STUDENT FEEDBACK

During the Semester

Teachers need continuous, accurate information about student learning. Asking students for their input and responding to it can reduce gaps between teaching and learning. Here are two techniques to help you assess and get feedback from your students during the semester.

The one-minute paper is a brief, anonymous feedback instrument you can use up to three or four times a semester at the end of a class. Ask these two questions: “What is the most important thing you learned today in this class?” and “What important question remains unanswered?” At the beginning of the following class, discuss the results with students. Let them know that you’ve read the papers, and respond to their feedback.

In each of your classes, establish a signal for students to use if they want to call a time-out. At that point, you stop talking. Why? Because they can’t take notes fast enough. Because they have questions. Because they need a moment to consider a point. Maybe the best reason is to give them ownership in the class.

Think about it: When we read, we stop to read something a second time, to weigh a thought or to verify a detail. Time-outs encourage students and teachers to think about material, to interact, to integrate and to assimilate.