The number one predictor of student success in college is student-faculty contact outside of class, I am told.
As a faculty member, I hold a plethora of office hours, and I practically beg students to come see me. They must tire of hearing the aforementioned fact.
Yet precious few actually make the trip. The ones who do are incredibly rewarding. I enjoy getting to know them, and these are the students who usually end up maintaining contact after graduation.
Several years ago, I heard a suggestion to hold a portion of one’s office hours in less traditional setting, such as the student union or a coffee shop. I wish I recalled the source of that tip.
I first tried the suggestion at Indiana University, and it worked well. Students were willing to come to Starbucks, and I cannot recall a single instance where I didn’t have at least one visitor.
Contrast this with traditional office hours where I would estimate fewer than 20% of the time I entertain a visitor.
This has been true early in this semester, where I have had traditional office hours twice and office hours in the Barnes & Noble Cafe in the Student Union Building once.
One visitor total to my office, but at the SUB we had to pull up more chairs around the table.
It’s supposed to be about student engagement. And they’re simply more willing to engage on neutral turf.
There was a four-year hiatus between my attempts at coffee shop office hours because they’re difficult to schedule and commit to. But I’m thrilled that they’re off to a good start, and I look forward to getting to know my students better.
I'm a cognitive scientist and communication scholar who manages a psychophysiology lab at Texas Tech. I teach courses about the cognitive processing of media messages and research methods.
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I wish more faculty would consider holding office hours on neutral turf. I think this facilitates more than homework or test help. It gives students the idea that the coffee shop meeting is a place to have a conversation, while in an office, students may feel they are expected to talk about the course material.
Great point, Allison. I have had some great conversations over coffee. In fact, I wish that I had scheduled *more* of my office hours over there this semester. There’s always next semester.
And I know of at least one other instructor in the college who is going to shift some hours over to the SUB starting now.
I can’t remember walking past your office and there NOT being a student in there (and if you were alone, I came in). I do like the idea of a comfortable site. We’re doing my Friday class as a ‘writing workshop’ over in the second-floor of our SUB which is where the B&N is at. The students are happier and more relaxed, and the interaction is much less formal. I try to keep it back and forth in the classroom, but the setting itself of the classroom — and there is some good to the formality — precludes abandonments of traditional roles and expectations. And while you might have discarded this practice for four years, “Coffee walks with Sam” were among the best lessons I learned while at TTU.
Great points, Bob. And I’d love to hear more about the writing workshop. I am sure that I could implement some of the ideas instantly in my ad writing lab.
It is true that there are often students in my office. These are disproportionately graduate students who have taken classes in previous semesters. And I love having them around; however, their presence might discourage current undergraduates from stopping by.
Thus, it’s important to have a mix of both traditional and Starbucks office hours.
Sam, I love this idea! Why didn’t I think of it??
Sometimes the simplest solutions float the furthest away from connecting in the brain (for me anyway). One of my goals next week will be to schedule some office hours at the Starbucks in our University Center. Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful way to better connect and converse with students.
Have a great Labor Day!
Kim — Glad this idea seems as if it will work for you. I likely never would have considered it, and I’m glad I read it somewhere.
I love working with young people, and it is nice to learn a little more about them than traditional “ivory tower” office visits foster.
This is a good idea — and as we do not have our own offices at Mizzou (we share with several other people), I may need to do this out of necessity.
As I recall, the beginning of my thesis came out of a coffee meeting at the SUB. You rock, Sam Bradley!
Thanks, Jessica! Almost everything good that I’ve done at Tech has percolated from a coffee meeting at the SUB!
What about office hours at Fuzzy’s?
Well, count me in – I’ll probably institute coffee hours this week or next.
@Lance — Fuzzy’s is too far. It’s walkable but not conveniently so. And they sell beer, which is probably a bad idea.
@Wes — Three cheers for Java.
All I have to say is coffee hours are best when the barista is cool enough to give u free coffee!!….I also think coffee makes learning much more cool!
Very true, Larissa!