USG Teaching & Learning Conference 2016

Laura Hanna

This presentation stems from a frustration with students' decreasing ability to heed social cues in professional settings (such as standing up and shaking the mayor's hand when he walks into the room) and an attempt to help students remedy that lack through exercises in critical thinking and role playing in the classroom. Using Louis Althusser's theories about the social constructions of meaning and behavior (including ideological state apparatuses) to undergird the theoretical aspects of the presentation, I argue for the importance of teaching students how to respond to different social situations and how to connect this lesson back to understanding the importance of making meaning from social contexts, which ultimately strengthens students' critical thinking skills and propensity for success in the real world. This presentation provides attendees with some concrete ideas for classroom discussions and scenarios for successful interactions that can be implemented in any classroom.