Online Learning

Get input from students

Provide opportunities for students to offer input on the effectiveness of their learning environment.

Practices

Students have direct experience immersed in the content and learning activities of your course and should be considered a valuable resource for continuous improvement of the design and delivery of the course. Here are the essential practices for this category.

Essential Practices
  • Offer intentional opportunities for students to communicate with the instructor throughout the term.
  • Provide a Q & A discussion forum that is easy to find, and encourage students to use it. Subscribe to that forum to ensure a quick response.
  • Provide regularly scheduled “office hours” to students. (or as determined by contract for PT faculty)
  • Review end-of-term feedback from students and make updates where needed.
High-Impact Practices for Continuous Improvement
  • In addition to scheduled “office hours,” offer broader availability for open office hours and privately scheduled meetings.
  • Integrate opportunities for student feedback throughout the term.
  • Check-in with students about how their grades appear to them, how to self-assess and adjust performance as needed.
  • Offer opportunities for student input on specific elements of the course and activities, such as the use of a certain tool or the expectations with a particular assignment.

Examples

  • Provide synchronous and asynchronous options for communication through email, Q&A forum, office hours, etc.
  • Subscribe to or check-in frequently with the Q&A discussion to gauge any obstacles students may be having in the course and to address them in a timely manner.
  • Gather student input through midterm feedback assignments or by polling or surveying students at various times during the term to find out what is working well and what could be improved for student success.
  • Recognize student contributions and encourage student participation by including student feedback as a graded activity.
  • Create a Q&A widget for the course homepage that links to the Q&A discussion.

Resources