Student Feedback

I had a great year.  But just because I did didn't necessarily mean the students agreed with me.  I think it's important to get their feedback to see what they thought and if there are any major disconnects.


**These are only responses from my Honors Precalculus students. I gave them the option of keeping their input anonymous so they didn't feel like they had to suck up (most kids still put their names).  I've deleted the responses that said "good" or "fine" without any extra detail. Everything else stayed.

Question 1:
How did you feel about how class was run? Warmups, notes, etc...
I thought the notes were really great. It was incredibly helpful and I like the warmups too. Overall, I thought the class setup was really great. It helped me learn everything and was super easy to look back on as well.
Very smooth and effective
I liked the the way it was run and how we took notes.
They were nice. They involved what we were doing in class and gave us something to look into.
Perfectly
I really liked the warmups and notes. Notes helped me so much.
I liked the way class was run, the warmups were a fun/easy way to start class, and I was really interested in the ones about the Jeopardy guy or other current events. I liked how the notes were organized and how all worksheets went with the notes. Also loved the colored packets, made taking notes not as bad!
I loved how class was run. Going over the notes as a class helped me so much.
I loved the way class was run this year. Felt prepared for every test
I think warm-ups are a good way to ease us into the class as it can be fun, especially if we do those puzzles from that book. I also think that doing notes together is great because we can easily ask questions if we have them.
I like the system that we take notes in
Great! Everything was a perfect pace & worked really well with how I learn.
I really liked how organized it was and the note packets. I also liked the warmups because they were fun and a good break in the day
I really liked how in class work was done. The notes were always clear and questions were always answered. I don't think anyone felt too lost at times.
I really enjoyed this class! I loved how notes were online and accessible. I did like the videos at the end of the year, it helped a lot with catching up with the class.
They were fun, sometimes. I'm not good at puzzles but it was nice to do warm ups instead of jumping right into class. Also the Note packets were INCREDIBLY helpful and should 1000% be continued!!
i liked the way you ran the note but the warm ups sometimes felt like a waste of time.
Paced very well and I liked how you gave us notes to write in
I loved how we got to do warm ups! The notes were very easy to follow and I wasn't scared to ask questions during notes.
It went really smoothly and it helped me keep my skills up. Each warm-up was similar to what we were learning, or sometimes it was just fun puzzles to get the day started. Also notes were really helpful, I loved how they were laid out and they were organized, which helped me a ton!
I thought the colored note packets were really helpful. Also, I liked using the warm-ups as a way to start class and transition into the content.
Class was run excellently. The way we did notes was really helpful and the warm-ups were great for review.
I liked it and it helped to understand material better
I feel like class was run well and I would do it the same way next year
They were good at refocusing on material we have already learned
I like how there was an order and I could look at the weeks schedule in advance to know what we would be doing in class.
I really enjoyed the laid back feel of this class. It was different from some of the other classes I've taken in that it was paced well without feeling like it was nothing but work. I liked the fun warmups and the review games. I was never a fan of trashketball because I can't throw, but it was a lighthearted change from worksheets.
I think that the way you ran this class was very useful and efficient.
My take-away:  One student said that the warm-ups were a waste of time. Many others referred to them as fun or helpful.  They'll stay, as will the notes packets.

Question 2:
This year I chose not to record MathXL assignments as a grade. Was this a good choice? Is there a better alternative? Do you have any other input on homework?
This was a great choice. MathXL is a really frustrating program and deltamath is much better. I also think that Kuta worksheets are great, I am not sure how well that would work out with precalc but I like what you did.
I like this because it gives us an option for it. If we know the content well we don't have to do the MathXL anyways
No that was a good choice because sometimes I didn’t need to do them
I liked this as some people may revise better in other ways so if they wanted to do the MathX they can or they can spend that time going over notes or other things.
Yeah. It's very time consuming and most of the time I don't do it.
I think math xl should be a grade because it would motivate people to study
Personally I don't appreciate Math XL and I didn't like when it was taken as a grade. It was a great tool to have for test corrections, but I don't think they should be taken as a grade.
I really liked that because I was able to do just the ones that I needed extra help with and skip the ones that I felt pretty confident in. This saved me very valuable time to do other homework.
Yes it was a good idea
This was a good choice, because at that point MathXL would be just busy work.
I liked it cause sometimes you wouldn't need to do it so it would be a waste of time but it was there in case you needed the extra practice
I think the MathXL's should be a grade. For me at least, the MathXL's were very helpful and since I struggled on tests the MathXL's could've been a little extra help to my grade.
I thought this was a good idea. There were a lot of assignments that I didn't need the extra practice on, and the math xl would've just been excessive. It might have helped grades a little bit if more of the worksheets were taken as grades.
Yes keep doing this.
This was a great choice as it prepared student for calc classes where homework will not be graded but you have to do it if you want to be prepared for tests.
I think having the mathXLs as optional is good because it was not always needed, but it allowed for extra practice.
Yes, I liked the small amount of homework but also I still had the option to review at any time if I needed to.
I think it was good, it only helps you learn the concepts, doesn’t hurt you.
Yes!!! The amount of homework you gave was perfect & the packets paired with the in-class lessons made it incredibly easy to follow along and fully understand the material.
Yes, I liked not having homework as a grade because I didn't really need to do homework so it would have felt like a waste of time if I had to do it
Yes this was a great choice. I, for one, do not have time to do mathXL's every night, so I think it was a perfect compromise to make it optional.
I liked not having MathXL assignments, the weekly Delta Math was fine!
Yes I think that was a good choice. Extra help was offered to those who needed it, but not required for those who thoroughly understood the subject. Personally, I think delta math is better than math XL and I didn't mind doing the weekly assignments (:
yes that was a good choice because for a class like this most students wont need much extra practice on these topics because they are smart. Having them optional helps the students that need the extra practice and dont waste the time of the students that dont need it.
Yes this was a good choice because I would always forget to do them...ha!
I didnt do the Math XL assignments and I felt fine with out them. I liked that they were optional because you weren't stressed because you had to do them and also it was nice to have the options to have en extra study tool.
Yes, I am a fan of math-xl as a place for extra practice, I don't really like it as homework. I personally liked Delta Math better, it's just easier to use. If you wanted to do homework grades, I would stick with Delta Math.
Yes, I liked that we got to choose whether we wanted to do more Math XL depending on whether we felt we needed more practice.
If you had more people than usual doing retakes this year, I would consider making some of the MathXL's mandatory so that students can be more well-prepared for tests. If there doesn't seem to be much of a correlation, please keep it the same!
I thought that was a great choice
I think that mathxl should be homework that way there’s an even better way to make sure people are understanding the information
I think that not recording mathXL is a good choice because it gives us study material to use if we aren’t quite grasping a topic, but it also doesn’t give busy work to those that understand the topic
yes because sometimes they can be redundant. For instance, if you have to do a Math XL of stuff you've already mastered, it just gets me bored and unmotivated to do anything else
For me it wasn't a problem, but I can see for other students, the MathXL's might have been helpful for grade boosters in progress book. However, for our class, I didn't see it as a major problem.
I liked this because I already had enough MathXLs to do for math 3. I liked the homework the way you had it, although I think the exam reviews would be better as delta maths instead of on paper. That way, if there was a subject that I wanted more practice on, I could go and do more problems on it and see if they were right.
I liked that we were not forced to do them but I think it would be more beneficial if you did not allow students to retake tests without completing the MathXL assignments before taking the test.
I think that is a good choice because it gives people independence and lets them do what they need to do.
I liked it. the weekly reviews were good enough for homework grades
The homework in this class was perfect
My takeaway:
A few students mentioned that MathXL assignments would have been a good "grade boost". But so many more talked about liking the option of having the assignments there for extra practice but not mandatory if they understood the material.  Like I've mentioned before, I gave a weekly assignment on DeltaMath that was counted as a grade.  Sounds like a change I made for the year that I'll keep.

Question 3:
Any thoughts on either the QQ or chapter quizzes? Should I keep the retake option?
I didn't really take advantage of the retake option like I should have, but you should definitely keep that option. I like the quick quizzes and chapter quizzes. There was never anything that we did not go over like some other classes.
Keep the retake option. Helps us learn the content
Yes just in case you get a bad grades
I think the QQs were good and you should also keep the retake option on chapter quizzes
Good way to check where I'm at during the week.
QQ no retake. Chapter=retakes
YES!! sometimes you either do very well, or you miss one question and get a 75%, the retakes saved me multiple times on QQs.
I really liked the retakes a lot. The QQs were really helpful because I was able to do a mini version of the quiz without stressing over the whole thing.
yes, sometimes you make a dumb mistake and i liked the option to retake
Definitely keep retakes as an option. Again, I struggled on tests/qq's and when I had the opportunity to understand why I was making the mistakes I made, I ultimately did better on the tests and actually understood the content. Re-taking and understanding qq's also helped me do better on the chapter quizzes.
The retakes were so helpful. In a lot of units, if you missed one concept, your grade could really suffer.
Retake policy should be made stricter regarding the math xl. If a student did not put the work in before the test and fails then they shouldn’t have a safety net.
I think quick quizzes were a good way for us to make sure we were keeping up with the knowledge before the full quizzes. I think the retakes were also good because it allowed us another chance. I think making the retake window only two weeks was needed, because people would forget the information if they waited longer than that.
I never had to retake so I don't really have an opinion but I was fine with the amount of quizzes and all that
I think you should keep the retake option, it was good
Definitely keep the retake option. Sometimes bombing tests just happens because of what's going on that day and being able to make up for your mistakes is really helpful.
Yes, you should keep the retake option
YES KEEP RETAKE OPTION! I think the quizzes are all good. They are not exceptionally hard or easy, but they test the material and our knowledge on the key concepts.
Keep the retake option! Both the QQ and chapter quizzes were fine.
Definitely keep the retake option! I made silly small mistakes on a few of them and it was nice to redo the parts I messed up. I also like the QQ's because they were a little boost to our grade, as well as helping you figure out where the class is in terms of understanding the unit.
I didnt really like the quick quizzes because even if you knew to topic pretty well if you made one mistake then you could get like a 66 on progressbook which hurt your grade even if you knew the topic.
Yes keep the retake option because oftentimes students do not go back and see what they did wrong, so if you keep the retake option, they will most likely go and check their work.
Yes, keep the retake I like being able to relearn it and the QQ helps me to not stress. I liked that!
I liked the QQ and chapter quizzes. The QQ were kind of a checkpoint to see if you were getting the topic, but it was also a grade booster. The chapter quizzes went along with exactly what we were taught. I also liked how you had extra credit opportunities on most quizzes (if not all). Keep the retake idea as well, I do agree that there should be a time limit to when you can take it.
I like how the QQ are usually only a couple questions and they make sure you know the concepts before moving further in the unit. Personally, I haven't used the retake option this year, but I do think many students would benefit from keeping the retake option available (and knowing that option is always available also helps to lessen the stress of testing).
Yes, keep the retake option. Retakes were really helpful for bigger tests!
keep the options open for retakes for the QQ's because if you don't know how to something, a lot of times you won't be able to figure out the rest of it. Allowing students to have a retake option will give them the opportunity to figure out what they still need to understand.
I thought they were good. Keep the retake option.
I think the retake option should stay because of how easily a student can make a mistake even if they know what they are doing.
I liked the QQ leading up to chapter quizzes and the retakes.
My takeaway:
The QQ were short 3-4 question quizzes that I would give 2-3 days after we learned a topic. I felt like it gave the students time to practice and ask questions about that topic but kept them responsible for knowing the material. I'm still not completely comfortable with letting students retake them (but did, up until the chapter quiz date). I think next year I will allow for retakes the next school day only.  Students obviously liked the option to retake!

Question 4:
Is there anything else you would like to give feedback on? (Good or bad; I can take it!)
You're the best math teacher I have every had and I really appreciate how you teach and you're just a great person. Thank you!!!
I loved this year!
I really enjoyed having you as a teacher! I thought that you made math really enjoyable with the fun activities such as the bubble wands and conic animations.
Nope it was fun
it was a good class, i like the way you taught it
Math doesn't come easy to me like other subjects do, therefore, learning on MathXL or without you actually teaching the material at the board/screen would have been awful. The way you did notes really helped me understand, and follow the examples closely while also understanding why I was doing what I was doing. Not feedback, but a thank you for helping me one on one/before or after school! This class was very difficult for me and you pushed me to believe that after some practice I would eventually be able to understand the material and do problems on my own.
Definitely keep the notes the same way. I loved the guided notes. This way of teaching connected for me so well.
Your timeliness was second to none in grading tests and I appreciated that so much.
You are by far my favorite teacher I've had at Anderson in the last 3 years, thank you for being so awesome!!!
I think the class is set up really well; you are very organized and a good teacher :)
I really like this class. You're really upbeat, which makes everything else seem upbeat.
I really liked the Desmo activities that we did! Especially the bubble wands!
You're a super duper great teacher and I'm so glad I got to be in your class!! Thank you so much for dealing with Nato Skyllar and I this year and I hope you have an awesome summer!
nope thanks for a great year and sorry for making your life difficult with my injury
I'm going to miss you next year, but don't worry I will come and visit :)
You're a great teacher! Don't change anything! I liked how you changed it to limit of time of days before retaking a test- keep that.
Thank you so much for everything you did this year! Last year I didn't really have a good experience in Honors Math 3, but this year you made math super fun! You are always super positive and happy and I loved coming into this class everyday. So, just thank you and I will miss you so much!!!
I liked making the pop-up fractal cards!
I love how you organize everything in your room, from the notes to the room decor. Everything is very inviting and I love the environment.
This class was one of my favorites all year long! Thanks for making it so upbeat and interesting. My couple things would be to never do randomized seating - the class was more fun when I could sit with who I wanted and it was easier to collaborate with others to figure things out when I knew the people around me and the classroom wasn't silent. Also, I really liked the memes for the schoology page units, but if you could use a still meme instead of a gif for the limits unit, the gif was always a little annoying because it never stops moving in the corner of the page while I try to find things in the course. I really liked the OneNote though, because it put everything in one spot and it updated in real time. I also really liked the screencasts you made at the end of the year and it might have been helpful if they had been available for some of the earlier units.
You are the best teacher I have ever had. This year has been so much fun and I still have learned so much. I'm sure that teaching me was frustrating at times, but you did an exceptional job keeping me engaged and focused. As Mr. Armstrong stated, "Mrs. Fouss is the best teacher in the district." I have not had another teacher that has been as knowledgeable, kind, and caring as you. Thank you so much for everything you have taught us this year. My mom was going to get you a gift, but I told her that I would get one. I completely forgot about that, so I apologize. Once again, thank you so much, I will miss this class very much and will probably stop by a couple times next year. Also, sorry for not preparing for the exam very well, as I am sure you can tell, my effort lacked heavily after AP exams, sorry about that!
Good job, you are one of my favorite math teachers so far.
You were by far my best teacher this year!!

I loved these kids... and I think it was reciprocated. :)

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