Carmen Jany

Fall 2006

Certificate in College and University Teaching Portfolio

CV

Websites

• Mixe
  Dictionary
• Ling 101
• Span 2
• Span 3
• German 3

Evaluation of my Teaching

(ESCI Scores Summary)

My teaching philosophy and abilities have been shaped by the feedback I have received from my students, in particular the handwritten comments. Students’ comments indicate that I am very knowledgeable, well-organized, effective, and caring (see appendix F). This has encouraged me to continue teaching the way I do and to always prepare well for each class.

One thing that I have realized from my evaluations is that students appreciate someone who has a lot of patience (see appendix F: Spanish 1-3). This is important in foreign language instruction, given that students need to constantly express themselves orally without being fluent in the language yet. In class, I try to give students enough time to put together a sentence in a foreign language and always give them positive feedback. If they mispronounce a word, I repeat it correctly.

In my teaching I have tried to find a balance between slowing down and explaining things over to ensure that everyone is following and moving on so that the faster learners do not get bored in class. However, some students have said in their comments that I move too fast sometimes. With that in mind, I now pay more attention to explaining things slowly, and I ask students if they understood the material, also making sure that they are on top of it by asking specific questions. Some students have also indicated that I speak too fast in my Spanish classes. As a result, I have tried to pace my speaking and to focus on articulating well. In sum, I have benefited from students’ comments and have improved my teaching with their specific feedback.

My ESCI scores reflect that students appreciate my teaching. My average scores show consistent results between excellent to very good across a wide range of teaching skills (1.9-1.0). In German 2-3 students evaluated my use of foreign language, my presentation of the materials, and my willingness and effectiveness in helping students very positively, ranking me higher than the department’s average over time. My ESCI scores for Spanish 1-3 indicate that I know the subject matter very well and that I show enthusiasm for the subject matter, ranking me higher or at the same level as the department’s average over time. Students in Linguistics 101 evaluated my teaching and the course as very good, raking me at the same level as the department’s average over time. While the ESCI scores have not influenced my teaching directly, they have shown me that I can still improve my teaching abilities. At the same time, they have made me more confident in my teaching and have encouraged me to continue putting a lot of effort in my teaching.

Overall, the feedback from students has been very helpful in developing and improving my teaching abilities. It has made me realize how important it is to be evaluated and to get specific feedback, in order to stay motivated and to constantly enhance teaching. I will continue to get feedback from students in every possible way.