Peer evaluation, student evaluation, student outcomes and administrative assessment
I take student evaluations with a grain of salt as there are always some that will be extreme due to their success or failure in the course. They usually also lack a clear understanding of the learning outcomes link to the coursework they completed. Peer evaluations give a more professional view.
Student feedback can be useful yet we have to take into consideration the outlier students who either did extremely well or did extremely poorly. Peer review and self evaluation of the course will give a more professional analysis of the course as it applied to the learning outcomes and looking at individual assignments helps determine if there are problems with the way they are presented or if they meet learning outcomes.
I would agree with you here. Both administrative and student feedback have allowed me to fine tune my courses to best serve the students (by helping them better understand the material) and the institution (by helping the students be a good representation of the organization).
Pam,
Without a continual evaluation and implementing necessary changes, our courses will not be up to date and the best they can be. Thanks!
Instructors should never stop evaluating our courses. Our courses must be updated to stay current with the foremost learning strategies and information. Our courses must continue to improve and change as information and technology changes.
Matthew,
It's amazing what a conversation can do for the student/teacher relationship. It's good to have that contact at times.
To meet with each student via skype or through e-mail or a candid conversation over the phone and ask the questions that need to be asked not worrying about the answers. I have found that this works best in the traditional classroom and can also work in the favor of the course developer if that person is willing to hear the feedback good or bad.
Karen,
The variety of evaluations may be the key. Each brings information to the forefront from different perspectives. Thanks for your input.
Omari,
Peer evaluation brings different things to the forefront many times than the end of course evaluations. That's true. Thanks!
Catina,
What about closing the loop? Can you elaborate? Thanks!
Su,
Yes, good wording - "combination of forces." Thanks for your input. Keep it up as we continue to learn from each other in these forums.
When looking at different types of evaluations I believe "Question Tools" would be a good way to get feedback from students based on what they should have learned and what they did not learn. The end goal is that all students learn. As an instructor this information would be instrumental in determining what information is clear to the majority of students and what could be improved upon.
I would like to conduct a peer-evaluation of a colleague and vice versa. For me this would be a sharing of best practices. Of course, this would be in addition to End-of-Course surveys completed by students.
Dr. Crews,
Like many of the other educators in this thread, I feel that it is a combination of 'forces.' In this combination, I would include:
1. Peer evaluator- I like to call this an extra set of eyes. This extra set of eyes can evaluate the course and let the instructor know how well the course is going or if there needs to be any improvements. As we learned from the reading material, anything that is known and learned must be shared with one another to assure student success.
2. Student- these are the ones on the front line of the course, having the experience. Their opinions are valuable to let one know the accessibility of the course, delivery of its material (effective or not) and if there needs to be something done differently in the course to ease student learning and interaction.
3. Institution- the institution in which one teaches at has certain expectations that must be met. Having said that, the institution has certain guidelines in which the instructor must follow in order to deliver the content of the course effectively and dynamically.
Cheers,
Su Somnarain
Kyle,
Many rely on the end of course evaluation, but make sure you get some feedback from all students along the way in case they all do not complete the final course evaluation. Thanks!
James,
Wow! This is a variety of evaluations. Thanks for the breath of information.
Nice job.
I think the end of course evaluations done by the students gives me some of the best feedback about the style in which the loop should be closed. Verbal, video, text, etc.
The most effective types of evaluations that would close the loop are as follows;
1. Syllabus Scan - this provides essential information which indicates the instructor is covering all required material. This is the most fundamental requirement for the course to ensure it meets industry and professional standards. For example, if the syllabus lists 17 chapters per semester these need to be taught. It was common to have instructors who did not finish the syllabus which means it does not meet standards.
2. Assignments and Examinations - these provide the best tools to find if the concepts taught are being learned. Poor scores confirm information not being learned. The reasons why may or may not relate to the course or instructor.
3. Pretest/Posttest - these may clearly show an increase in learning and provide a baseline for each student. These usually show a great improvement, and can identify areas for improvements. Based on the pretest results the course may be revised for that specific class.
4. Student Evaluation of the Course - the student perspective is essential to provide for improvements and style needed by the learners.
5. Instructor evaluation and comments on each student to facilitate change. It may be one or two paragraphs which would help each individual student improve learning. These could be shared by all instructors until the student graduates.
Dr. James F. De Bouno Jr., ND, PhD
Adjunct Instructor - Environmental Science
