campus, one question my team asked all applicants was, "Why are you interested in Xavier?" The responses we heard ranged from "Good academic reputation" to "Attractive campus" to "Near home." No matter what other reasons they listed, however, nearly all of our interviewees also cited small class size as an important factor in their decision to apply to Xavier. They stressed their desire to be more than just a number and to have one-on-one relationships with their instructors.

In my office in Albers Hall, I often hear student tour guides tell prospective freshmen that small class size is a valuable part of a Xavier education. "The average class size is 22 students, and the student/teacher ratio is 17 to 1," the usual tour goes, typically while the group is being shown Albers 103, a lecture hall that seats 102 people. I am very happy that the small class experience where students receive individual attention from their instructor is something that is valued here at Xavier. But the reason we have lecture halls like Albers 103 is because some of us (especially in the introductory science courses) are teaching large classes.

hen teaching a large class, both for the students enrolled and for myself as their teacher. I want the students to have that "Xavier experience" they have been promised and for which they are paying. I want to get to know my students as individuals and as much as possible to have a one-on-one relationship with them. These desires on my part are not purely selfless because I believe that the learning environment in the classroom is improved when the students realize that they and the teacher are members of a team working together toward a common goal. This realization on the part of the students is only possible if they are comfortable in their relationship with their teacher. Another reason for my wanting to get to know the students is that I will be asked by a number of them in the future for letters of recommendation, which are easier to write if I know more about the students than the

see if I can hand back the quizzes without having to call names. The effort has been appreciated as I have had a number of students comment on my teaching evaluations that they were impressed by how quickly I knew who they were. In addition, the atmosphere in the classroom is made more intimate when students are not anonymous even if they are sitting in the back row of a large lecture hall such as Albers 103. This name-learning technique would be just as effective in small classes, and the pictures can be useful years after the class in order to jog your memory about a particular student.

?It gives students an opportunity to ask any questions they might have. I have found that many students take advantage of this time to raise questions they might feel uncomfortable asking in front of the entire class. For example, the main focus of General Biology II is the study of evolution, and I have had a number of students raised in fundamentalist Christian backgrounds who want to talk about the relationship of religion and science.

In closing, I would like to say that even though the scholarship applicants I interviewed stressed small class size as being important in their college search, what I really think that they are seeking is the kind of one-on-one relationship with the teacher they anticipate having in a small class. I hope that I have established that kind of relationship with students in my larger than average classes by using the techniques listed abov

Some common words found in the essay are:
Biology II, Assistance Center, Albers Hall, , class size, lecture hall, one-on-one relationship, albers 103, study guides questions, week semester, students advantage, names try, relationship teacher, class students, final grade,
Approximate Word count = 1590
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)