Teaching recap // Spring 2016

My course evaluations arrived today.

An initial inspection would say I did better my second time around.
Alternatively, it could be because the students were better at problem solving after having already taken some 200 level engineering classes in the fall, or that my students didn't want me to feel bad, so they rated me better than I actually am.

This time around, the course practices that helped the students most were, in order:

1) Homework
2) Problems worked in class
3) Textbook
3) Lecture
5) Power Point slides

Basically, Lecture and PP slides flipped from last semester (Lecture took a big jump from 5th to tied 3rd!). That feels pretty good.

Course objectives were effectively the same as last semester as well as intellectual challenge, learning, and importance.

Some of the more helpful comments for improvement highlighted:

Didn't like the PP notes--too easy to glance over and ignore (preferred written notes)
Write bigger; explain more conceptual stuff first
Clearer PP slides
Less jargon in lectures; clarity in new concepts was hard at first
More examples (in-class, Moodle, etc.)
More engaging lectures; fix HW due dates
Work more steps in examples and write locations of tables
Keep teaching more; performance improved over the semester
Need experience teaching, controlling a classroom, and to be more confident (to give the impression that you're worth listening to)
Be more enthusiastic and awake

My apparent "effectiveness" rose from 2.66 to 3.15 from last semester. I was on the "good" side this time :)

The devotions via songs and cultural discernment remained popular.

Also, a few of my favorite comments regarding what the instructor could have done better to enhance learning:

N/A; you done good

He done good

Not a whole lot, 10/10 would recommend

Those were outliers; but nonetheless, they were heartwarming.

Upward and onward, better and better.