The last few weeks of a term in college are usually peppered with thesis defenses, something which I approach with both excitement and dread. (Yes, dear students, the thesis defense can be stressful on your panelists, too.) As a management educator, I look forward to discovering which business issues and concerns captivate students’ interest and are deemed relevant enough for them to pore over for a term or two. At the same time, I wonder if the students feel that their thesis panel, or their classroom in general, is a safe space for them to learn about business and management.
A safe space is a concept that has been around since the 1960s and 1970s and continues to be relevant today. It is primarily associated with providing emotional and psychological comfort for marginalized groups. It is a supportive environment where people can freely express their identities, beliefs, and emotions without fearing prejudice. In a management classroom, students should feel secure enough to share their experiences, challenge conventional thinking, collaborate openly, and engage actively in the learning process, knowing that their ideas and opinions will be heard, respected, and valued. Here are my reflections on the educator’s crucial role in making the management classroom a safe space.
Students can freely exchange ideas and engage in healthy debates with their classmates in a safe space. Management educators ought to encourage this participatory culture because it enhances critical thinking and nurtures essential management skills such as communication, teamwork, and conflict resolution. (Students, this is why your teachers continue to assign group activities.) Management philosophy pioneer Mary Parker Follet strongly advocated collaborative management practices, believing that organizations could greatly benefit from collective problem-solving. Similarly, a colleague of mine always tells her students that she is not the sole source of knowledge in the classroom. Inasmuch as her students have something to learn from her, she also encourages them to learn from each other.
A safe space for management education also requires addressing power dynamics within the classroom. Instructors must be mindful of their authority and avoid dominating discussions. Teachers should act as facilitators. Fostering student leadership and empowering them to take ownership of their learning instills a sense of responsibility and engagement, ultimately contributing to a more inclusive classroom environment.
In a safe space, students are emboldened to question traditional management theories and practices. This dovetails with American sociologist Jack Mezirow’s transformative learning theory, which suggests that students must challenge their preconceived notions and beliefs to achieve deeper understanding and personal growth. In the same way that students should not be afraid to give the wrong answer, they should also not be afraid to “ask the wrong questions.”
Lastly, a safe space calls for open communication between students and instructors. When a professor welcomes her students’ feedback, she demonstrates that she learns from her students just as they learn from her.
Liza Mae L. Fumar is a PhD in Business student at De La Salle University, where she also teaches Human Behavior in Organizations and Corporate Social Responsibility and Governance. She believes there is no such thing as a “bad question,” but sometimes there are better ways to phrase them.
Is the management classroom a safe space?
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