The Observer, March 23, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 21
Course evaluations to partially go online in May
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Many students enjoy the class reprieve afforded by the semesterly completion of course evaluations. Unfortunately for those students, paper and pencil course evaluations may soon become a thing of the past.
The new online course evaluations proved to be successful during their test run, which occurred the week before spring break, and may replace the paper format.
In recent years, students have expressed a growing concern with the traditional course evaluations, complaining that the changes they would like to see effected in a course would not transpire until the next semester.
The solution: midterm evaluations, which would address concerns and problems students have with their current classes and professors.
"Students, faculty, and administrators agreed that midterm evaluations, a way to voice opinions and give feedback halfway through a class and then go on to reap the benefits of that professor's changes or clarifications during the student's stint in that course, would be a viable solution," said Dustin Fisher, Vice President of Academic Affairs for USG.
The hassle with the written evaluations, including the issues of time and money, led the administration to decide on an electronic format.
"The reason behind such an 'early' implementation of the online midterm evaluations was due to the simple fact that the administration hopes to make any touch-ups and fixes to the electronics and formatting and fully enact an online course evaluation system by April for the end of year course evaluations and for years to come," said Fisher.
This semester will still include the traditional end-of-semester evaluations, but the success of the online format's first run seems to indicate that the university will move towards a permanent mid-semester electronic evaluation.
"There are many universities who have already made such a move, and following their examples should make the move and implementation of such a system very smooth. The only changes that will occur next year are that you won't have to bubble and fill out a sheet during all of your classes but will instead be able to easily and quickly fill out your course surveys at your own leisure through a simple e-mail that goes out to each student," said Fisher.
The mid-semester test was specifically targeted to nursing students. On March 1, the Dean of the Nursing School, along with several other administrative members, sent out e-mails requesting thatnursing students complete the online surveys. Shortly after, the online survey was made available to all undergraduate students until the system shut down on March 9. Technicians specifically designed the time restraint to test how the system would work under the strain of students trying to access the surveys.
"As for the number of students that responded…I do know that within about an hour 15 nursing students had already filled out a form," said Fisher.
Many students agree that the new format is a better option than the paper evaluations, sharing the administration's optimistic attitude about the change.
"I like the idea of paperless evaluations. Think of all the paper we're saving! Not only that, but now the university staff doesn't have to worry about the logistics of compiling all of these evaluations by hand," said sophomore Jeffrey Zabinski.
Junior nursing student Tamara Wright said, "I filled out the online survey. It was really easy–much easier than the paper evaluations. But it might be harder to get enough student participation if you leave filling out the evaluation up to the student."
Other students share Wright's concern. "To be honest, I had no idea they were before spring break. I saw something about the new format, but I think students would remember to do them if they were moved back to the end of the semester," said Katie Kirkpatrick, a sophomore nursing student.
There is also a concern that if the administration cuts the end of semester evaluations out completely, students won't be able to offer a totally objective opinion of the class if there is more than one professor who hasn't taught by evaluation time.
"I have a class where I have a different professor for the second half of the semester. How do we evaluate them before they teach?" said Kirkpatrick.
"I think by midterms students should have a pretty good idea of how the classes run and the parts of them they like and dislike. I believe this is also enough time for them to critique their professors and give feedback which will hopefully be put into effect for the rest of the semester," said Wright.
Other students are not so optimistic.
"I can't picture many professors changing the way they teach their classes. They rarely make marked improvements from year to year, and I don't expect much to change in the middle of a semester," said sophomore Stephen Miller.
The number of students who participated in the experiment has not been completely tabulated yet, but it seems that Case will look into implementing the online course evaluations for the end of the semester and keep the midterm evaluations for coming semesters.
