Students calling you by first name

[Charlotte]

There is currently a discussion in the General Discussion forum on using first name vs. last names and I wanted to bring the conversation specifically in the classroom.

I recently had this discussion with another professor on how to handle students who call professors by their first name. He tends to ignore it, but he is older and students rarely call him by his first name. He feels that when it does occur it is brought on by the fact he refers to students by their first names.

As a young female professor, I'm reluctant to ignore a student who calls me by my first name. I do not want to sound arrogant by demanding to be called Dr. or professor, but I do feel that I need that extra bit of distance and formality to help maintain a bit of authority in the classroom. I have been calling students by their first name, however, and I wonder if that is a mistake.

The other professors in my department are referred to as Dr. From what I can tell, I am the only one who is experiencing being called by my first name, but I am significantly younger.

What are your thoughts? Should I call students by their first name?
Should I ignore students who call me by my first name?
Should I correct them? If so, how can I do this without coming across as arrogant? What's the best way to handle this?
Any additional tips on how to maintain authority in the classroom as a young female professor would also be very much appreciated. I may be wrong about needing a title to help maintain authority.

[Caracal]

There is currently a discussion in the General Discussion forum on using first name vs. last names and I wanted to bring the conversation specifically in the classroom.

I recently had this discussion with another professor on how to handle students who call professors by their first name. He tends to ignore it, but he is older and students rarely call him by his first name. He feels that when it does occur it is brought on by the fact he refers to students by their first names.

As a young female professor, I'm reluctant to ignore a student who calls me by my first name. I do not want to sound arrogant by demanding to be called Dr. or professor, but I do feel that I need that extra bit of distance and formality to help maintain a bit of authority in the classroom. I have been calling students by their first name, however, and I wonder if that is a mistake.

The other professors in my department are referred to as Dr. From what I can tell, I am the only one who is experiencing being called by my first name, but I am significantly younger.

What are your thoughts? Should I call students by their first name?
Should I ignore students who call me by my first name?
Should I correct them? If so, how can I do this without coming across as arrogant? What's the best way to handle this?
Any additional tips on how to maintain authority in the classroom as a young female professor would also be very much appreciated. I may be wrong about needing a title to help maintain authority.

Calling students Mr. so and so is one of those things that I think is going to come across and odd and forced unless it is standard at your institution or you are venerable enough to make it seem quaint. I don't think it is really connected to what students call you. I think you're probably right that this is about both gender and age.

The gender stuff sucks. I almost never get students calling me by my first name. They do call me Mr. Caracal sometimes, but I don't have to worry that this is a gendered slight and can just dismiss it as a habit from K-12 and not worry about addressing it. For what it is worth, I would suggest just correcting students in a matter of fact and friendly way. (Again this sucks, because there's a very narrow path for women)

[downer]

Why is it a problem if they call you by your first name? It seems that the name they use can't really be the issue, unless it implies some kind of disrespect. It might be a good thing if it means they feel you are approachable.

Is there a sign that the way they address you is linked with problematic behavior? -- not studying, lack of academic integrity, talking during your lectures, texting during lectures?

It is tempting to recommend that you chill out about it. But if it important to you, for cultural reasons, or because it is embarrassing to you if colleagues see students calling you by your first name, then you have the right to be called whatever you like. It could take some effort to change how the students behave and might have some costs. Maybe calling them by their last names would work, but it would mean that you have to use their preferred gender (Mr/Ms), which could lead to you making some mistakes. You could find a way to take points away from students who don't use the right language in class, for example, but that would likely be counter-productive. Maybe changing the way you dress would have an effect -- if you wear a suit, they might be more formal.

So it seems like a matter of weighing the costs and benefits.

[Caracal]

Why is it a problem if they call you by your first name? It seems that the name they use can't really be the issue, unless it implies some kind of disrespect. It might be a good thing if it means they feel you are approachable.

Is there a sign that the way they address you is linked with problematic behavior? -- not studying, lack of academic integrity, talking during your lectures, texting during lectures?

It is tempting to recommend that you chill out about it. But if it important to you, for cultural reasons, or because it is embarrassing to you if colleagues see students calling you by your first name, then you have the right to be called whatever you like. It could take some effort to change how the students behave and might have some costs. Maybe calling them by their last names would work, but it would mean that you have to use their preferred gender (Mr/Ms), which could lead to you making some mistakes. You could find a way to take points away from students who don't use the right language in class, for example, but that would likely be counter-productive. Maybe changing the way you dress would have an effect -- if you wear a suit, they might be more formal.

So it seems like a matter of weighing the costs and benefits.

I think in a classroom setting, you want students to be defaulting to the norm, assuming there is one. If students generally refer to other professors as Dr, and if professors refer to other professors as Dr when talking to students, you dn't want them referring to you by first name unless you asked them to do that. I wouldn't suggest taking away points based on address. That would seem punitive and odd and likely backfire. I also wouldn't really conflate it with questions of dress. (I think there's something to be said for dressing a bit more formally if you're younger.) There's no reason to complicate a fairly simple personal interaction. If students are calling you by your first name and you don't want them to, ask them nicely to call you by your title.

[AvidReader]

Female here, but probably not what would be called "young" any more.

I would never ignore a student who called me by my first name. I mostly teach freshmen, and it is a  teaching opportuinity. When "Hey, Avid!" (or "Ms. Reader") occurs, I remind them that we remain professional in the classroom. I refer to other instructors as "Prof.," or "Dr." as appropriate. And when we talk about sources, some of which have been written by my friends, I point out that I call my friends "Hannibal" and "Henry" socially, "Dr. Lecter" or "Dr. Higgins" in formal settings (such as guest lectures) and just "Lecter" and "Higgins" in written work. Showing them that different names are most appropriate for different settings is an easier lesson than "Don't call me by my first name!"

AR.

[research_prof]

Undergraduate students have called me in all sorts of different ways. I think one at some point had said something like "Hey, man". To be honest, I am still quite close to their age, so I do not take it personally, but if I sense that they believe we are buddies I would explain to them that we are not.

My MS/PhD students can call me any way they like. That's probably something I have gotten from my advisor—his students would simply call him by his first name and he was also encouraging the students he supervised to do so.

[Puget]

I invite undergrads to use my first name if they like, as do many of my colleagues. I never felt like my authority depended on them using a title. Most default to Prof. Lastname though, which I understand-- I don't think I used first names as an undergrad even for professors who invited it.

With grad students, we all insist on first names-- this signals that they are junior colleagues. We start this right from the interview day.

[Katrina Gulliver]

With grad students, we all insist on first names-- this signals that they are junior colleagues. We start this right from the interview day.

This is the distinction I make too - and I appreciated it when I was a grad student. It felt like a rite of passage to be first-naming profs.

Now a lot of my students seem to email me with my first name, I fought back at former institution, but at this one I've just about given up. It pisses me off, especially the emails calling me "Miss" as well.

[downer]

I generally tell students they can call me what they like, within reason. I dress informally most of the time. Yet they nearly always call me "Professor". I guess it probably has something to do with the local culture, peer behavior, and how many wrinkles I have.

[arcturus]

Despite the fact that I went to an undergraduate institution where we were expected to call our professors by their first names, I expect undergraduate students at my institution to use Prof or Dr LastName in class and in written correspondence. The exceptions are my undergraduate research students (they are part of the team!) and all graduate students. I am very much irked when an undergraduate student addresses email to Mr. LastName, Mrs. LastName, or FirstName. I am also irked when they address email to SomeOneWhoIAmNot.

I think the appropriate form of address is particularly important for (young) female professors. When I arrived in my department, all of the male professors were addressed as Dr. SoAndSo by the administrative assistants and all of the female professors were addressed by FirstName. While that may have been the preference of several of the female professors, the gender disparity was noticeable. We have made progress over the years: now everyone is addressed by first name for conversations amongst faculty and staff.

In terms of the classroom, proper use of honorifics and professional dress help convey authority that may be needed to ensure an effective learning environment. Societal norms make this more difficult for anyone not part of the assumed group: women and underrepresented minorities. I recommend specifying clearly your expectations on the first day of class ("Hello, I am Prof LastName. Welcome to Basket Weaving 101") and in all correspondence (signed, Prof LastName). It will not be a cure-all, but it may help. As a last resort, I might spend a few minutes in class talking about proper ways of addressing professionals, not as a specific you must call me Prof SuchAndSuch, but in the more general context as described by AvidReader above.

[Parasaurolophus]

I tell mine what to call me on the first day of class, and remind them gently when they deviate. For me, that includes my first name (well, the first half of my first name). But I'm cis and male, and don't really have any trouble with classroom discipline.

What I hate, however, is that many students default to the anglicized version of my name, which is pronounced differently and is not my name. It's a constant struggle in this province in general (that, and the female version of the name), and I don't have much patience for it any more. I don't care if they use my first name, but if they do they need to use my name.

[mamselle]

I have always said in the first class, "You may call me "FirstName," "Ms. LastName," or "Professor LastName," as long as you do so respectfully. I care much less what you call me than I care about all of us addressing each other out of a place of respect and consideration for each other."

That has worked so far for me.

M.

[ciao_yall]

In American business culture, everyone is on a first name basis. So, because I teach business, I have students call me by my first name, but some call me (Dr, Mrs, Ms, Prof) LastName and that's fine.

I want them to get used to the quasi-faux-egalitarianism of American business culture. And also to have them know that we are all learning from each other and what they bring to the classroom is really important.

There may well be some white-lady-class-privilege going on. I'm a lady of (ahem) a certain age, and I dress very professionally - in fact, I'm a bit famous on campus.

In college I observed a private school for a class... IIRC, it was a class in organizational behavior and it had something about socializing gender in education. The (mostly Black) students were really obnoxious to the white male teacher but really well behaved when the Black woman teacher came in.

Students are adaptable. What happens in one class may be very different from another, and they are okay with whatever the professor asks them to do. Sometimes they push a bit (Ms. Goodman doesn't make us...) and I say "Well, she teaches her class and I teach mine."

[fishbrains]

I have always said in the first class, "You may call me "FirstName," "Ms. LastName," or "Professor LastName," as long as you do so respectfully. I care much less what you call me than I care about all of us addressing each other out of a place of respect and consideration for each other."

That has worked so far for me.

M.

Ditto. I also remind them that even if they call me by my first name, I'm still the person who might have to assign them an "F" at the end of the semester.

As a student, I always used Dr. So-and-so to address professors, even if they said we could use their first name. I don't think of myself as "old school," but . . . well.

That said, I'm an older white male and I pretty much look like a community college English teacher, so I'm at a stage where I probably don't need to assert/present authority from the get-go. Also, I frequently correct students who refer to their female professors (many with doctorates) by the term "Miss."

Overall, I'd suggest the OP stand her ground and insist on the more formal "Dr." until she is more comfortable with less-formal options. It's not arrogance as much as just defining the teaching space you are going to occupy, and there's nothing wrong with that (assuming she doesn't ask them to refer to her as "Great-High-and-Mighty Goddess of All Things Knowable" or something like that).

[marshwiggle]

Overall, I'd suggest the OP stand her ground and insist on the more formal "Dr." until she is more comfortable with less-formal options. It's not arrogance as much as just defining the teaching space you are going to occupy, and there's nothing wrong with that (assuming she doesn't ask them to refer to her as "Great-High-and-Mighty Goddess of All Things Knowable" or something like that).

That would be really hard to fit on one of those "Hello, my name is " stickers.