Communicate Early

Reach out to participants no later than one week before the first session. Your initial email should include:

• a syllabus/reading plan
• links to or instructions for accessing the readings
• logistical information (Zoom link, location, parking, etc.)
• a brief note about what to expect from the seminar format
• anything else relevant

Early communication signals that you take the seminar seriously and helps participants arrive prepared and at ease.

Note: it is typical to get a number of last-minute enrollments and you should forward the welcome email to any latecomers.

While not an obligation, some instructors like to send a short follow-up email after each class meeting (noting key themes that emerged, unresolved questions, and tips about what to think about for the next session). This can help to sustain intellectual engagement across meetings and build a sense of continuity across the arc of the course. But it’s up to you.

Provide Readings in Advance

For a seminar organized around a single book, participants should be encouraged to acquire their own copy. As a courtesy, however, it is always worth providing a PDF for at least the first session. You should also provide PDF copies of assigned articles and book chapters via a shared Google Drive folder or similar method. That goes for primary as well as secondary readings. An expertly curated selection of material is part of what participants get out of the course. Ideally, they leave with a roadmap for future independent study long after the seminar ends.

Distinguish clearly between primary and secondary readings in your syllabus. Primary readings are the core texts everyone is expected to read for each session and should generally not exceed 100 pages per week. Secondary readings are recommended and optional for those who wish to go deeper, either during the seminar or after it ends. It is helpful to note the approximate page count for each reading so participants can plan their time accordingly.

For example:

Week 3: The State and Its Discontents

Primary readings

• Max Weber, “Politics as a Vocation” (32 pp.)
• Rosa Luxemburg, “The Mass Strike” (selections, 28 pp.)

Secondary readings

• Nicos Poulantzas, Political Power and Social Classes, ch. 1–3 (55 pp.)
• Stuart Hall, “The Great Moving Right Show” (18 pp.)

Discussion, Not Lecture

BFI seminars are promoted as graduate-level and discussion-based, and that is what they should be. However, this does not mean an unstructured discussion for three hours. Nor does it mean an endless lecture followed by a short Q&A. You should find a balance, coming prepared to speak in short, focused bursts (framing a problem, close-reading a passage, introducing a concept, situating the intellectual context) and then opening the floor. Ideally everyone who would like to speak is given the opportunity. You should help orient and focus discussion as needed.

One useful technique: ask participants to share quotations, questions, or observations in a shared document before or during the session. This optional task gives quieter participants a low-stakes way to contribute and provides the group with ready material for discussion.

The First Session Sets the Tone

The first session is different from the others. It requires more structure, more instructor-led framing, and more attention to the social dimension of the group. Begin with a round of introductions: structured enough that everyone speaks, brief enough that it doesn’t consume the session.

Use the first session to set expectations clearly: how the seminar will be structured, what the readings demand, how discussion will work, and what participants can count on from you.

Managing the Room

Pay attention to who is and isn’t speaking. In every group, some participants will be more vocal than others, and dominant voices can inadvertently crowd out quieter ones. Some people like to talk; others need time to sit with an idea. Create space for both.

If a participant becomes disruptive, monopolizes discussion in ways that damage the experience for others, or behaves in a way that makes the space unwelcoming, do not hesitate to contact BFI administration. We are here to support you and will handle it directly if needed.

Community and the Social Dimension

One of the things participants value most about BFI is the chance to meet others who share their intellectual interests. The social dimension is a core part of what we offer. Do what you can to cultivate it: learn participants’ names, acknowledge connections between what different people have said, and create moments of genuine exchange rather than just information transfer.

Some instructors have found it valuable to organize an informal gathering (a drink after the last session, for instance) for participants who wish to continue the conversation. This is entirely optional but can be a fun way to close the course.

Assignments

Assignments are not expected or required at BFI. If you do wish to give an assignment, it should be entirely optional. Some enjoy the structure of a writing prompt or response exercise; others do not, and no one should feel penalized for declining.

Any assignments should be completed outside of class time. There is no expectation that BFI faculty read or provide feedback on such work.

Starting on Time and Managing Breaks

Please begin on time, even if some have yet to arrive. If something exceptional causes a late start, be sure to make up the time at the end of the session.

Breaks should be minimal. A short (5–10 minute) break in the middle of a three-hour session is appropriate. Please begin promptly upon returning, even if some have not yet returned. If the break runs longer than expected, extend the session accordingly.

Online and Hybrid Seminars

For online and hybrid sessions, a few additional norms help: encourage participants to keep cameras on when possible (some may not do this for various legitimate reasons), mute when not speaking, and use the chat function for questions or observations that arise while someone else is talking. Acknowledge the chat periodically rather than letting it run unread.

As a general rule, BFI does not promote the recording of online sessions. Massachusetts law requires that consent be given by everyone present and it tends to discourage participation when people know their words are being recorded.