Feedback from students

I give my students a feedback survey mid-semester and at the end of the semester.

I largely do it for them--reflection is so important as we're learning.  

I also benefit from their responses.  What is working well?  What isn't?

A student told me all of the stuff I make--videos, Quizlet practice sets and especially Kahoot games, are his favorite part of the class.  He said what I create is always better than what he finds in the textbook/online platform.  He also apologized for asking me to do more work because he knows I'm already busy and all of those things I create take a long time.  

I'm thrilled to know it's time well spent.

As a rule I send out a video that I create with my weekly announcements.  I don't check to see how many of my students actually view them.  If even 1 benefits it's worth my time.  (I edit all the CCs so yes, it does take a bit of time).

Today's (1:02) video for my 4th semester class: https://youtu.be/sHup0rHEmB8

They took a midterm this week that was hard.  Many didn't get the As they're accustomed to.  That can be defeating.  However, it was challenging material and if you don't know it, you don't earn an A.  I still wanted to offer encouragement so I made that video for them.

On Twitter I saw recently that the idea that quizzes with time limits should be a thing of the past.  Hmmm.  Personally, I'm a fast finisher.  Always have been.  I don't remember ever running out of time on a quiz or test.  I'm on the "haste makes waste" side of that spectrum.

However, I have students who run out of time in my 4th semester class.  Granted, those quizzes cover difficult information.  Also, we use a proctoring system which adds lag time to the quizzes and tests.  I'm glad students told me time is an issue.  I can extend the time.  My reason for the limits is that I know there is a temptation to cheat.  I think the temptation increases when there is more time given.  Oh well.  This is why they use the proctoring system, right?  I need to trust it.

Communication is so challenging, especially with online classes.  I send out weekly announcements telling students what to do, but I rarely hear back.  I hope they understand all I'm saying, but do they?

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