Emotional Aspects of Large Group Teaching

Abstract

With the growth of mass education in the U.K. has come the seemingly inevitable growth of large group teaching. Many "technical" solutions to the problems of large group teaching have been proposed (e.g., use of microphones, structured handouts, buzz groups, etc.) but we contend that emotional aspects have been largely neglected and ignored. We argue that it is legitimate to consider the role of emotion in higher education, and its particular effects in large teaching groups. While it is, perhaps, easier and safer to pretend that all is well, there are clear emotional consequences to working in these large groups for both students and lecturers. For instance, students may experience powerful feelings of alienation, anger, and envy in large groups and compensate in various ways, some of which will be antithetical to achieving effective learning and a stimulating educational experience. Similarly, lecturers can also seek to cope with their own feelings of fear and uncertainty by behaving equally maladaptively. We examine the contribution psychodynamic thinking can make to our understanding of large teaching groups and contrast this with the consequences of adhering to simplistic technical models. We argue for the legitimacy of the role of emotion in higher education and seek to encourage a debate on this issue which will include appropriate research into the effects of trying to teach and learn in large groups. This paper thus seeks to raise issues and encourage debate in this relatively unresearched area. Further, we contend that it is important and necessary to conduct appropriate research into the emotional effects of such groups on both teaching and learning.