UMN REU examples of positive/negative interactions

    Positive interactions

  1. Organizing who works on what between meetings; having everyone pick some concrete "homework" for the next group meeting.
  2. Being intentional about the choice of who presents next at a full REU meeting, and to the project mentor. Making sure everyone gets roughly equal "speaking time".
  3. Taking everyone's ideas into account. An easy way to do this is to check in at the start of a group meeting with everyone to see if they have anything they'd like to discuss and create a loose agenda. When others share, stay present and curious!
  4. Dividing into smaller groups to conquer tasks can be helpful / efficient! Just make sure to come back together and keep everyone in the loop on progress.
  5. Bringing students into the conversation who might be quiet in meetings ("What do you think, [student]?") They might have ideas to share, but have trouble jumping in. Or they might be lost or confused, but catching people up is much better done earlier rather than later.
  6. Asking questions when people say something you don't understand. Asking someone to explain can help them crystallize their thoughts, or realize subtle details they may have been missing. Asking questions now can help you when you read things later, giving you additional perspective.

    Negative interactions

  1. Not inviting everyone on the problem to your group meeting.
  2. Appointing yourself to be in charge of a certain aspect of the project without asking your group members' thoughts first - they might be interested in helping too! (e.g.,"I'll be the code person," or "I'll be the person who presents our progress to the mentor").
  3. Comparing contribution levels (e.g., "I'm the only one who has contributed anything meaningful to this project.")
  4. One student talking most of the time, or interrupting others frequently. Rather than interrupting, use body language such as nodding, affirmative hand-signs, or smiles to acknowledge when you like their ideas (pretend you are muted on Zoom :) ).
  5. Working almost entirely alone / not updating your teammates on your progress. This can cause duplication of effort (and with two different sets of notation...) When possible, updates should occur during problem group meetings, not large REU group meetings.
  6. Shutting down when others share their work, or dismissing its usefulness before hearing the whole idea.
  7. Making assumptions about other people's ability to contribute based on elements of their identity and background, such as language skills, gender, race, what school they attend, etc.
  8. Interrogating or asking aggressive questions of a speaker (especially a fellow student). Questions during and after a presentation are great and encouraged, but should be things you're confused or curious about, not to make the speaker prove they know the material or to make yourself look smart. (We already know you're smart!)
  9. Continuing to ask questions (even earnest ones) when a speaker appears to be becoming upset or flustered. Remember: the tone of your questions matters! Even if you aren't trying to interrogate the speaker, they might still feel put on the spot if you keep pushing on a topic they're unsure about. Pay attention to their body language. Remember that you can hold on to your questions to ask them in a smaller setting after the presentation if you're still confused.

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