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Teaching Tip: Garnering Feedback

When I work with faculty in our T&L Center, the number one piece of advice I share is, collect student feedback. I see it serving two valuable purposes. The first is to give you insight into the student experience BEFORE the class is over and you have no opportunity to make corrections. Second, most faculty find that students whose views are solicited via mid-semester feedback feel more committed to the course, engage more actively in it, and consider themselves partners in ensuring successful outcomes for the course.

This feedback is distinct from the course evaluations distributed at the end of the term and is intended solely for your own use, to provide an additional channel of communication with your students. For that communication to be most successful, it’s important BOTH to prepare your students briefly and to provide feedback after they respond. When you distribute the questionnaire (paper, Google Form/online survey or text), clarify for your students how you intend to use their feedback. For me, incremental adjustments are possible, but major redesign of a course midway through the semester is not advisable. Being clear about this up front gives students reasonable expectations for the outcome.  Closing the loop in this way lets the students know that you value their input, and it can further illuminate your teaching goals and expectations for them. In addition, handing out a mid‐term evaluation signals to your class that you are indeed interested in what and how they’re learning, and in their responses to your teaching.

My first use of mid-term feedback was inspired by Stephen Brookfield’s Critical Incident Questionnaire. From there, I tried a few stripped down simple approaches:

Two Questions (Jan Tullis, Brown University)

  1. What aspects of the course have been especially helpful in terms of your learning?
  2. What aspects of the course could be improved?

Three Things (Craig Nelson, Indiana University – Bloomington)

  1. What are three important things you have learned so far?
  2. What are three aspects of the class that have helped your learning so far?
  3. What are three things that you wish were different?

Keep / Start / Stop  (NYU Center for Teaching)

  1. What should we keep doing?
  2. What should we start doing?
  3. What should we stop doing?

I  ended up liking parts/pieces of several of these approaches, so depending on the class, I pick/choose from a list of questions including the ones mentioned here:

  1. Do you usually understand what is expected of you in preparing for and participating in this class? If not, please explain why not.
  2. What aspects of this course and your instructor’s teaching help you learn best?
  3. What specific advice would you give to help your instructor improve your learning in this course?
  4. What steps could you take to improve your own learning in this course?
  5. What are the most important things you have learned so far in this class?
  6. What would you like to see more of between now and the end of the semester?
  7. What would you like to see less of between now and the end of the semester?
  8. What do you need to do in terms of understanding the material between now and the end of the semester?
  9. What is helping you to learn in this class?
  10. What is making learning difficult?

I then sort the responses into three three categories:

  1. Things that are going well.
  2. Things that we could work on.
  3. Things that we can’t change.

At the next class I allow about 5-10 minutes and discuss the results. Under “things that are going well,” I remind them that this success requires all of us. For “things to work on,” they often list some things that they are not doing well (not spending enough time on the homework, not particularly adept in an area, lack of sleep, etc.). They also list things that I do that cause them problems such as going over a concept too quickly, not explaining thoroughly what something meant, assigning too much  work in a particular week, etc. We briefly discuss ways we both can improve things. Lastly, I talk about “things we cannot change” and often this involves clarifying why we are doing something or why I selected a particular reading. I also let them know that while these are things I cannot change this term, I will revisit their feedback the next time I’m planning to teach the course in case there are other options.

Adapted from

  • Ashley Montgomery
  • Assistant Dean of Teaching, Learning and Assessment
  • Teaching &  Learning Collaborative
  • University of Maine at Farmington