Eye Contact and Grade Distribution

Abstract

While teaching a large lecture course of art appreciation, I investigated whether grades vary by section to section in the auditorium. The auditorium was divided into nine sections containing 20 students per section. Students were seated by alphabetized lists, by Social Security numbers, or by selecting seats they wished to sit in for the duration of that semester. Two tests were given to each class, one on required reading and one on the slide/lectures. Regardless of the method of seating, students in the middle and the front sections achieved scores considerably higher than those in the rear sections. Although the class who chose where they wanted to sit was factored out (because brighter students might choose to sit in front or middle rows), those classes assigned to seats by alphabetized lists and Social Security numbers gave the same results. The only apparent difference between the sections in the auditorium was instructor/students' eye contact, so apparently the students gained a sense of personalization through eye contact with the instructor.