Midterm Assessment of Teaching Process
The Midterm Assessment of Teaching represents an approach that can provide rich information and can help faculty and students make adjustments midway through a course. Besides providing useful feedback, the intervention not only signals to students that their perspectives matter but also that they play a critical role in making choices and commitments to their own learning.
The Process
An instructor contacts the CTL (ext. 3670) to schedule a focus group session the beginning of a class period near midterm. During a 30-minute segment of the class, a trained consultant will gather students’ written comments and focus group feedback in response to questions about their learning in the course:
- What about this course helps you learn?
- What about this course hinders your learning?
- What suggestions do you have to improve this course so that it better supports learning?
- What are you doing to help yourself learn in this course?
- What are you doing that prevents or hinders your learning in this course?
- What could you do to improve your learning in this course?
Typed anonymous results from written comments and focus group feedback provide a point of departure for considering possible adjustments to the course or necessary communications about instructional choices to students. In a follow up conversation, the consultant provides a sounding board or guidance as the faculty member considers what might represent the best responses to feedback.
