{"id":307,"date":"2017-03-05T00:52:07","date_gmt":"2017-03-05T08:52:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/teaching.claremont.edu\/?page_id=307"},"modified":"2023-04-20T22:43:38","modified_gmt":"2023-04-20T22:43:38","slug":"formative-evaluation","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/colleges.claremont.edu\/ctl\/resources\/ctl-created-resources\/formative-evaluation\/","title":{"rendered":"Formative Teaching Evaluations"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nWhen the cook tastes the soup, that’s formative.
\nWhen the guests taste the soup, that’s summative.”
\n–Robert Stake\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 
\nFormative teaching evaluations give\u00a0instructors the opportunity to monitor student learning and gather feedback to improve their teaching. In contrast, the primary goal of summative teaching evaluations (such as end-of-course evaluation forms) is to measure instructors’ teaching effectiveness so as to guide personnel decisions.<\/p>\n

Why use formative teaching evaluations?<\/strong> Formative teaching evaluations can provide actionable information that faculty can use to make adjustments during a course, something that is impossible to do using end-of-course evaluations. Formative evaluations allow instructors the opportunity to gather feedback on their teaching without having to share it with one’s department, colleagues, or reappointment, promotion, or tenure committee. Also, as students respond to\u00a0formative teaching evaluations, they get to think about their own learning. This meta-cognition contributes to their self-awareness as learners and helps them better engage with their learning.<\/p>\n

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\r\n \r\n <\/i><\/span>\r\n <\/i><\/span>\r\n <\/span>\r\n MID-SEMESTER EVALUATION FORMS<\/span>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
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One way to collect formative information on your teaching is to ask students to fill out a short survey form during the middle of the term. So as to encourage students to answer honestly, these surveys should be taken anonymously.<\/p>\n

Why use them?<\/strong> Mid-semester evaluations tend to positively affect the way that students perceive the course and instructor [3] and increase instructors\u2019 end-of-semester evaluation scores [2,5,6]. Student feedback can provide information that can be used to improve teaching, and that process is enhanced when paired with some form of consultation about those evaluations [1,5].<\/p>\n

How to do it?<\/strong>\u00a0There are a variety of questions that you can include on your mid-semester evaluation forms. The CTL recommends the following set of general-purpose questions that are suitable for most situations:<\/p>\n

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  1. What aspects of the course are best contributing to your learning? Please try to be as specific as possible.<\/li>\n
  2. What aspects of the course are detracting from your learning? Please try to be as specific as possible.<\/li>\n
  3. Based on your answers to the previous questions, what can I do differently to make this course a better learning experience?<\/li>\n
  4. What can you do differently to make this course a better learning experience?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Other questions that you could include:<\/p>\n