ERAL 1112 First Year Experience, Reflection, and Action

Continued from Fall Limited to small groups of 12 first-year students each, First-Year Seminars are led by full-time faculty members from the Lynch School of Education & Human Development. Seminars dive into a topic of the faculty members choosing and range across various fields of expertise. First-year students will deepen their intellectual habits, academic expectations, and learning practices essential for success at the LSEHD.Students participate in weekly 90-minute sessions during Fall and in complementary co-curricular experiences in Fall & Spring. To receive full credit, students must participate in all activities and will receive a final grade at the end of the Spring term. This course is required for all first-year students at LSEHD starting Fall 2026.

Course overview

Department
Experience, Reflection, Action
School
Lynch
Credits
2
Level
Undergraduate
Offered
Every Spring

Course evaluations

Response-weighted averages from Boston College’s official course evaluations (Avalanche/Blue).

Course rating
3.10 / 5 · Good
880 responses
Instructor rating
3.82 / 5 · Very Good
880 responses
Terms evaluated
5
Most recent: Spring 2026

Scales: overall ratings run from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent); agreement questions from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree); weekly effort from 1 (up to 1 hour) to 5 (10 or more hours).

Evaluations by term and instructor
TermInstructorCourse overallInstructor overallWell organizedClear learning objectivesIntellectually challengingHelpful assignmentsApplicable beyond courseAttendance necessaryWeekly effortResponses
Spring 2026Julia Whitcavitch-Devoy3.04.24.04.03.13.43.83.51–3 hrs/week198 of 258
Spring 2025Julia Whitcavitch-Devoy3.44.04.14.13.43.94.13.91–3 hrs/week173 of 236
Spring 2024Julia Whitcavitch-Devoy3.43.94.24.23.63.84.23.81–3 hrs/week196 of 230
Spring 2023Julia Whitcavitch-Devoy3.13.84.24.03.43.74.13.71–3 hrs/week191 of 236
Spring 2022Julia Whitcavitch-Devoy2.33.03.63.33.02.83.22.91–3 hrs/week122 of 260

Data freshness

Course and evaluation data last updated 2026-10-09. Source details and limitations are documented in Data Sources and Methodology.

Instructors

Sections

  • Section 01
    Spring 2027 · George M Barnett, Andres Castro Samayoa, Christopher Higgins, Emma M Klugman, Elida V Laski, Andrew Miller, Laura O'Dwyer, Gabriel Orona, Brian K Smith, Kei Yatsu · Fulton Hall 511 (Auditorium) Tu 04:30PM-05:15PM · Offered
  • Section 02
    Spring 2027 · George M Barnett, Wenfei Pei · Gasson Hall 303 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 03
    Spring 2027 · Andres Castro Samayoa, Kei Yatsu · Gasson Hall 207 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 04
    Spring 2027 · Christopher Higgins, Sarah R Soule · Gasson Hall 208 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 06
    Spring 2027 · Emma M Klugman, Ekaterina Minaeva · Gasson Hall 202 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 07
    Spring 2027 · Elida V Laski, Aysenur Ozgoztasi · Gasson Hall 307 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 08
    Spring 2027 · Andrew Miller, Lawrence Stevenson · Gasson Hall 203 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 09
    Spring 2027 · Laura O'Dwyer, Catherine Z Xie · Gasson Hall 304 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 10
    Spring 2027 · Sinwoo Bae, Brian K Smith · Stokes Hall 121N Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered
  • Section 11
    Spring 2027 · Gabriel Orona, Ethan Smith · Gasson Hall 306 Tu 05:15PM-06:00PM · Offered