One of the many tasks of my current position is reflecting on the curriculum and evaluating how it benefits both students and instructors. Because online education is evolving so quickly, I often find the need to complete gut a course and start from scratch. One area that is often overlooked in this process is the significance of gathering feedback from students.
Students can provide a wealth of information regarding a course, how the materials relate to to the text, and provided needed feedback, etc. Students can provide those working on curriculum with clear-cut ideas on what works within the class and what just isn’t cutting it. They are also brilliant visionaries when it comes to how online resources can be improved.
Students, especially those close to graduation, have experience a breadth of different online courses, different resources, and different types of instructors. Also, many students probably spend more time engaging and interacting with the materials each course than the instructors do, allowing them to notice characteristics of the course an instructor might miss.
There are several ways to gather this information from students. In the individual courses I teach, I often post an announcement asking students to provide feedback on any aspect of the classroom – including my teaching style. Even though the responses are sometimes quite negative, there are usually several students who respond in very productive and beneficial ways, allowing me to implement their feedback in a variety of ways within the classroom.
I keep a file with student feedback, particularly feedback that applies to course content, that I can refer back to when it is time to revise the course.
Most schools also use a method of evaluation that allows students to submit information anonymously at the end of a course – a type of final course evaluation. Often, students who truly struggled with a specific resource, discussion question, or assignment will highlight this in these evaluations.
One difficult aspect, especially for part-time instructors, is that there are so many areas of the course that are set by the college and/or university and that can not be modified or changed – even if the instructor believes they are not benefitting students. I would encourage adjunct instructors to reach out to their manager or supervisor and express these concerns. Most likely the higher-up is in charge of course modifications or is connected to the individual who completes them. While the instructor may not see immediate results, most likely their concerns will be noted and included in the next course revision.
It’s also important for both instructors and students to have realistic expectations of what the course can do. It isn’t possible for a course to not require reading or writing assignments, for example – but it is possible for a course to include more video clips and to be more interactive.
Do you solicit student feedback within your online course? How has your teaching style changed as a result of this feedback?
About the Author
Jamie Weitl is a WAHM teaching for several online universities and raising three precocious little ones. In her spare time she enjoys writing, baking, and running. For more info, see my Google Plus Profile.
