Using CEI data to improve teaching
After analysing the data from your CEIs you will have identified any issues that need attention. Usually your analysis will identify the problem, the solution and subsequent changes to your teaching should be a direct function of that identification. You should also reflect on other corroborative data you might have (eg student focus group, peer reviews, stakeholder or professional body feedback etc). If you have any doubts about your analysis you could speak to your Head of School, Dean: Teaching and Learning or Academic Developer.
The following information has been prepared to assist staff to reflect on teaching practices with respect to the CEI Core items. Please click on the relevant item/s that are applicable to you.
- Item 1: I have a clear idea of what is expected of me in this course
- Item 2: The ways in which I was taught provided me with opportunities to explore my own learning
- Item 3: The course enabled me to develop and/or strengthen a number of qualities of a UniSA graduate
- Item 4: I felt there was a genuine interest in my learning needs and progress
- Item 5: The course developed my understanding of concepts and principles
- Item 6: The workload for this course was reasonable given my other study commitments
- Item 7: I have received feedback that is constructive and helpful
- Item 8: The assessment tasks were related to the qualities of a UniSA graduate
- Item 9: The staff teaching in this course showed a genuine interest in their teaching
- Item 10: Overall, I was satisfied with the quality of this course
1. I have a clear idea of what is expected of me in this course
What this item measures
This item examines how well the aims, objectives and assessment processes of the course are expressed. It determines whether students perceive a clear and consistent message about the requirements for success in the course.
Teaching and learning principles
Clear goals, or knowing what is expected of them in a course, helps the
student conceptualise, and develop a framework, as the first part of the
learning process, into which their knowledge and skills are developed.
Ramsden writes ‘it is indisputable that, from the students’ perspective, clear
standards and goals are a vitally important element of an effective educational
experience’ (Ramsden 1992, p. 127).
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Does the course information booklet have a description of the course objectives?
- Do you discuss course objectives with students?
- Do the course objectives align with what is actually taught?
- Does the course information booklet have a full description of assessment items?
- Do you discuss assessment item requirements with students?
- Do the written objectives for the assignment align with what is actually assessed in your marking guides?
- Do you provide students with marking criteria prior to their commencing the task?
- Do students know what is required to pass? To excel?
- Do you provide model answers or past examination papers with solutions?
- Do you spend significant periods of time teaching material that is not directly related to assessment?
Suggestions for change
- Work with members of your teaching team, employers, past students and/or staff from Learning and Teaching Unit to examine specifically what it is you want to achieve in the course and how these achievements will be assessed.
- Ask ‘what do I want my students to learn, and how can I express these goals and make them clear to myself and my colleagues?’
- Work with others to clarify written and spoken language used to express course aims and objectives.
- Develop marking guides that can be shared with students as a guide to what needs to be done.
- Explain to students the level of effort required to achieve a particular grade.
- Use a facilitated online discussion forum to answer and clarify queries about each assignment. The discussion only needs to be active while the students are undertaking the assignment. Redirect all email/personal queries to this discussion forum so that all students develop a clear and consistent understanding of what is expected of them.
- If you use a teaching team, ensure that all members are consistent and clear about course aims and objectives.
- Review and revise course content for relevance to assessment. Remove any non-assessed topics, or if it must stay, either assess it, or clearly emphasise to students that it is not assessable prior to teaching it.
2. The ways in which I was taught provided me with opportunities to pursue my own learning
What this item measures
This item measures if students perceive that student-centred learning practices are embedded in course design.
Teaching and learning principles
Student perceptions of choice and control are related to high quality learning. The more control a student has over their learning the more they will engage with their learning and the more they will enjoy it (Ramsden 1992, p100-102).
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Do the teaching and learning activities take into account different learning styles?
- Is there an opportunity for collaborative learning?
- Is there an opportunity for learning through solving problems?
- Are students provided with a choice in assignment tasks?
- Are there opportunities within the assessment task to relate the task to the student’s experience and/or background knowledge?
Suggestions for change
- Identify the content that is core to understanding your course at the specific year level. For non-core material, allow students to choose which area they would prefer to study deeply.
- Consider offering a variety of assessment methods that are relevant to the aims and objectives of the course. This might include: a list of research/essay topics based on different aspects of your content that students can select from; providing options in examination papers; student presentations; simulations; group work; peer assessment; self-assessment.
- To improve the accessibility of your material to students with different learning styles, consider presenting the same material in different ways (e.g. using diagrams, activities, dialogue and text).
3. The course enabled me to develop and/or strengthen a number of the qualities of a University of South Australia graduate
What this item measures
This item demonstrates whether students perceive that the course develops graduate qualities.
Teaching and learning principles
Each course has a graduate quality profile (or learning outcomes) that reflects the knowledge, skills, abilities and personal qualities that a student develops through a course, and ultimately a program, to enable them to operate as a professional and as a citizen.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Do students understand the concept of graduate qualities?
- Are students aware of the way graduate qualities, and the elaborated indicators, shape the teaching, learning and assessment of your course?
- Are the aims and objectives of the course expressed in a way that illustrates how the development of graduate qualities is linked to professional practice?
Suggestions for change
- Collect a graduate qualities poster and graduate qualities brochure from Learning and Teaching Unit on your campus to familiarise students with the concept of graduate qualities.
- Print off the graduate qualities information sheets on the Learning and Teaching Unit website and distribute to your students to stimulate discussion on the graduate qualities profile for your course.
- Consider setting an assignment based on the importance, development of and professional need for a particular graduate quality.
- Check that assessment aims, marking criteria and feedback are expressed in terms of graduate quality development. Course information booklet proformas are available to assist you in this process.
- Examine the graduate quality indicators. Discuss with your program director how these indicators are related to the teaching and learning arrangements for your course.
- Identify for students which graduate qualities are being developed
through each activity, emphasising how development of this quality will
impact on their professional practice.
4. I felt there was a genuine interest in my learning needs and progress
What this item measures
This item examines what students perceive about the quality of student-centred teaching practices and inclusivity of course design.
Teaching and learning principles
The learning experience is a more positive one for students if they believe their individual needs are recognised and responded to. This is an aspect of student-centred learning, one of the key elements of the Teaching and Learning framework at the University of South Australia
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Are assignments designed to progressively develop student skills and the graduate qualities?
- Are there opportunities for formative feedback before assessable assignments were handed in?
- Were assignments returned in time for feedback to able to inform the next assignment?
- Do you have advertised regular consultancy times for students?
- Have you consulted with other teachers in the program to ensure there is minimal duplication of material presented in your course with other courses in the program?
- Does your curriculum include knowledge that enriches or challenges students by acknowledging different sources of knowledge production, differing claims as legitimacy for knowledge, and differing applications of knowledge?
- Does your curriculum make evident the criteria and basis of content selection and methodology and encourage debate about these criteria?
- Do you inform students of the range of services and resources provided by Learning and Teaching Unit designed to help students succeed?
- Do you collaborate with Learning and Teaching Unit staff to design sessions that help students manage assessment tasks?
Suggestions for change
- Map out the due dates for assessments in your course and also indicate when feedback is returned. Consider whether there is enough time for students to respond to the feedback to improve their learning outcomes on subsequent assessments? Adjust dates and practices as necessary.
- Use exam scripts, assignments, and/or interviews with students to determine where areas of misunderstanding occur, or if any topic duplication exists.
- Look at redesigning resources or learning activities, incorporating learning support, to address student learning needs. Resist the urge to add too much content to compensate. Rather, examine the materials you direct students to and assess whether they directly inform the assessment tasks.
- Consider allowing opportunities for students to submit draft materials for feedback prior to the final submission.
- Develop online quizzes with embedded feedback to support learning in difficult areas.
- Develop online workshops in collaboration with Learning and Teaching Unit to support students in assessment tasks.
- Consider the inclusivity perspectives and indicators for your course.
Refer to the Learning and Teaching Unit website for suggestions and strategies to
enhance inclusivity in your course.
5. The course developed my understanding of concepts and principles
What this item measures
This item looks at what students perceive about the quality of the content of the course and how its organisation, teaching and learning arrangements and assessment support learning.
Teaching and learning principles
Courses allow students to develop sufficient understanding of concepts and principles (the body of knowledge, Graduate quality 1). Together with the other courses within the program students need to develop a sufficient body of knowledge to begin professional practice.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- What changes in understanding do you expect students to undergo as a result of experiencing the course?
- What will students be able to do as a result of these changes, after they complete the course, that they could not do before?
- Can you defend the sequencing of the topics of the course on an educational basis?
Suggestions for change
- Review course objectives and try to describe concepts and relations between concepts to develop deeper approaches to learning.
- Resist the urge to add too much content to your course. Rather examine the materials you direct students to and assess whether it directly informs the assessment tasks.
- Review the introductory lecture to ensure whether a concise overview of the concepts and principles of the course is presented with an explanation of how each of the topics relates to professional practice.
- Consider whether the teaching and learning arrangements for your course
engage students in active learning (eg. problem solving enhances the
learning of techniques and concepts of a topic).
6. The workload for this course was reasonable given my other study commitments
What this item measures
This item measures if students perceive whether the design of assessment tasks and amount of content covered in the course are reasonable.
Teaching and learning principles
Developing appropriate assessment is important to student learning. Too much
content results in students adopting surface learning techniques rather than
deeply engaging with selected areas of the curriculum.
It is also important to appreciate that students are studying other parts of the
program and are likely to be working on multiple tasks at once.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Has an academic read/reviewed all of the material directed to students in a period of less than 13 weeks? (note: each 4.5 unit course represents 180 hours of student effort; or approximately 4,500 words)
- Is there a map of the entire program’s assessment tasks for every year level?
- Is it physically possible to achieve a high distinction in an examination in the time available to students?
- Do assessment tasks demand evidence of understanding?
- Do assessment tasks use a variety of techniques to discover what students have learned?
- Are there assessment tasks that reward rote learning or memorisation?
Suggestions for change
- Consult with other staff teaching at the same year level in the program to determine when due dates for assessment tasks are and co-ordinate/map tasks so that not all items are due at the same time.
- Consider the amount of reading material presented to students (including links to web sites) - is it realistic?
- Consider introducing choice, in area of in-depth study, for students.
- Do a trial run for examinations to test whether it is possible to
achieve a high distinction in the time available in handwritten mode.
7. I have received feedback that is constructive and helpful
What this item measures
This item determines if students perceive that the quality of feedback provided.
Teaching and learning principles
Feedback ensures that maximum effect is achieved from assessment processes. To be helpful for learning, feedback needs to be framed in the context of the objectives of the activity and reflect the progress the learner is making or needs to make
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Where there are large classes and multiple teachers, extra effort to ensure consistency in the amount and quality of feedback is required.
- If you use multiple markers, what do you do to ensure that the quality of marking is sound and consistent?
- Are assignments returned in time for feedback to inform the next assignment?
- Do all markers provide feedback to students on assessments that is in proportion to the amount of effort the student put in to the assessable work?
- Do you use many examinations to assess students for which it is not possible to give feedback?
Suggestions for change
- Develop and use feedback sheets to scope and guide marking and the provision of feedback
- Set a minimum 2 weeks turn around time for the return of assessment items.
- If you are using teaching teams, spend time developing and agreeing on common criteria for assessment and depth of feedback.
- Use moderation meetings between markers to clarify criteria.
- Double mark selected papers using different markers to ensure consistency
- Develop online quizzes with embedded feedback to assist student self-evaluation in topic areas that are traditionally difficult to teach/learn.
- Establish communication mechanisms whereby students can clarify, discuss
how they are progressing and how they can improve. This can include online
using discussion groups or email, or face-to-face consultations.
8. The assessment tasks were related to the qualities of a University of South Australia graduate
What this item measures
This item measures if student perceive that assessment tasks are linked to the development of the graduate qualities.
Teaching and learning principles
Assessment drives student learning. Students often first look at what it is
they have to do to pass or excel in a course. Assessment needs to be related to
the tasks they will do as professionals to be meaningful.
These skills are embodied in the UniSA graduate qualities, and as such, their
development through assessment needs to be transparent. Examinations do not
often allow development of a range of graduate qualities.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Are the aim and objectives of each assessment item expressed in the terms of which graduate qualities will be developed?
- Do the marking criteria provided to students prior to the assignment express how the degree of graduate quality development will translate to a grade?
- Does the feedback provided to students discuss how successful the student’s development of nominated graduate qualities has been?
- Do you encourage students to use Transcript2 to record their development of graduate qualities through assessment and regularly review their progress to compare where they are with where they want to be, and work towards achieving their own personal and professional goals?
- Do you remind students that the information recorded in Transcript2 database can be drawn from later to develop résumés?
- Do you use many examinations? Which graduate qualities do they develop?
- Do you give an arbitrary mark for tutorial participation/attendance?
Suggestions for change
- Consider completing a graduate qualities audit for your course to identify any misalignment between the course graduate quality profile and what is assessed.
- Review aims and objectives in light of the graduate qualities to ensure that they are embedded.
- Prepare marking guides/criteria that are written in context of the graduate qualities - provide these to students before the assessment task.
- Develop feedback sheets that are written in the context of graduate quality development.
- Review your use of examinations - which graduate qualities are being developed?
- Contact the Careers team at UniSA to discuss how Transcript2 can be incorporated into your course as a way of recording achievement of the graduate qualities.
- Consider using an online discussion group instead of a face to face tutorial. You can assess this against demonstrable criteria for number and quality of postings.
9. The staff teaching in this course showed a genuine interest in their teaching
What this item measures
This item examines if students perceive that the teachers in the course have common understandings, views, strategies about teaching and learning in a particular discipline. The item may mean different things to different students.
Teaching and learning principles
Good teaching involves reflective practice. Having an interest in your own
teaching and student learning, and discussing with students your and their
expectations, reflections, innovations and evaluations of teaching. Learners
react positively to demonstrations of teaching development, making them
confident that the quality of their learning experience is dynamic and moving
towards optimisation.
Students also learn through strong role models. One attribute that is developed
in UniSA graduates is lifelong learning through critical self-reflection. By
demonstrating that you are interested in your teaching you are role-modelling
this important attribute.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Why do you think students learn the way they do in your discipline area?
- What do you think the students’ understanding of this CEI item is in your course?
- Do you publicise the results of previous evaluations and your responses to it?
- Do you discuss with students your evaluation processes?
- Do you use other evaluation techniques eg peer review of lecturing/tutoring skills, focus groups, telephone interviews to understand and address teaching and learning issues as they arise?
- Do you actively involve students in the evaluation process? eg. allowing them to generate questions to which they can give feedback.
- Do you use teaching teams that meet regularly to discuss and reflect on teaching experiences? Do you agree to teach the same material using a consistent approach?
- Do you enable students to become more aware of their own process of learning? Of the circumstances under which they can best learn within a discipline that views the world through a particular set of lenses and warrants and analyses evidence in particular ways?
- Do you teach students to be lifelong learners? Do you encourage students to base their knowledge of their own learning on more than individual intuition or experience?
Suggestions for change
- Consider publicising an evaluation report on your course home page. Discuss with students in class any innovations or responses made in the light of student feedback.
- Discuss establishing a peer review of your course with either your School TALC or the Dean: Teaching and Learning.
- If you use teaching teams, facilitate collaboration among team members to share, cooperate, and agree on teaching and learning arrangements, that include materials, strategies, evaluation, supervision etc. Meet each week to discuss and develop this consistency.
- Challenge students to think about the teaching-learning process by asking questions.
- Discuss assessment tasks with students, link assessment tasks to learning outcomes and indicate the importance of the particular teaching and learning arrangements for the development and practice of outcomes.
- Set students and assignment that encourages them to reflect on their own learning. Assist students in thinking about what they learned and about how they learned it. This will help you guide their learning.
- Get students to design a question/s with you to include in the CEI to which they can provide feedback.
- Inform students of the results of a CEI and discuss with them the
possible reasons for specific feedback and potential strategies to address
and criticisms.
10. Overall I was satisfied with the quality of this course
What this item measures
This item examines how students perceive the quality of the learning
experience as a whole.
It can be contrasted with the previous 9 items that address specific teaching
and learning aspects of a course.
Teaching and learning principles
There are many aspects of the learners’ experience that impact on how they experience the course. This can include the quality and accessibility of the learning environment, the supports that were in place, the people they needed to work with, the sense of power they experienced, and the feeling of belonging to a group.
Reflective questions arising from critical feedback
- Are there adequate books/resources in the library to support your course?
- Is there any other resource that is limiting in your course (computers, equipment)?
- Are the equipment/teaching spaces you use reliable to the point that you can provide high quality teaching?
- Do your students know each other?
- Do the students know you?
- What do you do to empower students?
- Do they identify themselves as professionals in preparation?
- Do you include social activities as part of your program?
- Is the learning environment often disruptive?
Suggestions for change
- Meet with librarians to discuss borrowing and hold rates. Consider using e-reserve.
- Discuss with Heads of Schools and School TALCS ways to improve your students access to limited resources related to teaching and learning.
- Consider asking students to develop a personal profile to share with members of the group. Perhaps incorporate an activity that allows students to get to know each other (group work).
- Develop your staff home page as a personal profile.
- Consider empowering students by involving in them teaching and learning decisions. For example, ask students to contribute to the writing of evaluation questions and inform them of your responses to their feedback.
- Support and participate in student social activities that you are invited to (especially graduations).
- Consider establishing a code of conduct for group behaviour in classes.
- Provide students with orientation to learning online before expecting them to learn online.
- Maintain effective communication with students engaged in self-directed learning externally.
- Report faulty teaching equipment in lecture theatres or tutorial rooms to Campus Central promptly.
- Check that network points are active prior to using IT equipment.