I consider course evaluations an important source of information to improve my teaching effectiveness. Figure 1 provides the average impression scores students have provided for the modules I present and their impressions of my role as a lecturer over the last 6 years. My scores have generally been favourable and I have managed to maintain relatively good scores across the modules I present. These scores, however, don’t provide the full picture of the student experience and I have found that the qualitative feedback provided by students offers deeper insight into the areas of my modules and teaching that I can retain or that require attention.
To illustrate, one module that has been particularly challenging is the Psychometrics (Ip214) module course I was assigned in 2014. When I started presenting it I was very anxious as the content and slides were intimidating and complex. It took me some time to familiarise myself with the content and adapt my teaching style to this new module which required a completely different approach to the modules I had taught previously. I felt out of my depth and would often get impatient or frustrated with my own inability to convey the concepts in a manner that the student could easily grasp. The student feedback that year provided critical but necessary feedback that guided me to what needed to improve and change.
The most disheartening realisation was that my students perceived that my frustration was with them and the questions they asked, even though this was not the case. Based on this feedback I put more time into the preparation for the classes and ensured that I had varied explanations and examples. I also developed and implemented a new authentic learning assignment and created more practical examples that were completed as part of the lesson. Since then the student evaluations have steadily increased as illustrated in Figure 2. We have also seen a growth in the success rate (passes) in the module which is a positive indicator that efforts to improve the teaching approach and learning material are paying off. I am now also keenly aware of how I respond to students and deal with their fears and frustrations.
