Course evaluation packages will soon be sent to your professors and instructors, who have been asked to bring them to class between July 6 and 17, 2015. Student representatives will be called upon to distribute one questionnaire to each student in each class, collect them when they are completed, and deliver them to the EngSoc office. Your Course Critiques Directors (coursecritiques@engsoc.uwaterloo.ca) will work with student volunteers to prepare the packages for computerized scanning and processing. It’s a process that has been repeated every semester for over 40 years. And yes, it’s quite a big undertaking, but it’s one we believe is well worth it.
On the day after grades are due, a package is mailed to each course instructor with a summary of the numerical data plus the original completed questionnaires so that they can read the comments you’ve written on the back. It’s on you to provide meaningful, relevant feedback; instructors rely on your input to help improve their teaching. Think of this as your chance to influence the way that materials are taught and support change for the better. Department chairs use summaries of course evaluation results to inform tenure and promotion decisions, and the Associate Dean, Teaching uses course evaluation results to inform course improvement efforts. Results are also posted online (see links at https://uwaterloo.ca/engineering/teaching-learning/course-evaluations) so that you and future students may review the results.
On Engineering’s Teaching Learning web site, you’ll also find a teaching award nomination form. This is a quick and easy way to let us know which instructors you would like to see nominated for a teaching award. Visit http://uwaterloo.ca/engineering/teaching-award-nomination to access the form (login required).
Thank you for your time, your feedback, and, most importantly, for your continued support of this longstanding and valued process.
Sincerely,
Michael Beauchemin, Course Critiques Director
Pat Duong, Course Critiques Director
Gordon Stubley, Associate Dean, Teaching
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