Breaking Through the "Fourth Wall": Implication for Teaching and Learning

Brad Garner, Innovation & Partnerships, Indiana Wesleyan University

There is a rich history of thought and research around how faculty can and should engage with their students in higher education (Chickering and Gamson, 1987; Guzzardo et al., 2020; Kuh, 2008; Trolian, Archibald & Jach, 2020). There should be no doubt that this element of the college experience can dramatically impact student learning and their probabilities of success. In this issue of The Toolbox, we will examine the “Fourth Wall” as a metaphor for how faculty can envision approaches to interacting and engaging with students.

The Fourth Wall is a conceptual model with its roots in staged performance arts. The idea is that there is an imaginary transparent wall between the actors and their audience. Through this veil, the audience sees the action of the play or film. This concept was initially proposed by the French philosopher and art critic Denis Diderot (1758). He suggested that actors behave as if the curtain had never risen, completely ignoring and never interacting with the audience. This approach has long been a standard practice across staged performance venues.

Interestingly, several television shows have intentionally broken the Fourth Wall to engage the audience, including Saved by the Bell, Fresh Prince of Belair, Malcolm in the Middle, and House of Cards. Films employing this strategy include Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Wayne’s World, Fight Club, and Deadpool. In these examples, cast members turn away from their fellow castmates and simulate a conversation with the audience.

There are several parallels between the presence of a Fourth Wall and teaching in higher education. First, behind the Fourth Wall, faculty can choose to be the center of attention, treating students as passive audience members, whether in a classroom or an online course. In this scenario, instructors center their efforts on the delivery of content. They might observe how students respond (e.g., attentive, distracted, sleeping), but the main thing is to work their way through a deck of PowerPoint slides in the time allotted for class.

Nothing kills creativity faster than a wall.

—Eric Weiner, from "The Geography of Genius: A Search for the World’s Most Creative Places from Ancient Athens to Silicon Valley"

Second, just as an audience does not have the privilege of interacting with actors in a play, students may be reluctant to initiate contact with their instructor (inside or outside the classroom) when the Fourth Wall is evident in the learning environment. That is when the instructor seems aloof and interested primarily in disseminating information rather than interacting with students.

This separation can lead to misunderstandings, unanswered questions, and a general sense of malaise among the students about what they are intended to learn.

Finally, the Fourth Wall reduces course content to a one-way recitation by the instructor, reducing dialogue, debate, inquiry, and opportunities for critical thinking. With the wall intact, the back and forth between instructors and students that enhances learning cannot occur.

It is proposed that the best instructors in higher education will resoundingly reject the concept of a Fourth Wall when it comes to teaching and learning. Instead, they will make every effort to interact with and engage their students in various ways. By breaking the Fourth Wall, instructors invite students onto the “stage” to play an active part in the drama, comedy, and suspense part of a well-designed and delivered course.

Bringing Down the Fourth Wall

There are a variety of strategies that faculty can employ to eliminate the Fourth Wall as a barrier to their engagements and interactions with students.

» Learn your students’ names — Everyone loves to hear the sound of their own name. So, make it a practice to learn your students’ names and practice calling them by name.

» Share your story — Instructors have many experiences to share with their students. Sharing these stories gives students a glimpse into these experiences and builds a personal connection. These stories also often include challenges that have been overcome and how the instructor is a lifelong learner.

» Create multiple pathways to communication — Many tools assist instructors in connecting with their students: face-to-face and through email, phone calls, texts, and video. Opening these communication channels encourages students to reach out if they have questions or concerns. Take advantage of the opportunity to send messages to your students (e.g., links to websites, news events related to course content, videos). These connections encourage students to engage with course content outside the normal boundaries of established classroom meeting times.

» Create and participate in online discussions — Asynchronous online discussions provide a way to connect students outside the classroom. By participating in these discussions, instructors can help students dig deeper into the course content and build relationships. It is critically essential to craft discussion prompts that invite differences of opinion, critical thinking, active dialogue, and personal applications of the content being discussed.

» Practice “Immediacy” — This principle involves the creation of a learning environment where the instructor is present and responsive to their students. Immediacy is evidenced by quick responses to emails/ texts and prompt feedback on submitted assignments. These practices demonstrate that the instructor is consistently attentive to the needs of students.

» Personalize Feedback — Instructors routinely evaluate student assignment submissions. The goal of this activity should go well beyond simply creating a mechanism to determine a final grade. Feedback should help students develop the skills necessary to perform more efficiently and effectively on future assignments. Feedback provides a forum for faculty to give these suggestions in a personal, conversational, and inviting way. Once again, instructors are offering evidence that they are personally invested in the success of every student.

» Schedule “Curiosity Conversations” — In his book A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life (2016), Brian Grazer makes the case that being curious is a great way to be a lifelong learner. Consider inviting (a.k.a., requiring) your students to have a one-on-one conversation with you. Pick a comfortable spot like a coffee shop and ask your students to come equipped with topics related to your course, future opportunities, or other things they would like to know. These conversations are a great way to begin and build a foundation for learning and ongoing engagement. By the way, your students will end up doing most of the talking.

Breakthrough the Fourth Wall and connect with your students!

References

Chickering, A. W., & Gamson, Z. F. (1987). Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. The Wingspread Journal, 9, 1-10.

Diderot, D. (1758). La pere de famille: Comedie en cinq actes et en prose, avec un discours sur la poesie dramatique. Paris; A, Amsterdam

Grazer, B., & Fishman, C. (2016). A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Guzardo, M. T., Khosia, N., Adams, A. L., Bussmann, J. D., Engelman, A., Ingraham, N., Gamba, R., Jones-bey, A., Moore, M. D., Toosi, N. R., & Taykir, S. (2020, September 30). The ones that care make all the difference: Perspectives on student-faculty relationships. Innovative Higher Education, 46, 41-58. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from https://link.springer. com/content/pdf/10.1007/s10755-020-09522-w.pdf.

Kuh, G. (2008). High-impact educational practices: What they are, who has access to them, and why they matter. Association of American Colleges and Universities.

Trolian, T. L., G. C. Archibald & E. A. Jach (2020) Well-being and student-faculty interactions in higher education, Higher Education Research & Development, DOI: 10.1080/07294360.2020.1839023