Increasing Student Response Rates

Student feedback on course evaluations can provide faculty with important information about how their instructional practices are supporting student learning, as well as how they might modify and improve courses to enhance learning. We've briefly outlined some strategies below. For more details, and specific examples of how to incorporate these practices into one's course, please see this short resource guide that the Teaching and Learning Commons has put together. 

At the start of the quarter:

• Include information about the importance of SET in your syllabus
• Have a Day 1 slide and in-class announcement about how important Student Evaluations of Teaching (SET) are to you, and to students. 

During the quarter:

• Collect mid-quarter feedback from your students and then act on that feedback

At the end of the quarter:

• Give students 15 minutes during class to complete the evaluation form
  • Consider having a slide with a QR code for the evaluation form, and then let the students know you will be leaving the room. 
• As soon as feedback forms open, talk to students in class about the importance of their feedback, and how it will be used.
  • Give an example of how you implemented student feedback in the past. 
• Remind students that all SET feedback is anonymous
• Offer an incentive to students for completing the feedback form (e.g. an extension on the last project if 80% of the class submits the form, or treats on the last day if 80% of the class completes the form)
•  Every class period during the last two weeks, remind students about the SET deadline (and any incentives you are offering).