PRT1215 - COMPUTERS IN PRE-TRADES AND TECHNOLOGY II
RESULTS OF FIRST ONLINE COURSE SURVEY
FEB 2008

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Note from Greg: READ ME FIRST
Tips to help you understand the stats
Overall results at a quick glance
Survey questions
Students' written comments

See previous course surveys
Back to Greg's Homepage
 

Note from Greg

" Thanks to those who participated. 6 out of a possible 14 students (by this point in the semester) responded (approx. 43%). Overall, feedback was very positive in all categories. Responses were "I strongly agree" or "I agree somewhat." Learning outcome responses were mixed, but this is to be expected when the course is only partially completed.

Your written comments demonstrate some insightful observations about the course content, resources, and my teaching methods. Although they are not all positive, they are certainly constructive. I intend to implement some of your suggestions now. I will be interested in subsequent feedback to see if you agree. I have added some comments to your written remarks below.

Thanks for your efforts. These surveys not only help me become a better instructor, they benefit you too! You have been an active participant in improving your learning environment and this will give you food for thought in future courses. As promised, these survey results are now a public document (linked from my homepage at http://homepages.cambriancollege.ca/gbcooper  ). I'll also be notifying your program coordinator and our Dean of the results. I intend to use this data in future classes (hopefully, ones with you!) and I'll encourage future PRT1215 professors to take a look when planning this course."..........................Greg

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Tips to help you understand the stats

  1. "N=12" refers to the sample size, or the number of students who answered the question(s).
  2. The "-" column refers to the number of students who chose to NOT answer that particular question.
  3. The "Mean" represents the average response for that question. For example, a mean of "1.5" means the average is somewhere between a "1" (I strongly agree) and a "2" (I agree somewhat).
  4. The "SD" or "standard deviation" refers to a measure of how widely dispersed the values are from the average value (the mean) based on our sample, which is relatively small (N=12) It's like a "plus or minus" value that qualifies the range of each mean.
  5. The "median" is the "midpoint" between the highest and lowest value of the responses. (1,2,3,4, or 5 corresponding to a,b,c,d or e)
  6. The "mode" is the most frequent value or values of the response (a,b,c,d, or e)

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Overall results at a quick glance

Title N Frequency Mean SD Median Mode
- a b c d e
 1CO course is excellent? 6 0 2 4 0 0 0 1.67 0.52 2.0 b
 1CO expectations are clear 6 0 1 5 0 0 0 1.83 0.41 2.0 b
 1CO explains concepts 6 0 3 3 0 0 0 1.50 0.55 1.5 a,b
 1CO gives overview 6 0 6 0 0 0 0 1.00 0.00 1.0 a
 1CO instructor is knowledgeable 6 0 5 1 0 0 0 1.17 0.41 1.0 a
 1CO learning something 6 0 4 2 0 0 0 1.33 0.52 1.0 a
 2PR classes are not stimulating 6 0 0 1 1 3 1 3.67 1.03 4.0 d
 2PR sense of humor 6 0 1 5 0 0 0 1.83 0.41 2.0 b
 2PR textbook is used 6 0 2 2 2 0 0 2.00 0.89 2.0 a,b,c
 2PR use web site 6 0 3 3 0 0 0 1.50 0.55 1.5 a,b
 2PR web site useful 6 0 2 4 0 0 0 1.67 0.52 2.0 b
 3IN invites feedback 6 0 2 4 0 0 0 1.67 0.52 2.0 b
 3IN marking is fair 6 0 3 2 1 0 0 1.67 0.82 1.5 a
 3IN material returned on time 6 0 1 3 2 0 0 2.17 0.75 2.0 b
 3IN respect for students 6 0 5 1 0 0 0 1.17 0.41 1.0 a
 4OV hard to know what's important 6 0 0 2 2 1 1 3.17 1.17 3.0 b,c
 4OV not good use of class time 6 0 0 1 0 1 4 4.33 1.21 5.0 e
 5CM deals with disruption 6 0 1 5 0 0 0 1.83 0.41 2.0 b
 5CM helps students succeed 6 0 4 2 0 0 0 1.33 0.52 1.0 a
 5CM instructor is organized 6 0 3 3 0 0 0 1.50 0.55 1.5 a,b
 6OB learn outcome1 6 0 3 2 0 1 0 1.83 1.17 1.5 a
 6OB learn outcome2 6 0 2 3 1 0 0 1.83 0.75 2.0 b
 6OB learn outcome3 6 0 0 3 2 1 0 2.67 0.82 2.5 b
 6OB learn outcome4 6 0 0 4 2 0 0 2.33 0.52 2.0 b
 7LO survey was clear 6 0 1 4 0 1 0 2.17 0.98 2.0 b

 

Key to understanding survey question categories:

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The Survey Questions

An "a,b,c,d,e" scale was used for survey question responses, using the following:

a = I strongly agree, b = I agree somewhat, c = I'm neutral, d = I disagree somewhat, e = I strongly disagree

The questions that were used on the survey were:

General Questions:

  1. Overall, I would rate this course so far, as "excellent".
  2. I have a clear idea of what I am expected to learn.
  3. The instructor explains concepts clearly and effectively.
  4. The instructor gives an overview of what is going to take place at the beginning of the class so students know direction & purpose.
  5. The instructor is knowledgeable on the course material.
  6. Overall, I am learning something in this course that is valuable now, and will be later, after I graduate.
  7. The classes are not stimulating.
  8. The instructor maintains a sense of humor and applies it in an appropriate fashion.
  9. The Web site(s) are used effectively in this course. (e.g. WebCT, external web sites, etc.)
  10. The Web site(s) have provided me with important learning & information resources in this course. (e.g. WebCT, external Web sites, etc.)
  11. The instructor invites feedback from students and accepts constructive criticism without becoming defensive.
  12. Evaluation of course work (labs, assignments, tests, etc.) has been fair.
  13. Course material (labs, assignments, tests, etc.) has been returned in a reasonable time.
  14. The instructor treats students with respect.
  15. It is hard to know which material is important.
  16. The instructor does not make good use of class time.
  17. The instructor deals effectively with disruptions in class/lab activities.
  18. The instructor helps students meet objectives and achieve success.
  19. The instructor conducts organized and well-planned class sessions.
  20. The questions in this survey were worded clearly & concisely.

Course-specific Questions

  1. I am comfortable with and competent at configuring and customizing the user desktop in Windows XP operating system.
  2. I am comfortable with and competent at using advanced aspects of presentation software and preparing basic animations.
  3. I am comfortable with and competent at building and modifying a single web page and multi-page websites using basic HTML tools and related applications.
  4. I am comfortable with and competent at understanding and applying basic concepts in computer-related problem-solving, programming, numeracy and visual/diagramming tools.

Written-Comment Questions

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Students' written comments

One thing I like about this course:
One thing I dislike about this course:
One thing that would improve this course:
I have an additional comment:

One thing I like about this course:

1 The webct because everything you need is on one page.
2 learning new things.
3 web page editing
4 actually learning something
5 That we are able to get online when we are at home to get any notes and be able to study for tests and quizes that may come up. And the use of WebCT is vary beneficial because we are also able to to view our marks off of a test or quizes almost immediatly after writing the test/quiz.
6 The content we learned and the instruction it was given in

One thing I dislike about this course:

1 there is nothing i dislike.
2 to much information given by teacher at one time,a person with limited knowledge can only absorb so much at once.
Yes, good point. I hope you never felt you couldn't stop me and ask for clarification or further explanation.....Greg
3 lack of hard copies of notes
4 not enough time to do work
5 Probally the amount of time that we spend on a topic, i believe that we should spend a lot longer time period on topics so that we the class are able to grasp and understand the material more clearly.
Thanks for completing this survey. This is the type of analysis I have to do before I teach this course again, and make the appropriate recommendations to your program coordinator. I hope this improves for you in the rest of the semester....Greg
6 i didn't dislike anything about this course

One thing that would improve this course:

1 i can't think of anything
2 In my opion the teacher should talk slower taking pauses every 4-5 minutes to see if anyone has a question,some people don,t like to interupt so they just don,t ask the question.
Yes, I do tend to talk fast. I'll endeavor to improve on this....Greg
3 move from lesson to lesson faster
4 give more time to work
5 I dont think i would change anything in this course beacuse greg is a great teacher for the course and he is vary knowlegeable and is able to break down complicated theory and work so that we the class are able to understand and complete the work that is asked of us.
6 Do more labs like the PLC's
I'm glad this module worked for you. I'm looking at more opportunities to integrate computer-related modules from other trades into this course (and PRT1115) There is a lot of support from the different program areas to do this.....Greg

I have an additional comment:

1 N/A
2 I think it would be a good idea for you to sit in on Mr. [--name removed--]'s class because he,s really good at doing what I said above.
I know what you mean. I have listened to portions of his class previously, and he is very good at progressing very gradually, and he uses excellent examples as he goes. I think I can improve on this....Greg
3 nope
4 none
5 I believe that greg is a great teacher to be teaching this specific course because he is well organized and we know in weeks in advance what we will be workin on in the following week and he postes up lab notes and iformation up on WebCT days before we are taking up that specific topic which is great because we are able to take the time at home and look upon the notes and get a general idea of what that specific topic is about so that we can better prepare our selfs with the knowledge so that we are able to participate in class descussions and be able to understand the lecture better. your doin a great job greg!
6 no comment

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