Course Evaluation

cs1700

M. Rayment

General Information

Average year of studies: 1.9
Expected Course Grade: A's: 8 B's: 15 C's: 2 D's: 3 F's: 0
Average Cumulative GPA (not accurate): 4.1
Enrollment 53 Respondants 28 Percent response 52.8

Part I

The following questions have been rated according to the scale below:
1 - unsatisfactory
2 - below average
3 - average, satisfactory, usually good
4 - above average
5 - exceptional

A. Course

Question	Response
How interesting did you find this course?	3.0
How difficult did you find this course material?	3.1
Clarity of the outline, marking scheme and general info about this course?	3.1
Usefulness of the feedback on your performance in this course?	3.1
Usefulness of the textbook or reading material?	3.3
Adequacy of the computing facilities (if needed for this course)?	3.7
Adequacy of prerequisites for this course?	3.3

B. Assignments/Projects

Question	Response
How helpful were the assignments/projects in learning the course material?	3.8
How challenging were the assignments/projects?	3.8
Did you feel that the assignments were marked fairly?	3.8

C. Tests

Question	Response
How well did the test(s) reflect the course material?	3.3
How challenging did you find the test(s)?	4.1
Did you feel that the tests were marked fairly?	3.9

D. Instruction

Question	Response
Organization and preparation of lectures?	3.1
Clarity of the explanation of the main concepts and ideas?	3.2
Instructor's ability to stimulate interest in the subject?	2.7
Instructor's enthusiasm in teaching the course?	3.8
Instructor's command of the subject?	4.0
Instructor's responsiveness to class difficulties?	3.7
Availability of consultations outside the class?	3.6
Your overall rating of the instructor's teaching skills?	3.4

Part II

What are the aspects of this course that you LIKED most?

I liked all aspects of the course
none, this course is just a requirement for me
labs were very educational,
The Lab were better then the classes. I like the idea of the hands on learning and being able to see the results of what your doing.
I liked the hands on computer labs and the material covered.
gave me a new understanding of computers and their applications
Weekly assignments and labs kept me up to date in the readings and made it easier to understand the material.
The wide ranging and diverse topics covered
Boolean Expressions
Labs
I liked writing algorithims, and the labs were better thatn the classes.
I liked the broad range of the course material. I felt that the course covered a lot of areas in the realm of computer science and pointed me towards specific areas that I would like to persue.
programming (all except machine language), history of computer science.
I liked playing with the computers.
Getting ot use the computers.
Pascal and Turing Machines
Algorithms, pascal, circuits
Being in the lab using a computer.
I enjoyed the entire course! previously I had been following a different major, but i have changed to cs major - math minor
Truthfully, I enjoyed the turing machines and drawing the circuts
This course give a good overall look at computer science
As with the labs i enjoyed the part of the course dealing with Pascal. I also enjoyed working with circuits and algorithims. I also liked learning how a computer works and programing language is different from our everyday language. I liked being able to ask questions in class without being made to feel like an idiot.
The experience in computer's.
The labs were the most interesting.
The basic approach to computers
I liked taking part in the labs as I felt with the handa on approach it gave me a better understanding of the course and the material.

What are the aspects of this course that you DISLIKED most?

The labs which were the simple ones. Ex/ the word perfect one and the ones in which you just repeated steps over and over just to get one answer.
labs were often too long
early in the semester, we were doing assignments and labs on topics which we were only beginning to cover in class.
The course was dull. I would like to have learned more about new age technolgies that sort of thing.
Sometimes not interesting, some difficulty with course material
morning labs no help centre
The book was dry and drawnout (although not hard to understand)
Some of the material was rather dry - through no fault of the instructor.
Machine and Assembly Language
Logic & Von "______" Machines
IT WAS VERY BORING! The class material, that is. I didn't like the logic part [(s and r) and p]. I still find it very difficult to understand.
There was some minor frustration when it came to the labs. Sometimes the lab questions were poorly written and gave some ambiquity as to what the question was asking. This led to different interpretations by the students and, therefore different answers. This made marking difficult for the lab instructors. Also, some of the labs were very long, and it was difficult to complete them in time. However, the prof was kind enough to give the students extra time to finish the labs.
maybe more in class tests instead of a midterm.
Boring material.
Having to learn the history of computers and learning the general description of the computer internally
circuits and modus ponens
logic,
No computers in the classroom.
Anything to due with machine lang. assembly lang. and algorithms.
Alot of assignments and labs for a single course
I disliked the text book. I found it to be dry and boring.
Assignment's were difficult, seemed not to be prepared for them. Not from book or class.
The textbook reading was too long and in too much detail. It was hard to know what was the most important to learn.
The computer lab (Pa1016) is extremely slow

What were the STRONG points of the instructor's teaching of this course?

He knows what he is talking about.
let us know the important topics to know in order to be prepared for exams
knew what he was talking about - i.e. he was very knowledgeable of the subject easy to get along with - he was very friendly and approachable
He did all that he could to make rather dull material interesting and he didn'do to bad at it.
got his points across ,always ready to answer questions,
very clear not taught too fast
He understands the material (which is more than I can say for alot of instructors)
His enthusiasm towards the subject, and his willingness to help
He did show the logic of the examples he was doing on the board.
The main strong point that stood out to me was the prof's knowledge of the course material. He was always eager to answer questions after class. I enjoyed his approach to teaching the class, and I hope I have him for a prof again in the future.
nonw.
His ability to help when we needed it.
parse trees,algorithms,and circuits
Very knowedgable about computers.
he worked through examples encouraged class participation clear and concise
Focused on the importance of knowing how to write an algorthm and the usefulness of the Pascal lang.
Easy to talk too
He was able to deal with all questions put to him and took time to make sure everyone understood. He was so familiar with what he had to teach he rarely used the text book or notes.
Interest in computer's, eagerly answered questions, well prepered for class.
He is enthusiastic about his teaching and you can tell he knows his material.
Has a good grasp of the major topics

What were the WEAK points of the instructor's teaching of this course?

spent alot of time on only a few sample problem
spent too much time covering stuff in the textbook - it would have been better if he taught more of what he knew instead of what was in the text (that is not necessarily a bad thing - he was an excellent professor overall)
He just went with examples and I foung he often over looked the basis on which the idea was formed.
Easy to lose sometimes
none
Everything was straight from the book, which made the lectures boring. He didn't always seem prepared, ie: like he hadn't gone over the overheads beforehand.
Sometimes speaking above the level of the majority of the class
Seemed, uh, well, didn't seem to know Exactly what he was doing.
One weak point is that sometimes I felt as though he could have explained a topic a bit more clearly.
everything
Expalining how to do things and just concepts in gerneral. He seemed like he was just as confused as the rest of us.
turing machines and modus ponens;simplification problems
Class is sometimes VERY boring. It would help if there was more notes placed on the board.
Did not make class interesting enough.
moved a little quickly on some topics and a lttle slowly on easier topics
His availability
The class was sometimes boring but that is because certain subjects were dry. He did try to keep you interested but this was sometimes difficult for him to do.
Preparation for test.
It was hard to tell what was the most important to learn. Although the instructer knew what he was talking about, sometimes we couldn't tell what we really needed to know for an exam.
Explaining things

Any other comments related to the course or this questionnaire?

overall a good course i'm going to continue computer studies
In general, I think the course was quite good and beneficial.
The assignments should not be due at the beginning of lab. The lab explains and instructs you how to do the assignment. How are you suppose to complete the assign when you don't know the material?
I expected this course to be much more intresting. And the midterm was a killer. I felt I was unprepared to answer any of the questions on it. Espically making the algorintim more efficent. Try to remember we are under stress. Perhaps it was just me, but I freaked out after reading the questions. They were all really hard.
In regards to this questionniare: I have never had to do one on the computer before. But, Ithink it is a marvelous idea!
The midterm exam was like a three how exam crammed into fifty minutes.
Should have two test through a term instead of 1.
Good starter course for people planning on a course for a degree in CS.