2008 Woodie Awards
Increasing class sizes, increasing issues
Briana Alfaro
Issue date: 10/3/07 Section: The Future of Humboldt State
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"I'm a fairly outspoken person," she said. "But I find myself being very passive in a large class with lots of people."
As enrollment at Humboldt State grows, so does the trend of larger class sizes. Students like Lovelace, a junior theater major, find themselves enrolled in classes with 75 or more students. The California State University system calls these "excess enrollment" classes, said Humboldt State's Senior Communications Officer Paul Mann.
Mann said that increasing class sizes is a trend that may continue at Humboldt State, depending on enrollment, demographics and other outside factors.
Classes with excessive enrollment allow teaching assistants to teach or help with a class, depending on the size, he said. This is the case for General Zoology.
Biological Sciences Professor Sharyn Marks teaches the lecture for the class, which has 86 students, but only teaches one of four labs. The other classes are taught by teaching assistants.
Zoology students can seek extra help through office hours and through a supplemental instruction course provided by The Learning Center Tutorial Program. Students meet weekly in the supplemental class to discuss course content with tutors.
Although the general zoology class hasn't grown since she's taught it, Marks believes the trend of growing class sizes is a mistake.
"You do reach a critical point where you can't give students the kind of attention that you might like," Marks said.
It's practically impossible to have personal relationships with students, said Yoon Kim, a math professor. "It's too large."
Kim teaches a class that has 157 students enrolled and is held in Founders Hall 118.
Instructors must prepare more, putting materials on PowerPoint or overheads, Kim said. "We try to do the best we can."
In his Contemporary Mathematics class, Kim gives individual reports to each student, three times a semester. This is to let them know how they're doing, he said.
Kim has taught large classes for the 10 to 12 years that he has been at Humboldt State.
"When university administration tells us [we have to have large classes], we have no choice," he said.
Teaching effectively is challenging with a larger class, said Faculty Development Coordinator and Associate Professor of Communication, Tasha Souza. "It becomes a greater burden on the instructor."
There are a number of active learning techniques useful to all faculty members, especially for those who teach large classes. These include placing students in thoughtfully prepared group work, assigning in-class writing, organizing games and role-playing, she said.
Souza recognized that class sizes are growing. "What we haven't done is offer much support," she said.
Souza would be the one to provide this support to faculty, but there aren't enough resources or time for her to do so. Her position is part-time, she said.
"I think if we're going to [teach large classes]" she said, "we need to do it well."
Since filling the position in January, only one faculty member approached Souza for support and resources in teaching larger classes, Jayne McGuire, an assistant professor in the education department.
McGuire teaches a class of 84 students, compared to a typical 20-to-25 students.
"That is a really big difference when it comes to building rapport and engaging students in meaningful dialogue," she said in an e-mail.
Despite the challenges, Kim enjoys teaching the large math classes if that is what his department has to offer.
"The joke is," he said, "Sooner or later we may have to teach in the Redwood Bowl."
Briana Alfaro can be contacted at briana.alfaro@gmail.com
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