Empowering Students: Transforming Education from Gatekeeping to Waymaking

Recently, I had a meaningful conversation with a student facing significant challenges, which impacted his academic progress. During our discussion, we went through deadlines and expectations, culminating in him expressing gratitude for the empathy I displayed—a rarity, as he mentioned. This moment resonated with me, prompting a reflection on my role as an educator.

It struck me: I didn’t choose this profession to act as a gatekeeper; my goal has always been to guide students along their educational journey.

Historically, the narrative surrounding higher education has revolved around gatekeeping. Faculty members are often seen as enforcers of standards and barriers to entry, with an emphasis on maintaining academic rigor. While safeguarding quality is essential, this mindset can sometimes lead to confusion being mistaken for depth, and emotional distance being perceived as professionalism.

But isn't it time we consider that rigor and empathy can coexist? What if our responsibility was not to safeguard the academic threshold but to pave a clear path for our students?

The Limitations of the Gatekeeping Approach

Research suggests that students' sense of belonging directly influences their commitment to their academic pursuits. According to Vincent Tinto, students are more likely to stay enrolled when they feel integrated both socially and academically within their institutions. If students perceive themselves as outsiders, they may withdraw from their studies.

Findings by Gregory Walton and Geoffrey Cohen highlight how individuals from diverse backgrounds can interpret academic challenges as signs of not belonging. Subtle cues from instructors, such as their tone or the clarity of feedback, can either reinforce or alleviate these feelings of exclusion.

Strict gatekeeping can inadvertently heighten feelings of alienation, while a practice of waymaking clarifies academic expectations without compromising standards.

Waymaking Does Not Mean Lowering Expectations

Being a waymaker involves maintaining high standards while offering greater transparency and support. It's about creating a clear roadmap that enables students to succeed without lessening academic rigor.

Research emphasizing the importance of transparent assignment design, led by Mary-Ann Winkelmes, clearly indicates that transparency improves student outcomes—especially for those who are first-generation college students or from historically underserved backgrounds. Enhanced clarity doesn’t diminish the difficulty; it enhances accessibility to it. Similarly, insights from John Hattie's research on feedback illustrate that timely, constructive feedback significantly boosts student performance. Students achieve more when we illuminate the standards, rather than merely enforcing them.

True rigor is characterized by cognitive challenge, rather than obfuscation. The central questions of waymaking include:

• Have I effectively communicated what constitutes high-quality work?
• Have I demonstrated the required thought processes?
• Have I offered opportunities for practice ahead of critical evaluations?
• Am I differentiating between cognitive challenge and unnecessary rigidity?
• Have I created diverse paths for student success?

Practical Steps to Adopt Waymaking

Transitioning from a gatekeeping mindset to a waymaking approach doesn’t require an overhaul of institutional philosophy or course redesign; it can begin with targeted, intentional adjustments.

1. Bring Transparency to the Forefront

Communicate your thought processes. Share exemplars of successful work. Make assessment criteria visible and discuss them openly. Engaging students in understanding the underlying rationale makes the complex aspects of academia less mystifying and allows them to align with your expectations.

2. Embed Growth Mindset Language

The language we use shapes motivation. Carol Dweck's insights on growth mindset emphasize the value of framing abilities as improvable. By focusing feedback on progress rather than deficiencies, students are more likely to embrace challenges and remain engaged.

3. Implement Structured Flexibility

Establish clear guidelines tempered with humane discretion; blending rigor with understanding doesn’t compromise expectations but instead highlights professional judgment.

4. Early Mastery Development

Albert Bandura's work emphasizes that self-efficacy builds through mastery experiences. Incorporating low-stakes assessments early in a course can help students better understand their progress and build confidence ahead of high-pressure evaluations.

These practices resonate with existing research on motivation and belonging. When students feel both challenged and supported, they are more likely to fully engage in their learning process.

Reconceptualizing Rigor

A persistent notion in academia is that compassion undermines standards. However, in practice, clarity often enhances rigor. Unclear expectations force students to divert their cognitive energies toward decoding assignments rather than engaging meaningfully with the content. If feedback comes off as punitive, it can lead students to shield their egos rather than seek improvement. Rigid policies lacking explanation may cause students to view challenges as signs of inadequacy instead of opportunities for growth.

Waymaking minimizes unnecessary hurdles so students can focus their intellectual efforts where it matters—on deep analysis, synthesis, and application. True rigor invites sustained cognitive engagement while providing a clear, supportive structure.

Redefining Professional Responsibility

Empathy in education should not be seen merely as an attribute but as part of professional duty. While empathy doesn’t mean capitulating to every request or overlooking consequences, it does require us to take a step back and consider students' backgrounds and how our teaching strategies can either facilitate or hinder their path to success. If students express that empathy feels scarce, that signals a need for introspection.

Instructors face intensified pressures including large class sizes and administrative demands that make adopting a gatekeeping stance seem efficient. Enforcing rules can appear quicker than engaging with students on an individual basis. However, efficiency should not be mistaken for effectiveness. Our goal, when prioritizing authentic learning and intellectual growth, should shift from merely categorizing students to actively fostering their capabilities. This is the essence of waymaking.

By the meeting's end, my student had a clear action plan—not just a pass. He recognized the challenges ahead but also left with a sense of dignity and a visible pathway to overcoming obstacles. While we can’t eliminate every challenge our students face, we ultimately decide whether we simply guard the gate or actively partner with them on their educational journeys. It’s a choice: be a gatekeeper or a waymaker.

Crystal Donlan, MEd, DEd, is the Associate Director of Digital Pedagogy & Scholarship at Bucknell University, a long-standing adjunct professor at Luzerne County Community College, and a doctoral candidate in Learning and Performance Systems at Penn State University. Her academic focus encompasses distance learning, modern literacies, and human-centered practices aimed at fostering belonging and persistence.

References

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. Freeman.

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.

Hattie, J. (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. Routledge.

Tinto, V. (2012). Completing college: Rethinking institutional action. University of Chicago Press.

Walton, G. M., & Cohen, G. L. (2011). A brief social-belonging intervention improves academic and health outcomes. Science, 331(6023), 1447–1451.

Winkelmes, M.-A., et al. (2016). A teaching intervention that increases underserved college students’ success. Peer Review, 18(1/2).