They have a survey at the end of each course asking the students 12 questions on how they feel about the course,rating from poor to excelent. This is a good feedback for the teacher. These are looked at by our supervisors and ourselves. We act according to what we find.
Not all are true measures of the class but if the majority say one thing, this is good to go on.
This helps adjust the instructor and shows where we need to improve and what works for them.
Robert, would you share an example of an issue that was raised at the bi-weekly meetings and the resolution? Who attends these meetings? Is there any limit on their authority to make decisions and changes?
From the instructional side, if we find we are giving unnecessary information in class, we write to a forum to discuss it with the other campuses to aee if they have the same problem and we make recommendations for changes. If there is agreement among the campuses, they are submitted to curriculum for acceptance and change. It is a slow process, but it is a process we have at hand.
We also offer tutoring every day and try to work around the students work schedule to help them as much as possible.
At this school it is and on going review of student input in an evaluation form. There are also meetings conducted biweekly that raise issues from constant contact with the students one on one. This awareness has brought about on going change to better the student experance and solve problems that could hamper the student from reaching his or her goals. This over all out look has given instructors a new awareness in dealing with issues in a more timely manner to help solve some problems that can lead to a students choice to leave the program. The end result? Satisfaction in seeing he or she obtaining there goals at graduation. Far from perfect it is having an impact, and a good one.
Does the instructor ever see the evaluations?
Some evaluation systems have a mid-term evaluation that goes directly - and only - to the instructor so they can get a sense of how things are going and make adjustments as needed. Another evaluation is done at the end of the term that goes to the Director of Education for review and follow up.
We use an evaluation that the students fill out at the end of each 3 week course. The students evaluate the instructors, the curriculum, support services, and the quality of what they have recieved at that time. These evals are then passed along to our dirent Education Managers so that they can then follow up with students that request a follow up. The Education Managers then give the Technical Team Leaders of the course a breakdown of the evals that the TTL can then bring back to the individual course instructor for review.
It takes a particular type of person to use the clown's hat as an effective classroom tool. And clearly, it can't be the only method used.
That said, I also think that students want to know that their instructor has a soft side - a sense of humor - and knows when to push the class and when to relax a bit.
Each student has a different frustration point that changes depending on many variables. How do you monitor your students to know that you have pushed and challenged them as far as you can without frustrating them? Do you focus on the mid-range student? Slower students?
In my experience, I have seen different people do different things to achieve student satisfaction, and hence, work toward student retention.
In our case, the student body if untraditional. The students are coming to the the school to grab one second chance to succeed. Majority of them, do not want to fool around and they want some serious work done. I take my cue from that and I push and challenge the students as far as I can without frustrating them. They feel a sense of achievement & have confidence at the edn of the the day. I do not beleive in wearing a clown's hat, and entertain them. This is my take. What's yours?
This was a good review of what we need to watch for and pratice. Any time you improve your skills you help not only yourself but your students also.
You have summarized the usual problem with course surveys, Harry. Filling them out every 3 weeks only brings more attention to the process.
To be effective, students have to believe that it is confidential and there won't be any retribution for negative comments. They also have to see that it is a useful tool - that something will be done if comments are given. Too often students complain about poor teaching practices but don't see anything done to improve the instructor's performance.
Have you considered actually meeting with students for 15 minutes to get their thoughts? Again, confidentiality is critical as is an honest response to their concerns. If you are unwilling or unable to take action, you must tell them that and explain why.
You must always be ready for any answer to the questions you ask.
At our school one of the methods used is the student survey. A student completes a small course of study every 3 weeks and fills out a survey which may be anonymous or not. If the student expresses disatisfaction and identifies themselves on the survey, a member of education management visits with the student to find out more. This can sometimes be very helpful.
What I find however is that the overwhelming majority of surveys say 'excellent' across the board whether the instructor felt it was or not.
Students that had a problem say poor for every catagory (there are 12). All this with no coments whatsoever as to why it was great or poor. So we know someone is unhappy but not who or why.
What can be done to see that the surveys more acurately identify what is going on with the students?
Our school uses student surveys at the end of each period; and at the beginning of each next period (two months) the Academic Director or Academic Coordinator meets with each group to ask them personally how they're doing. They have the opportunity to express themselves and give us feedback of what they been learning and how that learning process is helping them in a day-to-day basis.
Have you considered having the mentors being nominated by peers and faculty/staff? Also, some of the best leaders may not have the highest GPA.
Great idea! We were just discussing this today. We are going to "advertise" that we are looking for students interested in being a mentor. We are going to require that the student have a minimum of 85% attendance and we are thinking about requiring a minimum grade point average. We would like each mentor write an essay telling us why they believe they would make a good mentor. We plan to evaluate the student by interviewing them. I have faculty and staff that have volunteered to be advisors.
We will just keep trying until we find something that works.
Finding time to meet with all those students in a meaningful way must be a challenge that will only get bigger.
I am familiar with a school that has created student groups to accomplish some of the transition related things you have identified. When a new student enrolls they are assigned to one of these groups and is a member until they graduate. The school has advisors to the group and also has activities that are group based - best quarterly attendance, best GPA, community service projects, etc. The students select their own leaders, who in turn work closely with the advisor. The system provides for an open line of communication and creates spirit among the members.
Would something like that work for you?
We have only had the program in place for 3 months now. It hasn't been all smooth sailing but it is getting better as we go along. I think the students appreciate having someone to go to and that can point them in the right direction if they do need something.
All directors and managers are mentors which is good and bad. Good because we have a lot of answers and bad because we don't always have a lot of time. I want to morph this into a student to student mentoring program.
Initially, we meet with our students as a group. Eventually, it works out that we meet and talk with them more on a one-on-one basis. As we go along we get new students. It tends to become overwhelming. That is why I see the need to turn it into a student helping student thing. I could really use some ideas on how to accomplish this. I have some ideas but would enjoy and appreaciate some input.
This sounds like a very strong mentor program, Kathryn. How long have you been doing it? What results have you seen? How are mentors selected? Is it a one-to-one relationship? If mentors stayed connected throughout the entire program, do they get new students as well?
Presumably, each mentor also had a mentor. Does create a sense of 'family' as that group expands? Have you considered formalizing that phenomenon into an actual named group that graduates could relate to when they return?
Our school uses student surveys. We also assign a mentor to each student. The mentor "touches base" with each student at least once per week for the entire first mod (6 weeks). It is the mentors responsiblity to ask how the student is doing and answer any questions or concerns that the student my have. If a concern arises, the mentor is supposed to walk the student to the correct person to handle the situation. The mentor stays connected to that student throughout the entire program.
Who is responsible for reviewing the comments and how does that person communicate the results? Do the results become part of the annual review process? Who else gets the results?
Do the students believe that this is a useful tool and give candid feedback? Do you see different rates of participation by program or length of time that a student has been attending classes?
On a quarterly basis, we distribute a student questionnaire that helps us to identify both positive and negative comments of the students regarding all staff, instructors and facilities. Once they are reviewed, an improvement plan is implemented and completed. Also, through classroom observations and evaluations, we are able to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the instructor and build upon, or correct, these areas.
