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Take teacher evaluations seriously

As the school year winds down, we all get a shortened class period for the noble purpose of filling out teacher evaluations. Time to close your eyes, fill in a bubble and get some extra time to eat lunch. I mean, who cares about these things anyway?

Hopefully, all of us. Don’t dismiss teacher evaluations as an exercise in futility. Many of the evaluations are finished, but for those of you who still have a few left to fill out, take some time to do it right.

Take a little time to think about the marks you give the teacher, and don’t just fill in the multiple-choice ratings.The numbers they get back from those multiple-choice questions aren’t as useful as a quick comment.

Regardless of what you think happens, professors do look at what their students say about them. This is a big source for them to know how they are doing. If all students do is fill in the bubbles, the professor has no way of knowing why he or she got the marks they did, whether they are good or bad.

You can’t be afraid of bringing their wrath down on you. They get the evaluations after submitting your final grade, and your answers are typed up to make sure the professor can’t identify your chicken-scratch writing.At the same time, if a professor has done a good job, take the time to tell them.

The chief objective of professors is helping you learn. So instead of grumbling about that long term paper, do something to make the class better. And if you don’t have any more to fill out, well, just remember you can always give a thorough evaluation next semester.