Interview Guide
Purpose:
This interview aims to explore students' opinions on the ways class size delivers impacts, in terms of
teacher engagement, proper classroom management, and overall student experiences with learning.
General Instructions:
The interview will be audio-recorded (with consent) and transcribed for later analysis.
Responses will be kept anonymous and confidential.
The students are encouraged to give honest and elaborate accounts of their experiences.
The interview will take about 30-45 minutes.
Section 1: Demographic Information
(These questions would serve to place the study in context but do not identify individuals).
1. What is your academic department?
2. Which year level are you currently on?
3. What is your average class size in General Education (GE) subjects?
a) fewer than 20 students
b) 21-40 students
c) More than 40 students
Have you ever or do you ever experience both small and large class sizes in your college
education? (Yes/No)
Section 2: Student Perceptions of Class Size and Learning Experience
Describe learning behaviour in small classes in comparison to large classes.
In your experience, how does class size influence your involvement in discussions and activities?
What differences do you see in how teachers engage students in a small versus large class?
Please explain.
Do you think teachers give students individual attention in larger classes? Why or why not?
Section 3: Teacher Effectiveness and Instructional Strategies
How would class size affect when a teacher tries to explain concepts?
Do you think large classes differ from smaller ones in their way of teaching? If so, how?
What teaching strategies, for you, are best suited for classes that tend to be larger? For classes
that would be smaller?
In what ways does class size account for pace of learning and coverage of lessons taught?
Section 4: Classroom Management and Student Engagement
How would class size affect classroom discipline and organization?
Do you think that large classes experience distractions unlike the small classes? Why or why not
you see it that way?
Have you faced a dilemma in obtaining feedback from the teacher in a large class? If so, how has
such incorporated into your learning process?
What do students generally feel about group work in large classes compared to small classes?
Section 5: Challenges and Recommendations
What are the challenges you faced in a large class?
What benefits do you think, in terms of learning, small groups have?
If you would recommend something to improve teaching in large class size, what would it be?
Do you think that making a class smaller does influence better teaching? Why or why not?
Closing Questions
- Is there anything else you would want to add about your experience regarding class size and teaching
efficiency?
- Would you be open to discussing it in more detail later if need be? (Yes/No)
End of Interview