Click here for a printable copy of my Evidence of Teaching Effectiveness in PDF format.
1. Student Ratings of Teaching Effectiveness (SRTEs)
An examination of my SRTEs (see Student Ratings under the Teaching tab on my webpage) reveals that my students have consistently given me high ratings in all categories. A closer look at particular questions reveals a consistency with my teaching philosophy. Given my philosophy that students should feel engaged and comfortable in class, B3 and B8 (refer to SRTE summary) are of particular interest to me. Ratings in both of these categories have consistently been high, indicating success in creating a positive and comfortable atmosphere in which students can easily focus on learning while in class. Given the importance in demonstrating consistency in teaching quality, it should also be noted that there are no substantial dips or spikes in my ratings that would indicate a significant fluctuation in the quality of my teaching.
2. Written evaluations from students
In addition to the SRTEs, students are sometimes given an opportunity to anonymously provide written evaluations of the course and instructor. Below are some of the comments provided from some of the items that are relevant to my teaching philosophy.
Spanish language courses (SPAN 001 and 002 at PSU)
• Atmosphere of the classroom – attitude toward students, encouragement of participation, etc.
-“great, very friendly, easy to talk to”
-“very helpful to students”
-“fun, alert, comfortable”
-“very friendly and helpful – comfortable atmosphere”
-“always encourages open participation and discussion”
-“open atmosphere – no one seemed afraid to speak”
-“always encourages asking questions”
-“it was a relaxed atmosphere conducive to participation”
• Personal qualities – stimulating, dull, demanding, consistent, etc.
-“never gets frustrated with questions, very helpful”
-“very enthusiastic”
-“very nice, friendly, helpful, happy”
-“friendly, engaging, approachable”
-“nice, fair, well-prepared”
-“good at communicating to students the difficulties of the language. Good at relating Spanish things to
English for our reference”
-“easily approachable, helpful”
-“very passionate about subject matter”
• Would you take another class with the instructor? Why or why not?
-“Yes, well paced. Showed different ways to learn material”
-“Yes, he was very helpful”
-“Yes, very open to questions and providing help”
-“Yes, very helpful and great personality for a teaching atmosphere”
-“Yes, best language teacher I've ever had”
-“yes, he taught it in a way I understand”
-“yes, he's a good instructor and cares about if you actually understand”
-“yes!! very good teacher, enthusiastic!”
-“definitely, very helpful”
-“yes, because he encourages us to learn”
Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics (SPAN 215 at PSU)
• Atmosphere of the classroom – attitude toward students, encouragement of participation, etc.
-“He is always pleasant and encourages understanding and practical application of information. He is always willing to explain questions and does so clearly”
-“positive, laid back”
-“positive and communicative attitude towards class”
-“Great, he's always in a good mood, very friendly, willing to help, funny”
• Personal qualities – stimulating, dull, demanding, consistent, etc.
-“has great sense of humor”
-“likeable, funny, encourages participation”
-“very funny”
-“engaging”
-“awesome, funny, super nice, understanding”
-“Great personality – makes learning fun”
• Would you take another class with the instructor? Why or why not?
-“Yes, cares about students and wants them to do well”
-“Yes. Funny/entertaining. Wants students to succeed”
-“Yes, he is an excellent teacher. He teaches well and is very nice”
-“Yes, he is knowledgeable, funny, fair and helpful”
-“absolutely, kind and very helpful”
-“Yes, understands level of students and explains clearly”
-“Yes, I feel he has an interest in helping students to learn, very fair”
-“Yes, He was always ready to help me when I was struggling and he would make sure that I understood the material"
These comments from past students confirm success in achieving my goals for teaching, which are outlined in my teaching philosophy. Specifically, students have indicated that they felt comfortable and relaxed in class, and that this lead to an atmosphere in which they felt encouraged to participate and ask questions. Moreover, many of their statements confirm that they have recognized my efforts to put their learning success first.
3. Evaluations from supervisor observations
Further evidence of my teaching effectiveness can be found in Teaching Observation Reports , which are completed annually by supervisors. The following are excerpts taken from the general summary of some of these observation reports.
Overall, the class was very good. David showed a lot of professionalism and was well prepared for his class. He is very good at modeling activities for the students to use in their output activities.
Overall, the observed class was well-planned and executed. David is a talented and dedicated instructor who provides his students with numerous opportunities for focus on form and communication. David has a solid grasp of the communicative methodology, following a well-designed input > output sequence with large amounts of popular Hispanic culture mixed in. In sum, a very complete lesson plan.
David has a wonderful rapport with his students. Everybody was very involved in the activities, trying to use Spanish all the time. David's explanations of the grammar (future tense) were simple and clear. He conducted the entire class in Spanish and you could see that the students are used to hearing and speaking Spanish all the time.
All of these observation reports provide ideas for improvement. For example, they suggest ways to verify students' understanding of vocabulary during group activities and methods of improving the comprehension of songs in Spanish. However, the observation reports also identify students' engagement with the material and their comfort to ask questions.