ABSTRACT
How approachable do you perceive yourself to be to students and how approachable do you think students perceive you as? As lecturers you are constantly in your department, teaching, researching and socialising with students and peers. It is therefore easy to perceive oneself as very approachable. This is not necessarily what students consider as approachable. You need to be available to your students academically whether through tutorials, extra help or e-mail. Students need to have confidence in asking for help and direction; this is an essential entitlement for student learning. However, this approachability needs to be put into a context of time and manageability. Here ground rules as described in Chapter 4 are essential. Insist on appointments or timetables of events, but do allow students reasonable access. To improve teaching, approachability and interaction need to be considered together. As Reid and Johnstone (1999, p. 278) suggest.
