We all receive excellent open-ended comments from students on evaluations that help us with our teaching. Here are a few of mine:- “talks to only one side of the room”
- “penalized me for a late paper….such a bastard”
- “the book sucks, the teaqchehr sucks, such a waste of time”
- “the tests are to hard”
- “the classroom is too warm…not enough a/c”
- “the classroom is too cold…not enough heat”
- “will not discuss problems with us during the 10 minute class break”[professor comment here: during a 3 hr class, I do have to go to the bathroom sometime!!]
- “I already know this material but the university makes me take this course”
- “the prof missed one class this semester and I really needed a lecture that day”
Yes, folks, these are the kind of helpful comments from students to improve your teaching that do end up on the dean’s desk. I even had one dean state on my report that I should utilize some of my student’s comments. And this particular evaluation contained some of the silliest and asinine comments to date! Thank God, I do not work in that pitiful department anymore! But, the dean never hears those students who come up to me, face-to-face, to say:
- “thanks for your patience”
- “that was a tough test, but a fair test”
- “you are always so good to us”
- “ I have a friend who wants to take this course from you. What sections will you be teaching next semester?”
I always have the shredder plugged in upon receiving my evaluations. They make wonderful litter for pets.
