Community agreements are typically documents about classroom expectations for discussion and behavior that are created collaboratively between students and instructors. The agreement helps to build a foundation for an inclusive learning environment through the process of co-creation and transparency about expectations and boundaries. This guide provides a brief overview of incorporating community agreements into your inclusive teaching practice.
A community agreement may be known by other terms such as classroom norms, expectations, guidelines, or contract. It is typically co-created through discussion between students and the instructor.
An agreement guides the way students and instructors participate in discussions or other class activities, helping all participants to interact in an equitable, inclusive, and respectful framework.
Note that a collaborative agreement needs to be distinguished from classroom policies that the instructor provides to the class, usually in the syllabus and in class meetings early in the semester. Policies are often set by the department or university to cover such areas as assessment and attendance requirements.
A community agreement is a useful teaching tool because it helps create a learning environment where all students feel they belong and are encouraged to participate in ways that support their individual and collective success.
It also helps all class participants be accountable for their contribution to the productive dynamics of the class.
The agreement, through its collaborative creation and framing of classroom expectations, provides modeling for civil discourse even when students may not agree with each other – what researchers Brian Arao and Kristi Clemens call “controversy with civility” in their chapter “From Safe Spaces to Brave Spaces: A New Way to Frame Dialogue Around Diversity and Social Justice,” in The Art of Effective Facilitation: Reflections from Social Justice Educators (see Resources at the end of this guide for full citation).
The agreement also provides instructors with a framework to initiate conversations with, or respond to questions from, students about any behavior that disrupts the community agreement.
Community agreements may be created in different ways depending on the style and size of the class. For example, instructors with large lecture-based classes may choose to develop agreements in a different way from instructors with small discussion-based classes. Here are some key points to keep in mind as you plan for your classroom agreement:
Some possibilities for developing the agreement:
Typically, community agreements are discussed and formulated early in the semester. That way, students and the instructor/s have a clear sense of the expectations for the class from the beginning.
However, if you don’t include a community agreement right at the beginning of the semester, look for a space where it could be added: before a class discussion, for example, or before group activities that will benefit from clear expectations.
Remember to re-visit the agreement periodically throughout the semester to ask whether anything needs to be clarified, changed, or added.
Community agreements need to be accessible to all members of the class, including the instructor, graduate or undergraduate student assistants, and students.
Possibilities for “posting” include:
Remember to update the agreement, as needed, if the class community agrees on changes or additions.
This list of points that could be included in a community agreement is adapted from “Establishing Classroom Ground Rules,” from the Center for Teaching and Learning at Washington University in St. Louis.
Please see this list of resources, some of which have been cited in the guide, for additional ideas and information.
Arao, B. & Clemens, K. (2013). From safe spaces to brave spaces: A new way to frame dialogue around diversity and social justice. In L. M. Landreman (ed.) The art of effective facilitation: Reflections from social justice educators, (pp. 135-150). Sterling, VA: Stylus. The electronic version of this book is available through the Boston University library system with a BU log-in.
The Center for Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). Establishing Classroom Ground Rules. Washington University in St. Louis. https://ctl.wustl.edu/resources/establishing-classroom-ground-rules/
Race Equity & Justice Initiative. (n.d.). Race Equity Toolkit: Tool D Community Agreements. JustLead Washington. https://justleadwa.org/learn/rejitoolkit/
This guide in intended for use by all instructors. It was created as a resource for Designing Antiracism Curricula (DAC), a partnership between the Center for Teaching & Learning (CTL), the Center for Antiracist Research (CAR), and Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) at Boston University. Thank you to Dr. Priya Garg from the DAC planning committee for conversation about the role of community agreements.
We welcome your feedback to help us improve the guide. Please contact us at ctl@bu.edu with “Community Agreements” in the subject line if you would like to provide comments on the guide.
Last updated September 5, 2022.
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