Creating Classroom Community Guidelines

Community engagement guidelines are a shared framework for interaction, co-created by you and your students—typically at the start of a course. Co-creating these guidelines can transform the learning environment by fostering shared responsibility for inclusive, respectful, and clearly defined expectations for engagement. Community engagement guides are inspired by Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of the beloved community (Hillis, 2013), where all students within a community feel cared for.

Benefits of creating community engagement guidelines

Incorporating community engagement guidelines into your course strengthens the learning environment by:

  • creating opportunities for students to belong and be part of a community
  • fostering a more equitable learning environment where all voices are heard
  • inviting mutual care where each student matters
  • creating a sense of shared responsibility for everyone’s learning

(Ahenkorah, 2020; Fernández, 2024; Marquis, 2021)

Community engagement guidelines are not about monitoring or control, but rather about creating shared expectations that foster meaningful engagement.

Terms such as group dynamics, rules, norms, values, and agreements are often used interchangeably. Clarifying these concepts early on supports a shared understanding. Distinguish these terms by noting that:

  • rules are externally defined expectations, such as those outlined in university policies or course requirements
  • norms are socially regulated group expectation
  • community guidelines are clear, actionable statements that the group generates, agrees to, and maintains collectively

(Shively & Shawyer, 2024)

Drafting and integrating community engagement guidelines

The collaborative process of creating the collective guidelines is as important as documenting and agreeing on them, highlighting a focus on community before content. Spending time building classroom communities strengthens relational trust, the foundation of strong learning environments.

Engagement guidelines are helpful for any class size, and many strategies can be applied across contexts. In smaller classes, guidelines may emerge from whole-class discussions. In larger classes, consider using polls, breakout groups, or online discussion boards.

The following steps outline a process for creating community engagement guidelines.

  • Explain the role of guidelines and how they will be used as part of your first class presentation or in a recorded video.

  • Emphasize that the community guidelines are shared commitments designed to support a positive, respectful learning environment for everyone.

  • Share that the guidelines are not intended for monitoring purposes or to limit participation, but to build a foundation of shared values that encourage positive interactions.

  • Collaborate with students to set expectations and identify key behaviours—such as active listening, inviting multiple perspectives, and acknowledging differing viewpoints—that shape the learning environment they want.

  • Create a process for addressing issues when guidelines are not being followed by asking, ‘If someone isn’t following our community guidelines, what steps should we take together to address it?’

  • Positive engagement means contributing with curiosity, respect, and evidence-based thinking to help everyone learn. For example, if a course outcome is to analyze diverse perspectives critically. In that case, positive engagement involves showing curiosity about different viewpoints, asking questions to understand them, and responding with courtesy and evidence.

    Examples could include:

    • Listen actively without interrupting.
    • Be curious and courteous when views differ.
    • Support ideas with evidence from readings or research.

  • Invite students to review and refine the guidelines.

  • Make any final adjustments as needed.

  • Once agreed upon, post the guidelines and ask everyone to signal their commitment by showing their hands or taking a poll.

This step can be accomplished in other ways if whole-class participation is not feasible. For example:

  • Small groups: Have students develop draft guidelines in breakout groups, then combine common themes.

  • Polling tools: Use Wooclap or Google Forms to collect input.

  • Shared documents: Invite contributions in a collaborative document or discussion board.

  • Representative feedback: Gather ideas from a few student representatives, then confirm with the class.

  • Schedule regular check-ins and send reminders to help students reflect on their progress and experiences with class participation.

  • Demonstrate the norms through your tone, participation, and responsiveness.

  • Offer timely reminders to keep the group aligned with the agreed guidelines.

  • Gather feedback regularly and adjust as needed.


Co-creating community engagement guidelines: Some Examples

This example demonstrates the process for how an instructor co-created community engagement guidelines in an in-person course:

  1. Before class, the instructor sent a confidential welcome survey to students with a few questions:

    Pre-course survey: Building our class community

    • What kind of class environment helps you learn best?

    • What behaviours do you expect from yourself, your peers, and the instructor to create a positive and respectful class environment?

    • What helps you feel included and ready to participate?

    • What guidelines or agreements will help us work well together?

  2. The instructor drafted a preliminary set of core principles (e.g., respect, inclusion, shared responsibility, constructive dialogue). These act as the foundation for the draft guidelines.

  3. During the first class, the instructor:

    • summarized survey responses (anonymized)
    • shared the purpose and intended use of establishing guidelines
    • invited feedback on the initial draft guidelines
    • facilitated discussion by inviting questions and asking for examples

  4. Following the whole-group discussion, students reflected quietly with a neighbour, then shared highlights with the class.

    For larger classes, an instructor scaled participation by breaking the class into smaller groups (10-15 students) for discussion. Each group contributed input, feedback, suggested behaviours and examples.

  5. Adjustments to the draft guidelines were made based on the input.

  6. Students were asked to indicate agreement via a show of hands or using a poll.

  7. Draft guidelines were posted on Canvas.

  8. The instructor asked for a second round of feedback, which was considered in the following class, and the students voted once again.

  9. Once full agreement on the guidelines was reached, the final version was posted on Canvas.

Example 2 demonstrates how an instructor in a large 200+ student asynchronous course created community engagement guidelines.

  1. The instructor asked students to submit ideas via an anonymous online form by a set deadline.

  2. The instructor summarized the common themes, and shared them in a discussion forum. Students were invited to suggest refinements to the draft guidelines

  3. The instructor launched a vote on the guidelines to confirm agreement.

  4. The final guidelines were posted on Canvas.

This kept the process inclusive, manageable, and scalable without relying on large group discussions.

How might these examples of creating community engagement guidelines be adapted to your own class or context?


Sample community engagement guidelines

Below is an example of some community engagement guidelines that might be shared with course participants.

Our class will contribute to creating a supportive and safe learning environment, and agree to the following:

Be courteous: Allow everyone time to contribute by avoiding interruptions and dominating the discussion.

Be prepared: Complete readings or assignments ahead of class and bring notes and questions.

Be curious: Listen attentively and stay open to others' perspectives even when they differ from your own.

Engage meaningfully: Contribute relevant ideas, ask thoughtful questions, and share connections to course concepts.

Ensure all voices are heard and valued:

  • Be self-aware of how much each student speaks compared to their classmates/peers.

  • Invite all students to share, including under-heard voices, in ways that are comfortable for them.

  • Ask students who dominate the conversation or interrupt the discussion to offer space for others to contribute.

Maintain confidentiality: Keep personal or sensitive information shared in class private.

Communicate absences: Email the instructor promptly and check with classmates for missed materials.

Use technology responsibly: Ensure your use of technology is on task and does not interfere with others' learning.

Seek help: Ask questions in class, attend office hours, check with peers and use available support services.

Give kind and constructive feedback: Offer specific, actionable suggestions focused on behaviours or processes rather than individuals.


When community engagement guidelines are not being respected

When behaviors drift from the established guidelines, the following steps can help restore accountability and reconnect the class to your shared expectations:

  • Gently remind students of the agreed-upon expectations and encourage them to reflect on how their actions affect the group.

  • Reconnect behaviours to shared values. Link actions back to community principles such as inclusion, respect, and shared responsibility. Example: “Let’s remember our guideline to allow everyone a chance to speak—this helps all voices be heard.”

  • Encourage students to support each other in following the guidelines, gently prompting peers when behaviours drift from agreed guidelines.

  • Recognize and reinforce positive behaviours as they occur, modelling the engagement expected from everyone.

  • Regularly revisit the guidelines to reinforce expectations and a shared sense of responsibility.

The University of Alberta's Access, Community + Belonging strategic actions emphasize values-based practices such as:

    • embracing interconnectedness
    • promoting mutual flourishing
    • community building
    • fostering inclusive and collaborative learning spaces

These initiatives underscore the importance of creating environments where all members feel seen, valued, and supported.


Learn more: references AND resources

Ahenkorah, E. (2020, September 21). Safe and brave spaces don’t work (and what you can do instead). Medium. https://medium.com/@elise.k.ahen/safe-and-brave-spaces-dont-work-and-what-you-can-do-instead-f265aa339aff

Fernández, J. S. (2024). Developing classroom community agreements to cultivate a critically compassionate learning community. Radical Teacher: A Socialist, Feminist, and Anti-Racist Journal on the Theory and Practice of Teaching, 128, 16–24. https://doi.org/10.5195/rt.2024.1068

Hillis, M. R. (2013). Establishing Martin Luther King’s beloved community for the education of Black youth. Religion & Education, 40(2), 173–188. https://doi.org/10.1080/15507394.2013.786626

Marquis, E. (2021). Enhancing classroom equity through student-faculty pedagogical partnership. Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 12(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotlrcacea.2021.1.10814

Shively, K. & Shawyer, S. (2024). Building a culture of collaboration with rules, norms, and community agreements. Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 15(2), 251–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/19443927.2024.2366120