University of Pittsburgh

Office of Measurement and Evaluation of

Teaching

Dear Professor Benjamin Miller:

Student Opinion of Teaching Questionnaire Results

This form contains survey results for SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050.

Attached is a report in PDF format containing your Student Opinion of Teaching Survey results from last
term. The report is best viewed and/or printed in color.

The evaluation results are broken down into three distinct categories. The first part of the report shows a
breakdown of student responses to the quantitative questions. For each item, the number of students (n)
who responded, the average or mean (av.) and standard deviation (dev.) are displayed next to a chart or
histogram that shows the percentage of the class who responded to each option for that question. The
percentages are above the number on the rating scale which increases from left to right, i.e. the number
1 equals the least favorable rating and the number 4 or 5 (depending on the scale) equals the most
favorable rating. The sum of percentages will equal 100%. A red mark is displayed on the chart where
the average or mean is located. To calculate how many students responded to each option, multiply the
number of students who answered the question by the percentage for that option. For example, if 14
students answered the question and 50% responded to option 3 then 7 students marked option 3 for that
item (14 x .50 = 7). The standard deviation is a common measure of dispersion around the mean that
may be useful in interpreting the results.

The second part displays individual comments to each question in the open-ended section of the
evaluation. All the responses to the first question will be listed together after the first question and then
the responses to the next question will be listed together after the next question, and so on.

The final part gives you a profile of the student responses to the quantitative section of the evaluation.
This is a chart listing all of the means for the scaled items with a dashed red line connecting the means.

If the number of respondents for any of the scaled items is fewer than seven, please be cautious in
interpreting the quantitative results.

Office of Measurement and Evaluation of Teaching (OMET)

 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

Professor Benjamin Miller

SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-10502164_UPITT_ENGCMP_0207_SEC1050
Spring 2016
17 RESPONDENTS = 89.47% OF NUMBER REGISTERED

1. SELF RATINGS

1.1) 0% 0% 47.1% 41.2% 11.8%

Compared to other courses at the same level, the Much less Much more n=17
av.=3.65
amount of work I did was: dev.=0.7

1 2 3 4 5

1.2) 0% 11.8% 23.5% 35.3% 29.4%

In this course I have learned: Much less Much more n=17
av.=3.82
dev.=1.01

1 2 3 4 5

1.3)
The grade I expect in this course is:
n=17
A 47.1%

B 47.1%

C 5.9%

D 0%

F 0%

Other 0%

2. TEACHING EVALUATION

2.1) 0% 0% 0% 35.3% 64.7%

The instructor presented the course in an organized Hardly at all To a very high degree n=17
av.=4.65
manner. dev.=0.49

1 2 3 4 5

2.2) 0% 0% 17.6% 29.4% 52.9%

The instructor stimulated my thinking. Hardly at all To a very high degree n=17
av.=4.35
dev.=0.79

1 2 3 4 5

2.3) 0% 0% 5.9% 17.6% 76.5%

The instructor evaluated my work fairly. Hardly at all To a very high degree n=17
av.=4.71
dev.=0.59

1 2 3 4 5

2.4) 0% 0% 17.6% 35.3% 47.1%

The instructor made good use of examples to clarify Hardly at all To a very high degree n=17
av.=4.29
concepts. dev.=0.77

1 2 3 4 5

2.5) 0% 6.3% 6.3% 12.5% 75%

The instructor maintained a good learning Hardly at all To a very high degree n=16
av.=4.56
environment. dev.=0.89

1 2 3 4 5

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 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

2.6) 0% 0% 0% 5.9% 94.1%

The instructor was accessible to students. (Do not Hardly at all To a very high degree n=17
av.=4.94
answer if no basis to judge) dev.=0.24

1 2 3 4 5

2.7) 0% 5.9% 0% 29.4% 64.7%

Express your judgment of the instructor's overall Ineffective Excellent n=17
av.=4.53
teaching effectiveness: dev.=0.8

1 2 3 4 5

2.8)
Would you recommend this course to other students?
n=17
Probably not 11.8%

Probably yes 29.4%

Definitely yes 58.8%

2.9)
Would you recommend this instructor to other students?
n=17
Probably yes 17.6%

Definitely yes 82.4%

3. ENGLISH COMPOSITION AND WRITING ADDITIONAL ITEMS

3.1)
Were the instructor's comments on your written work helpful in enabling you to improve your writing?
n=17
Not at all 0%

To a small degree 5.9%

To a moderate degree 0%

To a considerable degree 41.2%

Very much 52.9%

3.2)
Were the class discussions helpful to you in enabling you to write your papers?
n=17
Not at all 5.9%

To a small degree 0%

To a moderate degree 0%

To a considerable degree 76.5%

Very much 17.6%

3.3)
Did the course enable you to see the importance of writing to you as a student at a university?
n=17
Not at all 5.9%

To a small degree 0%

To a moderate degree 17.6%

To a considerable degree 23.5%

Very much 52.9%

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 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

3.4)
Was your instructor available to meet with you on an individual basis?
(Do not answer if you did not seek help.)
n=17
Never 0%

Seldom 0%

About half the time 0%

Usually 11.8%

Always 88.2%

3.5)
In general, has this course made you aware of what to do to improve as a writer?
n=17
Not at all 0%

To a small degree 0%

To a moderate degree 23.5%

To a considerable degree 17.6%

Very much 58.8%

4. TEACHING COMMENTS

4.1)
What were the instructor's major strengths?

Being understanding and maintaining a relaxed and comfortable classroom environment definitely helped me open up and be willing to
learn

Ben has been great all semester at staying organized, giving great feedback, and finding ways to keep all of his students engaged on each
specific project.

Class involvement, class organization, access to resources.

Easily Accessible, Clear, Helpful, Reaches out and cares about student progress, something a lot of professors should learn.

Fairness. Ben makes known on the first day of class exactly what he expects - he even makes you sign a contract outlining his
expectations and the student's minimum obligations

He was always available for help, he did not focus on grades, he was extremely organized, he focused on individual improvement over
anything, he promoted group discussions, he always encouraged and gave constructive criticism, he was fair, he was approachable, and
his course was elegantly laid out in a way that everything had meaning and built on previous material.

Making great comments for writings. Helping develop the importance of writing. Helping revising our piece.

Professor Miller is an extremely good instructor and a great fit for this class. He's very knowledgeable, clever and an incredible writer. He
was very focuses on helping us improve our writing and he was able to devote significant amounts of time to all of us as individuals and to
our writing. I took this class not because I had an interest in writing or education, but just to fulfill a requirement, and yet Professor Miller
still was able to make it an engaging course. I would highly recommend him as a teacher for this course.

So friendly and helpful, awesome guy and awesome teacher! The grading contract definitely takes away some of the anxieties I had
coming into my first college writing class.

The instructor's biggest strength was intentionality; he was always prepared for class and planned meaningful activities and work for his
students. The wiki page which he created was super helpful for resources and homework. This instructor is very interested in the subject
and dedicated a lot of time outside of class to his students. He has been one of my best instructors.

Very knowledgeable on the writing process

enthusiastic and motivating for student who are interested in writing and education.

organized; structured; well thought out; knowledgable; enjoy the times we do have a lecture; engaging; shared in my accomplishments;
made me want to do well and improve;

very charismatic, super accessible and easy to understand.

4.2)
What were the instructor's major weaknesses?

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 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

Ben has trouble keeping students' attention. He often goes off on tangents that have little to do with the matter at hand or, if related to the
topic, are simply unimportant.
Ben also struggles to make boring material interesting. He tries very hard, to his credit, but simply falls short. To be fair, only truly great
teachers can do this. Ben is young, and with more experience he may learn how to do this.

I think there was too much focus on finding sources for our research essay rather than actually composing it.

N/A

No comment

Not many weaknesses come to mind as I think about Ben. He was always very fair and thorough in every exercise we did throughout the
semester.

Some activities were a little too long, readings could be boring

can be a little disorganized, nothing truly major.

n/a

none

5. COURSE COMMENTS

5.1)
What aspects of this course were most beneficial to you?

-lots of revisions
-the "they say i say" book

Group discussions were great, the class exercises helped me with drafting, and the open atmosphere for mistakes was the most beneficial
of all.

Group editing, comments on shaped pieces

I enjoyed the readings, like Dewey and Murray, I wish we had done more of those especially towards the end of the semester because it
feels like we are only doing writing and it would be good to break that up a little more

Just the writing exercises

Learning to write and shape my pieces correctly. Keeping me active.

The course is in an organized manner. We know what we need to do all the time

The course took a deep look into each individual as a writer. For example, our first piece was a narrative about where each of us stood as
writers. I was able to easily find my strengths as a writer and put them on full display in each of my pieces.

The group workshops, while almost never helpful to my writing, did give me a lot of practice critiquing others' writing

The most beneficial part of this course was being able to take my time going through the writing process and being able to work with my
writing to make it better.

The readings. They were very helpful when trying to understand how we write and what we can do to improve our writing.

The wiki page was most beneficial because it allowed me to refresh what we did in class, see and post homework assignments, and
collaborate with other students. It also was useful in scheduling meetings outside of class. The screen which showed the wiki page
throughout class was also a beneficial visual. The discussions from class and group work helped a lot with assignments. The seating
arrangement of students at the edges of the classroom was very useful in creating a comfortable atmosphere that fostered discussion.

ideal workload because I was pushed to my potential but now overwhelmed (flexible deadlines); no grades until the end (when we got an
essay back we actually had to look at the comments instead of flipping right to the grade)

the writing in general really helped me improve my abilities.

5.2)
What suggestions do you have to improve the course?

-a little less time on SP3

Establish a place where ALL assignments are due. The only confusing thing about the course was figuring out whether an assignment was
due online or printed on paper.

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 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

Make it more interesting, but with this course it may not be possible

N/A

None

Space out due dates, don't expect writing every class.

The readings. Throw in some "fun ones", this was a very dry class so a few pop culture references and humor wouldn't hurt. But if the
professor lacks either the intellect to understand humor that is both appropriate and relatable to the students then don't do it.

There is not much I would change to be honest. I'd probably have more class discussion than group discussion, but thats just due to
personal preference ( I know lots of people clam up when they are the only one speaking in a whole class).

find a better wiki site!

it always seems like we have more to say (need longer class sessions); enjoyed how we initially had reactions to readings on the wiki like
blog

none

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 Professor Benjamin Miller, SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

Subunit:
Name of the instructor:
Name of the course:
(Name of the survey)
Profile
A&S-ENGLISH LOWER LEVEL
Professor Benjamin Miller,
SEMNR IN COMPOSITN: EDUCATION(ENGCMP-0207)-1050

Values used in the profile line: Mean

1. SELF RATINGS

1.1) Compared to other courses at the same level, Much less Much more
the amount of work I did was: n=17 av.=3.65 md=4.00 dev.=0.70

1.2) In this course I have learned: Much less Much more

n=17 av.=3.82 md=4.00 dev.=1.01

2. TEACHING EVALUATION

2.1) The instructor presented the course in an Hardly at all To a very high
organized manner. degree n=17 av.=4.65 md=5.00 dev.=0.49

2.2) The instructor stimulated my thinking. Hardly at all To a very high

degree n=17 av.=4.35 md=5.00 dev.=0.79

2.3) The instructor evaluated my work fairly. Hardly at all To a very high
degree n=17 av.=4.71 md=5.00 dev.=0.59

2.4) The instructor made good use of examples to Hardly at all To a very high
clarify concepts. degree n=17 av.=4.29 md=4.00 dev.=0.77

2.5) The instructor maintained a good learning Hardly at all To a very high
environment. degree n=16 av.=4.56 md=5.00 dev.=0.89

2.6) The instructor was accessible to students. (Do Hardly at all To a very high
not answer if no basis to judge) degree n=17 av.=4.94 md=5.00 dev.=0.24

2.7) Express your judgment of the instructor's Ineffective Excellent

overall teaching effectiveness: n=17 av.=4.53 md=5.00 dev.=0.80

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