COURSE EVALUATION REPORT

LAWRENCE WEINSTEIN

200610

1 STRONGLY DISAGREE

2 DISAGREE

3 NEITHER AGREE NOR DISAGREE

4 AGREE

5 STRONGLY AGREE

n/a NOT APPLICABLE

NR NO RESPONSE

PHYS 453 - Aggregate

	QUESTIONS FOR EVALUATION:	RESPONSE FREQUENCY
	QUESTIONS FOR EVALUATION:	RESPONSE FREQUENCY
		1	2	3	4	5	n/a	NR	n	MEAN	INSTR MEAN	STD. DEV.	DEPT MEAN	COLL MEAN
1	IN THE FIRST WEEK OF CLASS, THE INSTRUCTOR PROVIDED DOCUMENTS AND INFORMATION THAT CLEARLY EXPLAINED THE COURSE CONTENT, ASSIGNMENTS, GRADING AND OTHER IMPORTANT POLICIES.	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	5	4.80	4.83	0.40	4.43	4.51
2	THE COURSE MATERIALS, EXAMS, PROJECTS AND/OR PAPERS IN THE CLASS REQUIRED ME TO THINK CRITICALLY.	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	5	4.80	4.83	0.40	4.38	4.43
3	THE INSTRUCTOR WELCOMED QUESTIONS AND OTHER CLASS PARTICIPATION.	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	5	4.80	4.83	0.41	4.35	4.34
4	THE INSTRUCTOR WAS ENTHUSIASTIC WITH RESPECT TO THE SUBJECT MATTER.	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	5	4.80	4.83	0.43	4.35	4.33
5	THE INSTRUCTOR WAS AVAILABLE FOR CONSULTATION AND HELPFUL DURING OFFICE HOURS.	0	0	2	0	3	0	0	5	4.20	4.33	0.44	4.18	4.45
6	THE INSTRUCTOR ARRIVED ON TIME FOR CLASS AND USED THE FULL CLASS PERIOD ALLOTED.	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	5	4.80	4.83	0.32	4.44	4.58
7	IN ORDER TO GET GOOD GRADES ON TESTS AND ASSIGNMENTS, I HAD TO KNOW THE COURSE MATERIALS OUTLINED IN THE SYLLABUS AND DISCUSSED IN CLASS.	0	0	1	0	4	0	0	5	4.60	4.67	0.40	4.34	4.48
8	THE INSTRUCTOR'S PRESENTATIONS WERE INFORMATIVE.	0	1	0	1	3	0	0	5	4.20	4.33	0.64	4.02	4.19
9	OVERALL, I HAVE LEARNED OR BENEFITED FROM THIS CLASS.	0	1	0	0	4	0	0	5	4.40	4.50	0.54	4.07	4.11
10	OVERALL, THE INSTRUCTOR IS AN EFFECTIVE TEACHER.	0	1	0	0	4	0	0	5	4.40	4.50	0.65	4.09	4.12

GENERAL INFORMATION:
APPROXIMATE CLASS STANDING		PRESENT GPA		HRS PER WEEK SPENT PREPARING FOR CLASS
FRESHMAN	0	LESS THAN 2.00	0	0 TO 2	0
SOPHOMORE	0	2.00 TO 2.49	0	3 TO 5	0
JUNIOR	1	2.50 TO 2.99	1	6 TO 8	2
SENIOR	4	3.00 TO 3.49	4	9 TO 11	1
GRADUATE	0	3.50 +	0	12 OR MORE	2
OTHER	0	DO NOT KNOW	0

SEX		AGE		FULL OR PART TIME STUDENT
MALE	3	20 & UNDER	1	FULL-TIME	4
FEMALE	2	21 - 25	1	PART-TIME	1
		26 +	3

REASON FOR TAKING COURSE		EXPECTED COURSE GRADE		EMPLOYED WHILE TAKING COURSE
REQUIRED FOR MAJOR	5	A	0	NOT EMPLOYED	4
GEN. ED. REQUIREMENT	0	B	2	PART-TIME JOB	0
ELECTIVE	0	C	3	FULL-TIME JOB	1
OTHER	0	D	0
		F	0
		P	0
		Q	0

I ATTENDED ---- CLASS
ALL	1
MOST	4
FEW	0

NR :	No response. Student did not rate the instructor on this question.
*n :*	Number of responses for this question (does not include �no response�.)
Mean:	The mean for this call number/CRN. In the case of aggregate reports, the mean for all session cross-listed together for this course.
Instr Mean:	The mean for all courses taught by this instructor for a college. This number is the same on all reports for this instructor for a college.
Std. Deviation:	The standard deviation for instructors means in this department.
Dept Mean:	The mean for all courses taught by this department, including any course cross-listed to a course taught by this department. This number is the same on all reports for this department.
Coll Mean:	The mean for all courses taught by this college, including any course cross-listed to a course taught by this college. This number is the same on all reports for this college.
ENROLLMENT:	Total number of students enrolled for this call number/CRN. In the case of aggregate reports, the total number of students enrolled for all call numbers cross-listed together with at least one completed evaluation.

ENROLLMENT:	15
TOTAL RESPONSES:	5

GENERAL WRITTEN COMMENTS:

WHAT FACTORS ABOUT THIS CLASS CONTRIBUTED THE MOST TO YOUR LEARNING? WHAT ASPECTS OF THIS CLASS HELPED YOU TO LEARN THINK CRITICALLY?

During the first half of the semester, I hated having to commit so much of the information to memory. I managed to get through all of my courses between physics 231 & 232 without having to actually memorize and really remember anything. Since I had not built up a memory bank over the past couple of years, I found it extremely difficult to commit everything to memory, so I had to put in a lot of time to make this happen. During the second half of the semester, I started feeling good about the need to have things memorized with a thorough working knowledge of all of the principles. I still don't know as much as I would like, but I actually feel more comfortable with physics now that I have more things in memory. Bascially, I had been allowed to become lazy in my other physics classes through the use of professor provided and student generated crib sheets. I am glad that Dr. Weinstein took these things away from us. Up until now, I did not feel confident about my physics knowledge, and that was because I really didn't remember much of what I had been taught in the past for quick recall (I had never been forced to commit anything to memory (except for in 231 & 232). Committing things to memory is difficult, but as more time passes and as more material is covered, the task becomes almost impossible due to the large amount of information that must be relearned. Thank you for making us learn the material and think about problems. It has been a long time since I've been forced to think hard and put in a lot of work outside of class. I've gone from hating this class to finding a lot of reward in solving the problems and committing the material to memory.
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Requiring homework to be due weekly that was graded.
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N/A
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The content of the class in itself forces a person to think critically.
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The material was difficult. The homework to say the least challenging. The concepts require you to think in order to understand them.
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WHAT DID YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE CLASS AND YOUR INSTRUCTOR?

I really enjoy the in-class demonstrations. Also, Dr. Weinstein's examples and explanations of the material are thorough and easier to understand than simply reading the text material. I usually read the text material and end up just as confused after I read than before I read.
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I like that the professor used the blackboard and not just an overhead projector. Handwritten solutions to the homework were extremely helpful.
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N/A
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The instructor is very knowledgable, not only of this subject, but how to incorporate this subject into the working world. At one point, the professor took a step back in course material (material that was taught in previous course) to ensure we all were on the right track. The instructor used many demonstrations to show the physics in a visual manner.
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The professor is very entusiastic about the material and always tries to put things into perspective. This was a very difficult class and putting things into perspective was almost necessary for learning.
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WHAT CHANGES IF ANY, COULD BE MADE TO THE CLASS THAT WOULD HAVE HELPED YOU TO LEARN MORE? WHAT COULD THE INSTRUCTOR HAVE DONE TO MAKE THE COURSE AN EVEN BETTER LEARNING EXPERIENCE?

I think asking the class to solve a couple of textbook problems in class is a good idea (students directing the problem solutions). We solved a few in class, and we didn't do very well. I think doing this more will give the professor more feedback about what we understand and what we are struggling with. This technique was used in the envelope class, and I learned a great deal from solving problems together that I don't think I would have learned otherwise.
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I believe that if the instructor would have lectured with his own notes and not just verbatim to Griffith's textbook, then the test would not have seemed so confusing.The instructor could have worked more examples out in class, even though the problems take a lot of time and effort to work through. He seemed to move too quickly throughout the class period, meaning that he explained new concepts without the time required to convey such material.
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N/A
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I would not follow the book word for word during the inclass notes. The best days of lecture is when the instructor just went on his own intellect. The day that he showed us all how to remember the equations and derive other equations from the basic equation was extremely helpful.
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I don't feel that anything in specific needs to be changed. I do however think that the tests were generally very challenging but apparently not out of reach for some.
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WHAT FACTORS ABOUT YOUR OWN PERFORMANCE HELPED YOU LEARN THE MOST? WHAT DID YOU DO TO FACILITATE YOUR LEARNING?

I worked as many problems as possible, read and reread and read the material again, and reviewed the professor's provided problem solutions (provided after homework was handed in of course).
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Reading through the chapters. Doing my weekly homework.
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N/A
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Read, read, and re-read the book and notes.
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WHAT COULD YOU HAVE DONE TO MAKE THE COURSE AN EVEN BETTER LEARNING EXPERIENCE?

I could have improved my learning by reviewing math materials and E&M materials from the previous class as soon as this class began. I could have taken this much more seriously from the start because this class and the professor are very serious (but very nice as well!).
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I could have started my homework earlier and read the chapters before each lecture.
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N/A
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Remember physics is not memorized, it is a thought process.
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I wish that I would have had more time to study while taking the class. I feel that I would have learned more if I had more time throughout the semester.
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