Student Participation and Social Difference 181have smaller and smaller numbers in each group, limiting considerably any con-
clusions that can be drawn from the comparisons.
In addition to the two classrooms taught by professors of color, there were
two other classes in which students of color achieved positive participation ratios.
One of them, Class #6, was taught at a local law school by a white female professor
and was overall the most egalitarian class of the study. With 53 students, the class
was in the midrange of class sizes and fell into the more conversational end of the
pedagogical spectrum. It is the only class in the study in which 100% of the stu-
dents spoke at least once. It shares with Class #3 the smallest gendered time and
turn disparities in the study (in favor of women by small percentages), and with
Class #2 the smallest race-based time and turn disparities.^38
Lest we conclude that the more conversational style of this last class was the
key factor in generating more egalitarian participation patterns, we note that the
fourth classroom in which students of color participated more than predicted by
their numbers is Class #4, taught by one of the more Socratic professors. How-
ever, this was the youngest teacher in the study, and although he employed a rela-
tively Socratic format, his classroom style was somewhat relaxed (as we saw in
Chapter 6, where he was the leading example of an encouraging modified Socratic
teacher). Here we see the complications involved in delineating what aspects of
classroom style might be most important in creating an inclusive atmosphere, for
we have found positive participation ratios for students of color in both a more
conversational and a more Socratic class. A qualitative examination of both classes
reveals an underlying similarity that is difficult to quantify: the professors in both
classes seemed to adopt less of a distanced position than the prototypical formal
law professor, using humor, discourse-cohesive devices, and other signals (includ-
ing prosody and intonation) to create a somewhat more informal atmosphere than
students might expect.
Here it’s also intriguing to consider the possibility that these professors are all
to some degree operating against a backdrop of the stereotypical law professor
created in part by popular culture representations (films such as The Paper Chase,
books such as One L). This is a stereotype that is so austere and intimidating that
it is not difficult to appear more humane and informal by comparison. It thus seems
possible that—sometimes through indirect commentary, as we’ve seen, and some-
times without any effort or comment at all—these professors may be invoking a
contrast in which they appear relatively benign. Alternatively, of course, the ste-
reotype may at times help cast a long shadow over the classroom, helping to create
an intimidating atmosphere that professors would have to actively work against if
they wished to create an encouraging atmosphere; so, for example, just the use of
the discursive format of Socratic questioning might take on additional significance
in light of its representation in popular culture. As we will see, we can find evi-
dence for both positions in the student interviews. In any case, these two profes-
sors, neither of whom are in the oldest age group in the study, did seem to create
a less formal atmosphere in their classes—although it should be noted that, with
its combination of conversational structure and relatively light atmosphere, Class
#6 was by far the more informal of the two. This reminds us that even though the
effects of a more formal discourse style may be softened by the use of an informal