Autonomy and Enthusiasm: How Students are Involved in Their Education

          What makes Sewanee students engaged in their education and what puts them off? Students at Sewanee: The University of the South have a number of different college experiences, despite all being on the same... [ view full abstract ]

          What makes Sewanee students engaged in their education and what puts them off? Students at Sewanee: The University of the South have a number of different college experiences, despite all being on the same campus with the same people. One large aspect of the college experience is encapsulated in the classroom experience. This plays into not only the academic side of a student’s college career, but the social side as well. This research centers in on how Sewanee students experience their education. The two routes taken to synthesizing this research were with regards to classroom and course-based engagement and also the highly individualized experience of autonomy in the classroom. The findings show students felt that with regards to autonomy in college, intellectual autonomy in the classroom was the most important to them. Students expect to come out of college having grown as thinkers, thus seeking out more means of independence in a class setting. Looking at the broader experience in the classroom, findings seem to point to contagion as a group phenomenon. The professor’s enthusiasm, a feeling of comradery, etc. allows students to personalize their education. This research allows people to see the holistic expectations students have about college and how it applies to their lives on a smaller scale in classroom settings. The research was conducted throughout the Easter semester of 2018 and interviews took place with Sewanee students ranging from freshman to seniors. Numerous books were also consulted with the three main ones being Chambliss and Takacs’ How college works, Kluge’s Alma Mater – A College Homecoming, and Moffatt’s Coming of Age in New Jersey: College and American Culture. Interviews and other research were done before forming a clear thesis for the research in order to pull from what students felt was important, rather than presume what they felt was important.