While obtaining formal mid-term feedback (such as a student survey or video-taping) can be very helpful periodically, every course you teach can incorporate informal student feedback. Asking for student input during the quarter helps you

• gain insight into students’ understanding of course content.
  
• adjust class activities to improve students’ learning.
  
• keep in touch with student attitudes about the course and about your instruction.
  
• convey to students that you value their views.

Fortunately, student input can be obtained regularly during the quarter without sacrificing a lot of valuable class time. (See below for specific suggestions.)

A few recommendations for using informal student feedback:

• Establish openness about feedback early in the quarter, so that students see it as a normal part of the course.
  
• Ask for feedback more than once during the quarter. Quick-feedback options can be used on a regular basis to monitor students’ understanding and attitudes.
  
• If you sense that some aspect of the course isn’t going well, asking students for input can help relieve your frustration, while diffusing student dissatisfaction.
  
• You may focus your request for feedback on particular aspects of the course, or leave it open-ended.
  
• If you ask students for input, make it worth their time. Let them know when you have made mid-course adjustments as a result of student feedback.

Here are a few ways of obtaining quick student input as the quarter progresses:

• Minute paper: Use 3-5 minutes at the end of a class session to find out if students are understanding the material presented. Ask them to jot down answers to two questions:
  o What major idea sticks with you from class today?
  o What one question do you have arising from class today?
• Variation #1: the “muddiest point” approach. Ask students to answer:
  o What is the most confusing thing you heard in class today?
  
• Variation #2: Ask students to write a short paragraph at end of the class session summarizing what was covered in class that day.
  Students should be asked not to put their names on the papers, and to drop them off as they leave class.
  
• If you would like students to consider class content in more depth, ask them to bring a written question to the next class meeting. This works well if you ask students to focus on one aspect of the course, such as lecture or discussion content, assigned reading, or an on-going research or writing assignment.
  
• Give an ungraded quiz to check comprehension of important concepts.
  
• At the conclusion of a major assignment, have students take a few minutes of class time to reflect on the learning process: What did they learn? What was their biggest difficulty? What do they feel they accomplished best?
  
• Break students into small groups and ask each group to take 10 minutes to generate one suggestion.
  
• Remember to informally ask how the course is going during small group interactions or individual conferences.

Resources

Thomas A. Angelo and K. Patricia Cross, Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers (1993, Jossey-Bass).

Linda B. Nilson, Teaching at Its Best (1998, Anker).
Chapter 26: Assessing StudentsÕ Learning in Progress

Barbara Gross Davis, Tools for Teaching (1993, Jossey-Bass).
Chapter 41: Fast Feedback