hit and I was unable to begin to work through it in class.

Gisella Kagy, Faculty Partner

It is incredibly helpful to have another set of eyes in the classroom, as an instructor is not able to pick up on all interactions and has a different lens through which they see classroom interactions and behavior.

My Vassar student partner had great ideas about how to approach delicate topics, and I genuinely enjoyed our weekly conversations.

Affirmations for the STEPP group:

Milo Mitchell, Class of 2021, Student Partner

Student partners should not expect to pick up on any-/everything early on in their partnerships. Professors are participating in this partnership voluntarily; they want feedback, so trust that what you have to offer is wanted. Note-taking is crucial to being an effective student partner.

Jens Astrup, Class of 2022, Student Partner

• This works. The partnership alone is a big step towards creating a more accessible, progressive conversation on teaching

• My partner was awesome.

• I’m very grateful and excited to have been a part of this pilot.

Adam Lowrance, Faculty Partner

I would love to participate again in this program, hopefully in a full semester without a pandemic interruption!

Eréndira Rueda, Faculty Partner

This is a great relationship-building initiative between faculty and student partners, but I think working with a student in this way also communicates something to the students in our classes. By having a student partner in class with us, we communicate to students very clearly and concretely that their input matters to us and that we are open to having conversations about what we’re doing in the classroom and how it’s working (or not).

Ananya Suresh, Class of 2021, Student Partner

Facing and giving criticism can trust and intimacy. Thank you to everyone for helping build a community of trust.

Karen Getter, Facilitator

I felt affirmed by the opening check-ins. It provided time for each of us to think about, appreciate, talk directly to and listening to each other.

Jonathon Kahn, Faculty Partner

My student partner was sympathetic and a great listening partner. She was able to open up space for me to think and learn by being willing to let me explore and speak candidly. It was a true gift.

Gisella Kagy, Faculty Partner

This is a valuable program, and understanding different perspectives in class is a great tool and made me a better instructor.

Suggestions or thoughts for the future:

Milo Mitchell, Class of 2021, Student Partner

I find it difficult to make suggestions without knowing when students can return to in-person classrooms. Observing the dynamics between students and between students and their professor becomes far more difficult when everyone is relegated to a small panel in Zoom’s gallery view. However, I think distance-learning left many students and professors uncertain and uncomfortable, which perhaps makes the role of STEPP even more important. Maybe the Inclusive Pedagogies working group should revisit objectives and practices of STEPP if any portion of the next semester(s) is conducted over Zoom or at reduced classroom capacity to make the student-faculty partnership more effective.

Jens Astrup, Class of 2022, Student Partner

• If possible, more meetings with all partnerships.

• Discuss whether or not a student’s academic focus should determine the class they are assigned for the program.

Adam Lowrance, Faculty Partner

I would like to meet with other faculty member participants in STEPP (either virtually or in person) to discuss our experiences and ideas of how to use the STEPP partners. We planned to do this last semester, but were interrupted.

Eréndira Rueda, Faculty Partner

• Allowing faculty-student pairings between folks who already have a solid relationship.

• Opportunities for the entire group to interact?

  • Perhaps an info/welcome session at the start of the term and then a closing/thank you/reflection session at the end of the semester?

Ananya Suresh, Class of 2021, Student Partner

I think we should continue to maintain an atmosphere of experimentation like we did in this pilot program. I wouldn’t want to see this program becoming institutionalized/have too many rules attached to it. The charm of the program was in the diversity of students and professors who took part and the different classes and relationships that we had with each other.

Karen Getter, Facilitator

I suggest each member take ownership of their roles and equally work hard to maintain the momentum, motivation.

Gisella Kagy, Faculty Partner

Pairing this program with a workshop for instructors on specific activities/tools that create engagement would be helpful.

Jonathon Kahn, Faculty Partner

I am eager to try this again for a full semester. I think the faculty partners should get together at some point, and then the whole group should meet together. I wonder too if we might name some common themes that faculty want to work on.