Constructive questioning and destructive behavior Max insists that he likes coming to mass media law class, but he drifts off to sleep during lectures and sneaks away sometimes shortly after I take the roll. When I asked him why he doses, he said he can't stay awake for lectures. He prefers videos with lots of action in them and no talking heads. Not surprisingly, his dismal performance dooms him to a failing grade. He replies that his grades are his business and refuses to drop the class. Like Max, Barry also nods off sometimes. But, Barry's problem stems from medication he takes to help him breathe. He will fight to stay awake. Talks with both young men reveal the difference between turned-off students and physically challenged students. Max declares nothing will keep him awake when professors lecture. Barry took my advice. He now sits in the back of the class. When he feels groggy, he slips out unobtrusively to the vending machine. The walk down the hall and a cup of coffee revive him. I could help Barry by bending my classroom policies, but until Max changes his attitude, I can't help him. In fact, Max is one of many disenchanted students who want to graduate without having to do tasks that they consider boring but normally are associated with getting a degree. Openenrollment policies and the popularity of the Internet are bringing students into communication classrooms who, a few years ago, probably would have pursued careers in blue-collar occupations. Like Max, who surfs the Web to avoid going to the library homepage, most of these disinterested individuals wander from course to course like the lost souls that poets lament. For many reasons, some adults do not know how to interact positively in an academic setting. Recently, at a conference on college teaching, I lead a discussion about communicating effectively with disenchanted students. My own experiences with these students have reflected the themes I found in the pedagogical research on the subject. For more than ten years I've taught reporting, communication history, ethics and other courses. Most of my students have made me glad I was there exchanging ideas with them; however, a few have turned class days into Halloween. When I first began teaching, I blamed them entirely. Then, for a while, I blamed myself. Now, I realize that negative experiences arise for a variety of reasons. Each instance is different. Sometimes, I am at fault. Sometimes, the student is wrong. But, ultimately, the question of who erred isn't nearly as crucial as changing the situation. Recently, a young man in my mass communication law class clicked his pen, made negative remarks, and refused to cooperate in group work. A few years ago, I would have couched my private discussions with him in stern, angry semi-threats. I have learned that the drill-sergeant routine doesn't work most of the time. Instead, I've found that asking what I can do to change the climate sometimes inspires thought and a willingness to try to conform to class policies. His comment that I wasn't as good a professor as the one who had failed him the prior semester told me that some of his resentment towards me was fueled by being forced to repeat the class. He also pointed out that certain group exercises were too repetitive of the book. That point was worth hearing. He began to participate in discussions. For decades, educators have studied classroom dynamics to understand the interpersonal exchanges between teachers and their classes. Gerald Amada wrote a how-to book for communicating with disenchanted students, Coping with the Disruptive Student: A Practical Model. Patricia Kearney, Timothy G. Plax, Ellis R. Hays, and Marilyn J. Ivey analyzed College Teacher Misbehaviors: What Student's Don't Like About What Teachers Say and Do for Communication Quarterly (Fall 1991). Two papers available through ERIC also offer insights into reaching perpetually bored students: Voices of the Disinvited: The Dream and Reality of Invitational Education for Underachieving and Apathetic Students, by Melvin Lang [ED296654] and Addressing Campus-Wide Communication Incivility in the Basic Course: A Case Study, by Robert L. …