Introduction

Community agreements, also sometimes called group agreements, discussion agreements or guidelines, can be described as consensus on what every person in our group needs from each other and commits to each other in order to feel safe, supported, open, productive and trusting so that we can do our best work and achieve our common vision or need (National Equity Project). They represent a group effort to document expectations and aspirations for how a group such as students and instructors within a course would like to be in relationship with each other. They are an effort to make implicit culture, expectations, and needs more explicit so that groups can name behaviors that are directly constructive to the group dynamic. 

Community agreements can be relational and primarily seek to address how group members will interact with each other. They can also be operational and seek to address the procedures and/or structures group members will use together.

Community agreements are intended to be used alongside the course, department, and university policies that are typically listed in the syllabus. While policies listed in the syllabus are generally intended to be enforced by an instructor or teaching assistant, community agreements are intended to be a set of expectations enforced collectively by students, instructors and TAs. For this reason, community agreements need to be created collectively with buy-in from all course participants.

Why are community agreements important in the classroom?

Community agreements help to establish a respectful environment where the diverse experiences and stories of the classroom are given voice (Arao & Clemens, 2023; Fernández, 2024; Homrich-Knieling, 2021). They provide a foundation of shared expectation that supports open discussion, particularly when difficult, challenging, or uncomfortable topics emerge. When community agreements are used in a classroom, they give instructors and students a set of words to address conflict when it arises.

The process of building community agreements can also provide an introduction to the collaborative process for students and set an expectation for working together from the beginning of the semester. The exercise provides an opportunity to demonstrate decision making and participation processes for the coming semester.

What community agreements are not

When using community agreements in the classroom, it is important to name at the onset what community agreements are used for and what they are not used for. Community agreements are not a substitute or negotiation tool for course policy. They also cannot prevent conflict or disagreements.

They are a helpful tool in creating the foundation of a respectful, constructive, and nurturing learning environment. They can provide instructors and students with shared language to address conflicts or disagreements that arise.

What can community agreements include? 

Community agreements can include a wide spectrum of behaviors depending on the specific context and needs of your classroom community. Similar to the course policies outlined in a syllabus, what is included in any given classs community agreements can be informed by the structure of the course, the kinds of learning or classroom activities in frequent use, department and department or disciplinary norms or competencies. Some areas to consider making explicit in your community agreements can include: 

Relational:

• Constructive communication practices between students

  • Speak from your own experiences or use I statements

  • Be aware of our impact on the learning environment including how much space were taking up and how much space were making for others 

• Emphasized areas of self-awareness

  • Strive to learn from the experiences of others in our classroom community, refrain from judgment when working with peers from different backgrounds or experiences

  • Strive for curiosity when engaging with new ideas or perspectives and notice assumptions when they arise

  • Recognize your own position in social and organizational structures and how it informs your perspectives and reactions as well as how you are interpreted by others

• Giving and receiving feedback

  • Strive for nonjudgmental openness and curiosity when you are giving and receiving feedback 

  • Strive for intellectual humility. Be willing to grapple with challenging ideas as both a person who may contribute to anothers learning and a person who may learn from others

• Disagreement

  • Differentiate between safety and comfort some amount of discomfort is necessary for growth. Notice what you need to lean into discomfort such as a pause in the conversation and seek it out

  • Commit to doing your best in our learning space by doing the work and participating in creating a productive learning environment for others

• Confidentiality

  • When sharing what you learn in this space with others, take care to leave out identifying information

Operational:

• Task Management: 

  • Complete all pre-work tasks before class, arrive prepared to participate with the materials 

• Classroom logistics

  • Start and end class on time 

  • Limit technology use to related course activities

  • Group note taking protocol 

    • what should be recorded, in what detail, how to capture disagreement or difference of opinion 

• Communication processes 

  • Where possible, before missing a class or group meeting, communicate with the instructor or group members

  • Look first at the syllabus for course questions and then communicate with instructor or TAs via email if you dont find your answer

Continue reading

Creating and Using Community Agreements

References

• Arao, B., & Clemens, K. (2023). From safe spaces to brave spaces: A new way to frame dialogue around diversity and social justice. In The art of effective facilitation (pp. 135-150). Routledge.
• Fernández, J. S. (2024). Developing Classroom Community Agreements to Cultivate a Critically Compassionate Learning Community. The Radical Teacher, (128), 16-24.
• Homrich-Knieling, M. (2021) Shifting Our Practice from Classroom Management to Community. Trauma-Informed Teaching, 65 (1) 65-68.