My theory on class evaluations remains true. I just got mine from my students and, once again, people only leave written comments if they love you or if they hate you.

I did learn on thing from my written comments however... I need to better conceal the fact that I have better things to do than explain basic concepts a dozen times to less than mediocre students. I like teaching, but I have little patience for any student who doesn't put forth the required effort and then whines when things are "hard".

One student left me a very strange comment. I wish I know who it was so I could get them to explain to me what they meant. Feedback helps, but only when comments are properly qualified and put into context so they make sense. Everyone who fills out class evaluations take note. Your comments are only helpful when your instructor knows exactly what you are talking about. Otherwise we scratch our heads and ask ourselves, "What did I do to get that comment?"

Another interesting fact: the standard deviation of the scores for the non-written part of my evaluation was consistently above 1 for scores that only range to 5.

1/16/2008 12:49:52 PM

i rarely do evaluations due to the lack of incentive...maybe you could bring this to others' attention to see what could be done about it?

1/16/2008 2:29:50 PM

i only fill them out when they offer extra credit for the confirmation page or if a certain % of the class fills it out and then i just put stupid, off-the-wall stuff in the written section.

1/16/2008 3:22:49 PM

I got mine today as well. Out of 50 students only 9 wrote in comments. They were all positive but I wish more people had written in comments.

Do you think the administration looks at them anymore?

1/16/2008 4:09:16 PM

Usually there's only a need to say what's up with the professor if they've done something wrong. Why should we tell you what to do if we already think you're doing an OK job?

I only comment when the professor sucks, in general.

1/16/2008 4:37:04 PM

Generally, I do the bubble ones when they do a good job; I don't need to write them anything, they did fine. I always write in something with the bad ones or if I had a real problem with them.

1/16/2008 4:40:25 PM

Quote :

"My theory on class evaluations remains true. I just got mine from my students and, once again, people only leave written comments if they love you or if they hate you."

it wasnt until i was a senior that i started to put down meaningful comments no matter how i felt

1/16/2008 4:42:11 PM

^^^,that's like getting a grade only if you fail (or otherwise do poorly)...


darkone-here's my theory: toss out the highest (brown-noser) and the lowest (bad attitude)...which is more difficult without being able to look at the individual sheets...

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 4:42 PM. Reason : ^]

furthermore, as for lack of incentive keeping some from doing them...how about helping instructors improve (most actually do care), or letting the university know which ones are really good (may affect hiring/ raises)...more importantly, most instructors really like hearing if you've enjoyed their class or teaching style-- everyone likes validation-- maybe even you?

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 4:48 PM. Reason : .]

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 4:49 PM. Reason : .]

1/16/2008 4:42:30 PM

Why do they care if you're not enthusiastic as long as they learn the material?

1/16/2008 5:08:17 PM

Quote :

"Usually there's only a need to say what's up with the professor if they've done something wrong. Why should we tell you what to do if we already think you're doing an OK job?"

Quote :

"Generally, I do the bubble ones when they do a good job; I don't need to write them anything, they did fine."

From the point of view of an instructor, there isn't always a good way to separate what works well from what needs improvement without specific feedback. If you instructor does something well, it's good to tell them so they know to do more of it. If something sucks, they need to know so they can do less of it. However, it's important to give your reasoning. Saying, "I hated this" doesn't tell me why or give me a clue how to change. I might have failed you on a quiz and left you to hate everything I do or there might be a crucial deficiency in an assignment or my teaching method. I need to know more than "this sucks" or "this rocks". I need to know why if I'm going to make changes. After all, you should want your instructors to improve. After all, you might have them for another class.

I consistently get feedback that I accomplish the teaching aspect of my role as instructor (i.e. I convey the required information in an understandable manner), but I struggle with how to be engaging and how to create interest. People always learn better in a class that is interesting and are more willing to put in effort beyond the bare minimum.

1/16/2008 5:30:09 PM

Provide an incentive for filling them out well and students will do it. Most probably think it goes into a garbage can and makes no difference.

Hell, making them publicly available would be a good way to show that they matter. Doing that shows to students that professors are publicly accountable for what they do.

I'm always curious to know if my experience was exceptional or not. Otherwise, it seems meaningless

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 6:06 PM. Reason : .]

1/16/2008 6:05:49 PM

I always read my student evaluations but it is hard to know who's advice is worth heeding.

Usually the extremely negative evaluations implicitly indicate that they had some kind of wholesale misunderstanding of the course content or format.

Lately I've got oodles of complaints about doing too many proofs. This is weird since I actually made an effort to reduce the number last semester and more than just that I have taught it before and done more proofs in the past(with less complaints on the average I'd guess). I made an effort to only do proofs which directly lead to the logic used in doing problems... I have to suspect that the haters never made that connection. Instead, they just assumed that I was wasting their time and put me on mute. If they had had the maturity to trust me then they would have gotten more out of my course.

Bottom line, I can't really reduce the number of proofs w/o making my course into a glorified problem session (good grief just hire a tutor and don't come to university if that's what you want). So I need to give some sort of speech at the beginning of my course to goad more of these folks into paying attention. I always assume a certain maturity in students reading the syllabus and such, time-management etc... this is probably too naive.

I also would really like to respond to evaluations at times, I would like to know what in the world a particular student is complaining about. It would be cool if we could respond electronically so that the student remained anonymous.

I have experimented with anonymous feedback in previous semesters, but no one really bothered to tell me what was wrong until the student evals. I think a (1/3)-semester eval. might be more useful.

Hopefully I'll be a professor somewhere soon and then I'll have a real office. I plan to put a comment box so they can leave me notes anytime.

I do enjoy the positive comments, they make my day. Actually my favorite this time was

"weaknesses- sometimes tells really bad jokes"

ok, its not exactly positive, but I like it.

1/16/2008 7:15:22 PM

^ I think the 1/3 idea is awesome; however, students will be afraid that the teacher might take it out on the clas.

1/16/2008 8:11:10 PM

you can give your course an informal evaluation a couple of weeks into the semester. Have them either freewrite in class (although people will be paranoid that you could identify their writing and take it out on them) or have them answer a couple of questions and type them up as a homework grade. it is an easy way to find out basic things, like if you talk loud and clearly enough, if they can read your writing on the board, or if they think that there should be a different balance between lecture and discussion. It doesn't need to be formally done through the university, do it yourself.

1/16/2008 10:19:50 PM

I have 3 semesters worth of evaluations that I never even got back.

I was only a lab TA though.

1/16/2008 10:31:39 PM

What else would you want from the eval though? if they thought you were fine, ok, whatever, why bother writing that, you dont gain anything from it. It is the criticism from the people who disliked you or the praise you get from the students who liked you that you need to focus on. If you want to improve, those are the two groups of people you need to see their responses, so idk why you are complaining, and if you dont know what the student is talking about in their eval, dont worry about it.

1/16/2008 10:37:17 PM

I left an instructor negative feedback on a handwritten eval


and then she read it while we completed the handwritten exam and made a comment about it


...awkward

1/16/2008 10:41:38 PM

I learned a lot this semester from the comments that I got back. I change a few things from last year, because of the evaluations I got, and they worked out this semester. I agree with some type of incentive to make students fill out the evaluations but I don't know what it would be. I really disagree with giving out points for filling out the evaluations.

When I fill out evaluations I try to give comments to my instructors. It was weired evaluating both of my advisors.

1/16/2008 10:46:53 PM

i personally do it anyways /c i know profs really need/care about it.
but most people don't care to do it and i guess an incentive is the best way to make sure everybody does it.
ex. 5% increase on your grade on the final exam if a certain % of people do classeval. and this happened in my ma 141 class.(i still did quite well in there, but bombed the damn final)

1/16/2008 11:11:14 PM

^^^ Your instructor is retarded for not following the rules. There's a reason they aren't supposed to see those things until after the semester is over.

1/17/2008 1:45:05 AM

If I have constructive criticism and think the professor is interested in hearing it, I will tell him/her in person rather than putting it on the record in an evaluation, usually either after the semester is over or after I know I have an A in the class. If I think the prof is too arrogant to take it in the spirit intended, then it goes in the eval.

I try to put positive comments in but if I didn't really care one way or another, I won't write anything.

1/17/2008 11:40:48 AM

Quote :

"f they thought you were fine, ok, whatever, why bother writing that, you dont gain anything from it."

Actually, as an instructor you do gain from such comments. You'd be surprised how much course content is experimental. Knowing that something works is helpful information. This would be like an instructor returning tests to a class were only the A and F students are told what their grade is.... actually, I should try that sometime.

1/17/2008 11:56:16 AM

that is a awful idea, but it could be fun to see what happens

1/17/2008 1:17:49 PM

^^^^it wasn't at State, and it wasn't the school required eval, it was one she wanted done for her personal use. I knew she was going to be able to identify my writing, I just didn't think she'd actually read them while we were still in there.

[Edited on January 17, 2008 at 2:01 PM. Reason : can't count]

1/17/2008 2:00:26 PM

i always leave written comments...i figure i'm at the age now when i should take shit like that seriously, and that they do evaluations for a reason....i typically try to write what i liked about the professor and class and what i feel could be changed or just taken away all together....a few times i've not left anything they should change cause i felt the class was basically perfectly taught

1/17/2008 2:50:14 PM

I TA'd for the first time last semester and was looking through my reviews - there were loads of positive comments, but several negative ones - some of my kids thought i was mean! But then there were some that said they really liked me and that I was nice.

.... I feel kinda bad that some thought I was mean. :-(

I find classevals to be depressing. Not the number part - but rather the comments. I always focus on the bad ones.

1/17/2008 7:35:09 PM

Quote :

"I feel kinda bad that some thought I was mean"

Don't feel bad about that. Those were the kids who got all miffed that they were going to be held accountable for something and would actually have to put forth effort for a decent grade. They never talk the news that life isn't always handed to them on a silver platter very well.

1/17/2008 10:16:11 PM

I had an accounting professor who did periodic anonymous evaluations, and he would go over some of the comments in class to see if he needed to work more problems, change the pace, etc. He didn't always follow the comments, but he definitely read and considered them all.

I think it was a mistake to have students do evaluations on their own time. I think it creates a bigger bias toward students who feel strongly for or against the professor to fill out evaluations, with many in the middle not taking the time to do it. And if you do give them an incentive most people will just click their way through it.

1/17/2008 10:52:13 PM

I LOVE evaluations. Before they were online, I was usually the last one to turn them in because I write so much...

Good professors get good comments, plus some criticism.
Bad professors get "You can suck my nuts and I hope you rot in hell." ...plus some criticism.

1/17/2008 10:54:48 PM

I just looked at mine.

I used to teach at Appalachian State University. We used paper-based evaluations, and, despite my pleas, I rarely got any written feedback. So, typically, I would glance at them and turn them back in to the secretary. The only useful part to the written format was seeing how my scores compared to the department mean and such.

Anyway, I got a TON of written feedback through the online system. I think this is because I provided my students classtime (~5-7 minutes) to fill the evaluations out (I teach in a computer lab), and before doing so I emphasized how important it was for them to leave written feedback. I'd say these are definitely the most useful evaluations I've ever received.

1/18/2008 10:18:57 PM

Quote :

"I LOVE evaluations. Before they were online, I was usually the last one to turn them in because I write so much... "

How is the online system different for you? What do you not like about it versus the old hand written system?

1/20/2008 1:24:57 AM

I prefer the in-class evaluations too. I had a better flow when I wrote about the course and the professor. I also had a better basis, because most of the time a professor would hand out the evaluations with 15-20 minutes left to go. Online evaluations seem cold to me, they are like studying without a book open.

I do agree though, most students only tend to respond when they have a polarized view of a professor. There is an exception, I'd like to think I am one. I normally have a neutral view about a professor, there are a few exceptions though and most of the time I like the professor more. That doesn't mean I don't critique them, I just tend to have a biased pov on the evaluation.

1/20/2008 3:04:18 AM

Quote :

"I think it was a mistake to have students do evaluations on their own time. I think it creates a bigger bias toward students who feel strongly for or against the professor to fill out evaluations, with many in the middle not taking the time to do it. And if you do give them an incentive most people will just click their way through it."

Yeah. If you don't require them to be done then you're going to get many more responses from students who feel strongly motivated to provide feedback. Much of the time that's going to be the students who hate you or have some negative to say. Maybe a good deal of time it's also the ones who think you did a great job, but if they have to do it on their own initiative outside class I think you're going to skew it towards the angry ones.

If you want to have the evaluation represent something that is collectively meaningful- then you have to make every student provide feedback. Otherwise, you're always going to be skewed towards the extremes. The written comments will always be more likely to contain stronger feelings. People aren't going to write out something when they don't have something they feel is worth saying.

Quote :

"That's like getting a grade only if you fail (or otherwise do poorly)..."

If the purpose of being in a class were to judge how well your professor is performing then sure. Class evals aren't requisite measurements of successful completion of a semester as a professor (in which case comparing them to grades would make sense), they're subjective feedback. Sure a professor can be held to task if they get comparatively terrible evaluations- but that would only be unfair if someone you were the only professor with lazy immature students. They should never be the sole basis for determining a TA or professor's performance and any department that uses them like that is moronic.

1/20/2008 3:10:27 AM

Quote :

"My theory on class evaluations "

Isn't what you are describing just a typical response bias that is taught in any statistical surveying class? Or is your theory somehow different?

1/20/2008 7:19:57 AM

I take class evaluations pretty seriously unless the professor is just mediocre. It they're mediocre, I just basically check the middle-of-the-road bubbles and I don't write anything. What can I say? You did okay. If I was in charge of awarding merit raises I wouldn't give them out to the professors just doing their jobs. They're paid to do their job.

If they're great, I say something.

If they suck, I say something; though it's always constructive and respectful. Thankfully this has only applied to a minority of my professors.

So either way, you'll know if you're great or not, but if you just did your job, you just get the mediocre evaluation.

1/20/2008 9:43:47 AM

i generally take class evaluations seriously.

i'm a little slack about doing online evaluations, though. somehow i find more motivation to do them when they're on paper, though i probably give more complete comments on the online ones.

1/20/2008 10:14:54 AM

I haven't noticed any general skewing positive or negative since the online evals started. I do think the stuff people wrote me on the paper evals was typically more humorous. Nobody has critiqued my style of attire or lack thereof since the online evals started for example.

I forgot to announce them in one class and I got a 5 overall because only a person or two did them and they apparently were superfans of mine. I guess that is the first and last 5 I'll get.

Anyway, it is definitely worth taking the time to write details of what was wrong or right. It helps folks like myself who actually care tell if you got it or not. Ideally I'd like to fix what is broken.

On the other hand, you can't let the inmates run the asylum and so many of the complaints really boil down to something along the lines of "I didn't like it that you wanted me to actually think" or "I don't like computers".

1/20/2008 7:41:04 PM

Quote :

"On the other hand, you can't let the inmates run the asylum and so many of the complaints really boil down to something along the lines of "I didn't like it that you wanted me to actually think" or "I don't like computers". "

so true

1/21/2008 12:51:32 AM

...and then some teachers just blow.
unfortunately there's blame on all sides. i've had really good teachers here, and i've had awful ones. IMHO, the main reason a student will decide not to fill out an evaluation is knowing that they will never have to deal with the teacher or course ever again, and so the evaluation will have zero effect on them in the present or future. they can't get better or worse grades, they won't learn any more or miss out on new knowledge, and there's my belief that many teachers, especially the older ones, aren't going to change one way or the other.

1/21/2008 3:55:22 AM

^older teachers change, many of the apathetic older teachers were at one time in the past dynamic youthful souls full of hope. I happened to meet an alum who had the same teacher as I did, it was weird how much he had changed for the worse. I have to think that it has something to do with years and years of unfair criticism plus the general lack of sincere effort from some students.

Positive, genuine course evaluations can serve to counter this trend.

Of course it will not likely change your educational future much, but it might be a good thing to do for your future peers.

I'm sorry, did I just suggest helping others, I forgot where I was typing for a second there.

1/21/2008 11:14:22 AM

Quote :

"many of the apathetic older teachers were at one time in the past dynamic youthful souls full of hope...I have to think that it has something to do with years and years of unfair criticism plus the general lack of sincere effort from some students."

yep

1/21/2008 12:38:34 PM

Quote :

"I have 3 semesters worth of evaluations that I never even got back. I was only a lab TA though."

Yeah same thing with me except I was a lab TA for 3 yrs. I had a friend that was a physics TA for PY208 and one of her students wrote that she was hot in her evaluation, heh.

1/23/2008 9:29:25 AM

I had an assistant professor that flat-out told the entire class it wouldn't affect his position one bit if we all gave him bad evals. He said that his research and publishing were the only things that mattered concerning his making associate professor.

The professor said that he enjoyed teaching--but he kind of left me with the feeling that he thought he was doing us a favor. His honesty was refreshing, but I still dropped the course.

1/23/2008 11:56:28 PM

He was speaking more truth than many professors are willing to admit. I dedicate myself 100% to teaching, regardless of how much it does or does not move me towards promotion.

1/24/2008 12:37:35 AM

I only feel motivated to do evaluations when i don't like a professor and thus want to give them all 1's to make them look shitty

1/28/2008 12:00:16 PM

^ Thanks for improving the educations experience at NCSU.

1/28/2008 2:50:41 PM

Damn. I can't type.

1/28/2008 6:07:24 PM

^^^ Actually that doesn't really work. The department will just see you as having a grudge against the teacher and pretty much just negate your evaluation.

1/28/2008 8:49:08 PM

^ Assuming the evaluations are read in the first place.

Only two people get a copy of the evaluations. The instructor and their department head. Department heads get so many that unless they have a specific reason to look at them (e.g. a tenure review) they won't pay them too much attention. Only very vocal and very systematic trends in the evaluation ever recieve attention and most of those are ignored unless it's something criminal. The real users of evaluation information are the instructors themselves. Students are their only source of feedback. Most university administrators pay only just enough attention to the teaching aspect of running their departments to keep from being hasseled.

1/28/2008 11:25:17 PM

Having consistently strong student evaluations during my time as a grad student instructor has really helped this year, as I'm searching for my first professor job.

On the other hand, I agree that evaluations of faculty at big research universities like NCSU are largely ignored, no matter how negative they are.

1/29/2008 7:10:39 PM