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TEACHINGA SCENARIOSA WORKSHEET
Student Name:
Directions: Read each scenario and in the box below provide a description of an appropriate
response you could have as a professor in that particular situation. Citing research, also
include an explanation of why you would handle the situation in that manner. Aim to answer
each scenario in one or two paragraphs (answers can be single spaced). a
1. A student approaches you in class stating she is in a hurry and wants to look through
a pile of exam papers to find her own rather than waiting for you to hand back
individual papers. The exam papers each include the student’s name and grade at the
top. Do you allow her to do so? Why or why not? If not, what would you do instead?
In case a student would approach to me in class saying that she is in a hurry and wants to
look through a pile of exam papers to locate her paper instead of waiting for me to hand
over the individual papers, I would not allow her to do so. I believe that protecting student
private data including their marks or grades is my responsibility as a teacher. Thus, to make
sure that their privacy would not get violated because of the single student I would not give
her the permission. Alamleh has identified safeguarding of private data concerning students
as one of the major issues that exists in the current education system (Alamleh, 2020). For
preventing the privacy violation from taking place I would calmly ask the student to wait
since the class would be starting shortly and then she would be able to see her exam paper.
I would ask her whether she is feeling nervous about her grades. If that is the concern then
I would tell her it is a normal feeling and she could review her exam paper like other
students in the class.
a
2. Near the end of the term, right before finals, a student comes to your office hours to
thank you for a great semester. He expresses gratitude in how you have helped him
personally realize some of his career goals and he wants to thank you by giving you a
$100 gift card to a local restaurant owned by his father. Do you accept? Why or why
not? If not, what would you tell the student?
I would really feel honored when the student would express his gratitude regarding how I
have helped him personally realize some of his career goals. However, I would not accept
the $ 100 gift card to a local restaurant owned by his father as a token of appreciation.
Acceptance of gifts by teachers from students has the potential to affect their objectivity and
it prevents the chances of treating all the students in a fair and equal manner (Aydın et al.,
2021). I would simply thank the student for being grateful and I would explain to him that
as a teacher it is my responsibility to help him progress towards his career goals. I would
tell him to stay focused as a student and continuously work hard towards his dreams and
ambitions.
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3. Your student tells you that she could not complete her research paper because she had
to take her very sick dog to the vet the day before. She requests two extra days to hand
in her assignment. How do you handle this excuse and why?
In case a student comes to me and asks to give her two extra days to hand in her research
paper which she could not complete because she had to take her very sick dog to the vet the
day before, I would try to be flexible and accept her request. It is true that procrastination
and delayed submission of assignments is unacceptable (Santelli et al., 2020). However, the
reason that she has given can give rise to life-or-death situation for her pet. However, before
extending the deadline I would take into consideration a number of factors such as whether
she has any evidence such as medical report to back up her claim and whether it is her first
tie asking for an assignment submission. If the excuse that she has given is genuine, I would
accept her request. I would also advise her to work on her assignments beforehand so that
she could avoid the last-minute rush in the future. a a
4. After you review the correct answers for a returned test in class, a student comes to
your office hours to dispute his grade. He states that he believes some items were graded
incorrectly and fears his bad grade will significantly hurt his GPA. How do you handle
this grade dispute and his concerns? Explain the reasoning behind your response.
In case a student would come for disputing his grades, I would recommend him to sit and
discuss the answers that he has written in his paper. I would appreciate his effort in
reviewing his test paper and tell him that I would be willing to discuss the correct answers
with him so that we could work together to identify his mistakes. Regarding his fear about
his poor grades and how it could significantly hurt his GPA, I would tell him that he could
do better in upcoming tests and projects so that his grade could improve. I would try to
extend emotional support to him so that he would feel motivated. Teacher-student
interactions must be emotionally supportive so that students can be encouraged to make the
most of the opportunities that arise in the learning environment (Marsh et al., 2009).
5. While you are giving a lecture, two students begin talking loud enough for you and
those around them to hear. How do you initially respond to this behavior and how would
you respond if the problem continues? Explain the reasoning behind your responses.
While giving a lecture if two students begin talking loud enough for me and those around
them to hear, I would ask them whether their discussion concerns the subject that is being
covered in the lecture. If they respond in affirmative, I would ask them to have the
discussion aloud so that the rest of the class could also be a part of it. However, if they
respond by remaining silent, I would ask them to pay attention in the class so that others
would not get disturbed because of their actions or behavior. However, in case the issue
persists and they continue talking and disturbing the class, I would tell them to come and
occupy the front seats so that I could keep a tab on their behavior. Throughout the
interaction I would ensure not to adopt a negative attitude since it could affect their
emotional state, confidence, and morale.
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6. It is halfway through the semester and you are noticing a pattern with a particular
student. She consistently turns in late work or pleads with you for extensions due to
various random obstacles that always seem to occur at the last minute before something
is due. She expresses frustration at her “bad luck” in trying to submit work on time.
How do you handle this student’s future requests for leniency and how might you advise
her to help her be successful for the remainder of the term? Provide support for your
answer.
If I start noticing a pattern with a particular student halfway through the semester regarding
late assignment submissions or deadline extensions, I would ask her to meet me at my
office during the working hours so that we could discuss about her academic situation. I
would ask her to sit down and be honest with me about her delayed assignments. I would
tell her to be open so that I could help her in case she is going through some family or
personal problems. However, I would make it clear to her that I could no longer
accommodate her requests since it would be unfair towards the other students. I would
advise her to focus on time management by maintaining a diary or journal while working on
class assignments instead of blaming her “bad luck” for not submitting work on time
(Claessens et al., 2007).
7. It is the fourth week of the term and you have a student in your class who consistently
raises his hand to disagree with you at various points of your lectures. You now notice
that when this student raises his hand, his classmates begin to murmur and roll their
eyes. How do you initially address this behavior and how would you respond if the
problem continues? Explain your answers.
In case there is a student in my class who consistently raises his hand to disagree with me at
various points of my lectures I would consider it to be an act of disruption. His behavior
could adversely affect the learning environment and the experience of fellow learners.
Initially, I would try addressing this behavior by telling him that we all appreciate his
enthusiasm but we want other students to participate and share their opinions as well. If his
behavior continues, I would ask him to listen to the ideas and perspectives of others to
broaden his knowledge (Khasinah, 2017). a
I will tell the entire class that the entire class participation is expected and it should not be
restricted to merely any specific student alone. However, I would not be aggressive towards
the student as it could embarrass him.
8. A student raises his hand in class to ask if you accept extra credit. When you reply
that you do not, he quickly becomes angry, raises his voice, and starts making
derogatory comments about you. How do you respond to this student’s temper in class?
How would you respond differently if the anger was expressed privately during office
hours instead? Explain your answers.
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In case a student becomes angry, raises his voice, and starts making derogatory comments
about me after learning that I do not accept extra credit, I would tell him to remain calm. I
would further tell him to meet me after class if he wants to talk about it further. I would
not use methods involving punishment or aggression as it could adversely affect the
teaching and learning environment (Tran, 2015). In case the student expresses his anger
privately during my office hours instead I would respond differently by telling him that I
understand his frustration but he should approach the situation in a more matured and
sensible way. I would encourage him to discuss any matter that he thinks might be
adversely affecting his grades.
9. You are administering a test in class when you observe two students looking at each
other’s papers and presumably cheating. How do you respond immediately in the
classroom and would there be any further consequences after the test is over? Explain
your answers.
While administering a test in class if I observe two students looking at each other’s papers
and presumably cheating, I would walk over to their desks and tell them to focus on their
respective answer sheets while giving the exam. I would not want their actions to act as a
disruption for the entire class so I would not shout at them immediately in the classroom.
However, if I would see that their behavior continues, I would ask them to meet me after
the exam. During the private meeting I would tell them that according to the academic
policy that is followed in the institution, they will not be rewarded any marks for the exam
as they were caught cheating. Instead of only giving a warning, a stern action would have to
be taken with consequences (Štambuk et al., 2015). It would help the students to learn from
their mistake.
10. A previous student approaches you and asks if you would be willing to write her a
letter of recommendation to try to get into a master’s program. She acknowledges that
she could have done better in your class, but that she does not have many people she can
ask. You recall that this student performed below average, procrastinated, and
sometimes slept in class. Therefore, you do not believe you could write a strong
recommendation letter. Should you write a letter anyway? How do you respond to the
student and why?
In case a previous student who performed below average, procrastinated, and sometimes
slept in class approached me and asked if I could write her a letter of recommendation so
that she could get into a master’s program, I would gently decline. Writing a
recommendation letter on a student’s behalf is considered to be a vital mentoring task in the
academic domain (Sarabipour et al., 2022). However, in the specific situation, I would not
have many positive things to write about the student because of her improper classroom
conduct. I would explain to her that I am not the best person who can write it for her.
Instead, she should look for some other professor who could write a strong recommendation
letter highlighting her strengths and competencies as a student. Based on her behavior in my
class, I would not be able to highlight her true competence in the letter.
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11. Choose one of the scenarios above and discuss the situation from a Biblical
standpoint citing at least one scriptural verse. How could Scripture inform teacher
and/or student behavior in the chosen scenario? Be sure that you are not simply quoting
Scripture, but that you are also providing application and discussion from a Christian
worldview. Note that a research citation is not required for this answer.
The situation that I have chosen involves the two students who were presumably cheating in
class. According to Proverbs 10:9, any person who acts in a dishonest manner mars his
integrity and credibility. When I would meet the students privately during my office hours,
I would tell them that any person who does something with integrity chooses a secure path
whereas anyone who adopts a crooked path is likely to be found out sooner or later. I would
tell them that since they have chosen to take the latter path, I would not be able to help them
in any manner other than deducting the entire marks for the exam that they just appeared
for. The purpose of using Proverbs 10:9 is to show them that dishonesty can result in
deviation from the right path and lead to serious consequences.
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References
Aydın, İ., Güner Demir, T., Toptaş, B., & Erdemli, Ö. (2021). Teachers’ struggle with gifts: gift
culture at schools and associated ethical problems. Ethics & Behavior, 31(5), 335-349.
Alamleh, H. (2020, December). Private and Secure Students' Data Sharing in Educational
Systems. In 2020 Sixth International Conference on e-Learning (econf) (pp. 158-161).
IEEE.
Claessens, B. J., Van Eerde, W., Rutte, C. G., & Roe, R. A. (2007). A review of the time
management literature. Personnel review.
Khasinah, S. (2017). Managing disruptive behavior of students in language classroom. Englisia:
Journal of Language, Education, and Humanities, 4(2), 79-89.
Marsh, H. W., Lüdtke, O., Robitzsch, A., Trautwein, U., Asparouhov, T., Muthén, B., &
Nagengast, B. (2009). Doubly-latent models of school contextual effects: Integrating
multilevel and structural equation approaches to control measurement and sampling error.
Multivariate behavioral research, 44(6), 764-802.
Santelli, B., Robertson, S. N., Larson, E. K., & Humphrey, S. (2020). Procrastination and
Delayed Assignment Submissions: Student and Faculty Perceptions of Late Point Policy
and Grace within an Online Learning Environment. Online Learning, 24(3), 35-49.
Štambuk, M., Maričić, A., & Hanzec, I. (2015). Cheating Is Unacceptable, But... Teachers'
Reactions And Perception Of Students' Cheating At Schools And Universities/Varanje je
neprihvatljivo, ali… Percepcija varanja i reakcije nastavnika na učeničko i studentsko
varanje. Croatian Journal of Education, 17(4), 259-288.
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Sarabipour, S., Hainer, S. J., Furlong, E., Jadavji, N. M., de Winde, C. M., Bielczyk, N., &
Shah, A. P. (2022). Writing an effective and supportive recommendation letter. The FEBS
Journal, 289(2), 298-307.
Tran, V. D. (2015). Predicting Student Misbehavior, Responsibility and Distraction from
Schoolwork from Classroom Management Techniques: The Students' Views.
International journal of higher education, 4(4), 178-187.
