LON-CAPA Survey Question 4: Any other feedback?

The following answers were from a survey taken by students in MCB 229, "Fundamentals of Microbiology", at the end of the spring semester, 2000. Selected answers have been highlighted that represent the spectrum of student opinion.

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Please comment on anything else you would like me to know. Thanks for your feedback!?

I overall enjoyed this class. I found it microbes more interesting than I thought they would be. There are a lot of real world applications to this course, and that makes it more interesting.
Dr. Terry, I was extremely pleased with this class and I am happy that I took it I learned alot and will go into my career with a satisfied amount of knowledge in the field of Microbiology. I wanted to thank you for a great semester and everything that I have learned in the wild world of microorganisms.
The main idea I would like to say is that i think that the course should really count for 5 credits. First, the quizzes took about 1-2 hours to read for and then complete, not to mention attend the lecture and study for exams. Then the lab required us to return at regular intervals outside of class time. I honestly liked the labs because I thought that they were really well organized and thought out, but the time it took for say the unknown or scavenger hunt experiments was a lot. Time became an issue, and if the course were 5 credits then the time spent would be worth so much more. I am not saying that learning for learning's sake isn't important, but between work, school, home, and music, I really sometimes like to see some payoff for the time spent in anything I do. Besides, when you like the course, do alright in it, it would be nice for a course I enjoyed to be worth alot instead of stuff I hated and never understood...calculus anyone?!!!
The webct quizes should not be averages together. The higher quiz grade should prevail. The WebCt idea is one of the better uses of technology in teach science. It was a great pleasure to take your class. Thank You
I would like to take this time and say that you are an excellent teacher. I wish that their were more teachers like you in the sciences. I have talked wiith a lot of students who agree with me.
I found the TA's that ran my section to be extremely helpful, especially since I missed the first lab section. In working with TA's from other sections on the scavenger hunt I found some of them were not as helpful. During the scavenger hunt it was sometimes hard to find TAs' to check off things that were done. But I found that experiment overall to be very interesting
I really enjoyed your class even though my attendance wasn't great at times. I wish every Teacher taught their classes in the manner in which you teach. Your technique really works and hopefully your methods will be used throughout the United States
overall, this was a great course, as a wonderful overview of biology. it combined a lot of my knowledge of biochemistry, genetics, and even developmental biology in one great course. i am glad i took this course. however, the lab component is a very time consuming process, and i think maybe the amount of lab reports should be reduced. this was the only lab i have ever taken that i had to frequently travel back to the lab and spend on average 1-2 hours per week outside the normal lab period.
The scavenger hunt was to time consuming because I already have two other labs to attend throughout each week. I had to return to the lab almost every other day and it was a major inconveinence. Maybe next time it could be reduced some how.
I just want to add that the lab portion of this course is extremely well run. First of all, having a lab manual designed specifically for our course is great. The experiments i.e. identifiying unknowns and scavenger hunt that gave us independence were fun and I learned the most from those. Also we helped each other out a lot on those, giving opinions to each other, etc. The labs also go along really nicely with the lectures and the days with multiple labs were rell planned and taught by the TAs so that it did not seem frantic but we got a lot done.
The amount of time spent in the lab was really too much. I think if anything needs to be reformed, the lab does. I wasn't able to come in sometimes and get the information I needed and that hurt my grade. I think that when students are doing the scavenger hunt a TA needs to be there to check off the information that the student has collected. There was really too much time spent on the scavenger hunt lab.
I think that the lab part of the class was much too demanding for a 4 credit class. Some students work, or do their schedules in certain ways for their own reasons, and requiring people to come back so often was alot. They should be toldahead of time of the extra time required.
I would just like to tell you that all of the classes that I have taken under your instruction have prepared me well for my future and were the better part of my academic experience at UCONN. Thanks!
I really enjoyed the lab section of this class. Although at times this lab would have me come in at least three other times per week after the lab was complete. The problem is that i had a full schedule, i only wish that I could have had more time to learn.
I included this in most of my course evaluations, but I thought this was a course taught in a very thoughtful and generous way; I felt it was truly possible to get an A just by keeping up with the work. However, I feel that the bacterial scavenger hunt was too much work and was my least favorite part of the course. It felt like a burden to have to create extra time to go and check my work several times in the week and then have to find TA's to check that work. I live off campus, work 20 hours a week, am a full time student and play a sport. The course already felt like a four credit course even without the scavenger hunt. Maybe if the scavenger hunt was modified in some way it would fit better.
I really enjoyed this class a lot. I thought that the web quizzes along with the extra credit papers, and the group exams were good ways to help boost our grades. One comment is that I do think some of the lab T.A's had no clue to what was going on. My lab T.A., Betty, usually did more harm than help. Other than that, I really enjoyed the class.
I really liked this class a lot. I thought it was very interesting and I enjoyed the material. The lectures were interesting. I especially liked the animations from the web. The only thing that was negative about this class was the Scavenger Hunt. I found it to take up a lot of out of class time that I did not plan on. It was sometimes very hard to find the time to come to lab. I had to rearrange my schedule so many times. I think because this hunt took so much time, the class should be five credits instead of four. Overall, it was a great class nad I learned a lot.
I liked the class, I learned a alot. If I could ask for one change, it would be to have the practice exams available much longer in advance before the actual exams. In most cases, we've only had one week. As luck would have it, two of my other classes had exam schedules almost identical to yours, meaning I had a lot of other work to do at the same time.
This course demanded alot of extra time out of the class room ( quizes and coming back for lab), but was overall fair in grades and most other aspects.
I liked having you for a teacher. It was a fun class although I did not apply myself as much as I could have all the time. I feel that I learned almost as much as I could have from the class
I had a pretty good experience with this class. The lab kept me very interested. I mentioned in lab today that I thought making it more personal would have been better. Such as for the water testing, I think that if I had tested my tap water and compared it with my tap water after it went through my Brita would have meant more to me then testing well water and pond water. The same for the antiseptic/disinfectant lab. My roomate prefers a certain type of dish soap than I do and I would have liked to test them to see which one was better if at all. Otherwise I liked the class. I feel that the lab portion should have been worth more credits. I know I put in much more time outside of class than I have in any of my other lab classes. During the scavenger hunt I was there almost every day and I know some other people in my section felt the same way.
I really enjoyed this class. I am a MCB major, and this was the first class that I have taken in my major. I am really interested in forensics. This class provided me with a great deal of time in the lab, and I found that I really enjoyed it. I was a little nervous at the beginning of the semester, but I quickly realized that I enjoyed the material that we covered. I also liked having assigned reading with a quiz. It made me have to do the reading, which is beneficial in itself, and the quizzes really helped me to know what aspects of the chapter were important.
I feel that the quizzes were good but a little too much value put on them. the Scavenger Hunt lab was the worst part of the semester. I believe that it took too much time and interferred with a lot of stuff I had to do. i think my grade is going to suffer because i wasn't able to get to the lab enough
I am glad I had a chance to see a wonderful techer in action and makes me believe that some science teachers do care if their students learn. J
I would say that the quizzes were a good way to help us keep up with the reading, although, as previously stated, I often did not read straight through the text, but used it for reference and to answer the study guide questions. I found the study guides to be a nice guideline as to what we should be getting out of each chapter, often the chapters were over-whelming, but the study guides emphasis what is important. The lecture notes were helpful too, especially if i had to miss lecture for one reaason or another.
I really learned a lot in lab ! the scavanger hunt was very cool jgoss Overall I learned a lot from this course. I found the lectures interesting and really liked the WebCT system. It provided me with all the information I needed concerning course requirements and the quizes, notes, and practice exams helped me greatly on the exams. This was one of my favorite courses this semester and I've recommended it to several other people. Thanks :)
I just wanted to let you know that my experience in your class was a very positive one. I really enjoyed learning the material that you presented. I would have to say that MCB 229 was one of the best classes I took in the Molecular and Cell Biology Department.
I think it is very effective that during your lectures you utilize the dry erase board instead of relying on only the web. It helped to keep my attention and I also believe these additional notes and diagrams encourage other students to come to class rather than just get the lecture notes of the web jjeffery I was discouraged about the quizzes where we had to write in an answer--I had written the correct answer as it appeared in the book--which happened to be in the singular form--this was not one of the answers you programmed to be recognized--therefore I got it wrong--I know it doesn't mean much, but I graduated once already and have found what I want to do--I want into the pharmacy program--but my grades are not the highest (I do well in labs because of my work experience) and I need all the points I can get. Another point: Extra Credit--I would have been more than happy to do the extra credit papers--I wish I could have--I barely have enough time to see my girlfriend let alone write up papers--I wish I could have done them because I know they would have been a benefit to me--but I just simply didn't have the time--If you had set up extra work in the labs or even extra on-line quizzes or work may have been easier. One thing I feel strongly about is class attendance--I know there were 5 lectures that I missed throughout the semester and 3 of the five were for valid reasons--but the other two were because I was too tired. If I were a professor, I would make an attendance policy and reward those that don't miss any lectures with points on their final grade--I know this is high tech, but from what I see in lectures--you like to live on the up and up side of things-obtain a machine like they use in the dining halls or credit cards and hook it up to the computer--as everyone comes in, they swipe their ID's. I also think labs should be worth more. I really think I should deserve more of a final grade than what I expect--a B-, I feel I should at least get a B or even B+ for the amount of work I did for this class. I must say, you are an excellent teacher and I enjoyed your presentations quite a lot--I would recommend your class to anyone. Good luck in all you do-- Best regards and godspeed
No other comments.
I think that the way that this class was put together was very positive overall. the only thing that i didn't like about it was the way that the quizzes were a strict aspect of the course. aroy Your style of teaching is one that I think everyone should try. I was very impressed with this style of teaching. You found it easy to stimulate everyone's interest as well as help everyone out in every way that you can. You make it so easy to do well if that person wants it. Your style of teaching is one that is admired and I wish that all of my other teachers could learn a lesson from you!!...It's been a pleasure.
I enjoyed lab and think that i learned more from that then from the lecture. Maybe it would be more interesting if lab and lecture were more closely related and discussed in class as wel kmaisch This course was well structured and our responsibilities as students were well defined. The course subject matter was handled very well, in a manner that stimulated interest for me as a student. The lab complimented the lecture very well but I found that updated laboratory equipment (especially microscopes) could have been useful.
Keep developing the web resources, they helped a lot. 2. The pre-lecture quizzes were extremely valuable to my learning the course material 3. Lectures were very interesting: the way you showed how microbiology applies to our every day lives made things much more interesting. 4. The fact that you seem to care very much about the students makes students, at least myself, want to show you that we respect what you do and will pay attention and work hard in the course. 5. The labs in the first 1/3 of the course were too long - too many exercises
I think you may want to consider setting aside a few minutes of lecture to discuss quiz questions that were answered incorrectly by large numbers of students. Often there were questions where the answer was unclear and that could have used an explanation.
Professor Terry, I have nothing but good comments on this course. I have to say that this was the best way of teacing that I have experienced at UCONN. I feel that UCONN is such a large school and therefore the classes can be large. Stundents tend to fall behind in their work because of this. For myself, I always do well in smaller courses because I tend to do all the work on time. Not only have you helped us learn a better way of studying in this course, but you also made me feel as if I was in a smaller class. Which if you ask any student they will probably say that they tend to do better in smaller courses like myself. Alot of larger courses I get lost in and feel discouraged to ask questions due to the size of the class. All I can say is that I feel nothing but positive on the way this cours was taught and I probably sound very repetative so I will stop here. The only problem that I had with this course is that some of the labs were long and time was limited. We always did more than one experiment in lab, andd that was okay but, some of the experiments were too long and my results were not as good because I felt rushed. This was only in a couple of the labs. So the only suggestion that I have is that some of the labs should have more time spent on them so students can learn proper techniques. You were a great teacher and I would definitly recommend this course to other students. HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!!!!
I forgot to mention it above...perhaps one quiz per week may be a thought. And finally, I feel the course was very heavy on the information presented. In Physics, Biology, Chemistry, etc., a text like ours is covered in two semesters for an intro course. Although those mentioned are predominantly theory-type courses, the raw amount of facts in MCB 229 is enough to put the most sane mind into turmoil (honest opinion)... The exams... excellent format, with T/F, fill-in and M.C. Applies to everyones strong point (if he has one). Maybe they could be a little longer, so each question is worth less (this goes back to the amount of info again)
My main problem was lab. I did not think that my TAs necessarily knew what was going on all the time. One constantly had to check with the other for clarification as if she didn't know the answers herself. One of my TAs was very unclear when she gave me an answer and at one point during the Unknown lab, told me to do one thing and then after the lab period was over and the other TA came to check my data, I found out that what the first TA had told me was wrong. I wasted time on something that could have been changed or redone because of being wrongly informed. In my opinion, the TA is supposed to be very familiar with the execises and if I have a legitimate question, they should be able to provide me an answer. I've never taken Microbiology before so I rely on the TAs knowledge and experience to help me. This happened several times throughout the course and made me very distrustful and wary of what I was being told. In lab, the TA is my main souce of clarification. I took Organic Chem lab this semster and the difference between my MCB TAs and my Organic TA was overwhelming. My TA in Organic was always prepared, always helpful and always willing to go the extra step to help me. She knew the subject and knew how to teach it in a clear and effective manner. That was lacking in my MCB lab. My other concern was that the TAs took so long to explain ineffectively the labs were to do that day that we would waste an hour of a two and half hour lab listening to instructions that we were supposed to have been familair with prior to coming to lab. The point of preparing for lab by reading the labs over and studying for the quiz was to save time in explanation so the lab was spent on doing the activites, not listening to someone reiterate the same material. My last concern is that some of the labs required too many hours of outside lab work, making me take a lot time out from my other coursework in order to come back and check my data or do T-streaks. At one point, I was returning 5 times a week. If this course requires so much extra time, another lab period should be set up or the fact that extra visits need to be made should be noted in the course selection material
I really did enjoy this class, both the lectures and web aspects. Your passion and knowledge of microbiology help to keep interest high. Thank you
I think more emphasis should have been placed on the groups.For example, a group research project could have been done. Some people have a better chance of learning more in small group settings and I think this option should be available for such individuals.Overall, this is the best course I've taken at Uconn so far since I transferred.It gave many different opportunities for people to learn as well as perform better. I have always thought that exams should not be the only measure of abillity. This class did a good job of testing people on a diverse range of skills in a number of different ways.I also think presence of both the traditional and computer based resources gave students a choice to learn with whichever one they were comfortable .
The course was really interesting, informative, and well run! I had one small objection in the lab class. The example of the "good lab report" seemed to suggest that writing in non-paragraph form was fine - even good! my professor did not like it when I handed in a report that presented data in chunks and marked me down (I felt) quite harshly. (I should add, my lab professors were really great otherwise -- organized, helpful, etc.). anyway, that's a small point. everything else was just ducky
I am a super senior, hardly attending class. I have however been very impressed with the extent of concern you show for being thorough and giving students every opportunity to learn the material. Your group exams, online quizzes and lecture note posting has enabled me to keep up with the material despite the fact that I may not be doing so in the manner you might best have hoped.
A lot of us feel the lab should be worth more credit, since it is so much extra time coming in during the week and all. The lectures are great, though - this is my favorite class even though it is at eight in the morning.
My one problem in about this class is that there is much too much material and work in this class for a four credit class. This is one of my two lab MCB classes this semester (the other is 203) and this class is way too time consuming I also think the amount of material that is required to know is to much. I realy did have a much harder time with this class tan any other class at UCONN, and I've taken many classes. I have a 3.67 gpa and I expect a c or c+ in this class. It is not a lack of effort on my part. It's hard stuff, and it should be considered when you determine the amount of material that you expect a student to know. But on the positive end, this is the 3rd class I've had you for (bio 103 and 107) and I think that the effectiveness of your teaching is the best. I also appreciate the concern for students, and the ability to stimulate itrest.
Hmmm...the only other thing about the quizzes is that I usually like to take them RIGHT after lecture, around 9:30. Sometimes, they weren't ready they, and the longer I leave them, the more likely I am to forget about them. I know it's a lot of work, but it'd be great if they were posted on the web right after lectures.
I feel that all these different teaching methods like group exams, web notes, and quizzes have been very helpful to my learning the materials for your class. however, besides lecture being a little repetitve because we can print them out ahead of time, I feel that I have learned more in this class than my other classes because of the requirement to keep up like quiz and study guides. However, besides class, I feel that sometimes we are starting up too many labs at one time it sometimes gets difficult to keep up with things without any confussion. Other than that MCB 229 has been a good learning experience for me I was able to learn my material w/ less stress because of the web materials you make accessible to us.
Professor Terry, I commend you on how this course was conducted. You took a subject that could be very dry and boring and turned it into something interesting. One suggestion for you though, you made one appearance in the lab, I would have liked to have seen you more often. My schedule did not allow for me to spend time after class to talk to you. I missed that. THANKS!
The quizes are a good idea, however they were very time consuming and not very convienent sometimes. a quize once a week would be better and prehaps make in easier as the semeter comes to the end. I often found myself hurrying home from work early because I had a quiz to take. The quizes after a weekend were always easier than those on wednesday. The material on the tests was never what I expected after attending class, doing the quizes, and the partice exams. That could use a little more
It would be helpful if you post the next quiz directly after the class. There were many times when I wanted to get the quiz over with on Thursday night instead of waiting until Monday to take it.
This is the best class I've taken at UCONN and one of the best classes I've taken overall as well. The lecture presentations are interesting and fun - I particularly like the content that is not in the text. Thanks!
The lab manual was sometimes vague on certain procedures. From the scavenger hunt the non sulfur forming bacteria procedure was extremely vague compared to the others. It didn't describe any type of results you were supposed to get, like the gram stain or testing for endospores and the B. manual didn't give any information either. It was like the blind leading the blind. And, though most of the reading is interesting sometimes it's too much to read 3 chapters before the next class period (i.e. ch. 36,37,38). Although beneficial to our grades the quizes twice a week became a little too demanding, especially before a lab final. It became hectic when you had to put so much time into the lab and class. We had three quizes to take each week, two for lecture and one for lab. Each lab quiz consisted of information from the previous lab and the current lab (that was sometimes 4-6 experiments to study). It was a little inconvenient for the students when we were first promised to have possible lab quiz questions and then never received them. This would have made taking 3 quizes a week a little less demanding but, unfortunately it didn't happen that way. If not, try to make this a 5 credit course, the lab time is definitely worth more than one credit! The overall experience of the class was not bad, it was recommended to me (with you as a professor) and I would recommend it to others.
I think it would be better if you reduced the amount of weekly computer quizzes to once a week. Also, having a quiz in lab every week was at many times overwhelming, especially right after the exam. There's only so much information I can remember at a time. I have spoken to other students about this and they were in an agreement. Other than that, I enjoyed this class, and still feel that biomedical research is for me
I really did love your teaching style. The quizzes and internet stuff was so helpful and innovative given the fact that computers are such an important tool in education. The only negative aspect were the group tests. My group especially did not keep up with the class therefore i would just retake my own exam, which of course did not help my grade any for i'd be just writing what i put the first time. My only suggestion would be to better split up the groups, rather than self selection....but on the whole GREAT JOB, you're class was fun:) c
The course was very informative. I now look at things in a differant way. I seem to be a much cleaner person, not that I was dirty before. But now I clean dished and my hands a lot more frequently. oh yeah, I'm also not too afraid when I heard about E.coli anymore. have a great Summer!
I thought that this class was very informative, it was difficult for me because this is the first Biology class that I have taken. I feel that all of the information I have learned this during this class is useful and I now understand about how interesting and complex the biological systems can be. Overall I enjoyed this class, have a good summer.
It's nice to see a prof who is willing to utilize all the resources available to them. Too many profs here don't utilize the web to its fullest or at all. The only complaint I have about this class is it's unfortunate (early) time
I think that any type of science class is difficult to teach. You stimulate the interest of students(even at 8 am in the morning), and I think that is such a great thing
i really enjoyed this class, maybe because this is what i wanted my concentration to be in...biotech, biochem engineering. i will admit that it was very very very very hard to get to class for 8am, and since it was an hour and a half, i had a very very very very hard time staying awake. so, i apologize if you ever caught me nodding off. i think you are an excellent professor but some morning are harder than others, y'know? um, but i noticed that your question hinted toward the fact that with the notes online, one is more tempted to skip class. that is definately true. but, again, at least you leave that option up to the student. have a good summer
This class was a tough one in terms of the amount of time in lab and effort to stay afloat of all the information that is given to us. However, It has been one of my more favorite classes here at Uconn, especially the last half of the class concerning diseases and infection prevention. This class was praised by my sister and other students that have had Terry as a professor.
The lab is the only thing I wasn't crazy about. There were always too many different topics to do in one period rather than taking your time to really understand an experiment.
MCB 229 is one of the best classes I have taken at UCONN, ok actually THE best so far. I put in effort and it is reflected in my grade. I did not feel stressed out, over worked, or feel that I was being graded unfairly. Basically I'm doing well and learning a lot, and i mean A LOT!!!! That's all that matters. I didn't have to worry about my grade but instead could concentrate on learning!!! If only all my other classes were like this!!!! I hate having to worry about my grades, and I'm forced to because so much emphasis is put on having a high GPA. MCB 229 was a great class because I could learn so much and still get good grades. I am definitely recommending it to every MCB major or Bio major I know. THanks DR. Terry!!!! Can you teach some more classes so I can take them!!!!!?
i thought the coarse was teached very well...the only downside to the coarse was its scheduleing of 8 in the morning which didn't make it easy to learn some of the difficult parts of the coarse, i also think the scavenger hunt was a little to intense for a 4 credit coarse-it required way to much time out side of the lab scheduled time... other then that it was a good coarse and the quizes as well as the group tests helped alot in understanding and remembering the course objectives
If My web cT is going to be used so extensively in MCB classes, a computer lab should be available to students in TLS. I had a computer at home so taking the quizes were not a problem for me. But I felt sorry for thoose students who did not have access to one. A computer lab for Bio students may solve this problem.
Overall i found that this course had a lot of informatrion to learn butI also found it to be very interesting and i feel that i learned a lot.
I really like that the combination of lab and quizzes counted for over 50% of our course grade. This goes more towards grading based on how much effort we put into the class, rather than just how we performed on the exams.
On a negative note I would like to state that in the future the review sessions should be more structured in that they should focus on more pertantent information to prepare students for the exam. I found that every time I went ot a review I did not get any information out of it that might help me to organize somewhat what will be focused on the exam. Even though we did have a practice exam and study sheets there was still an overwhelming amount of information. On a positive note, I never had the experiance of being in a large lecture classroom where the professor is so in-tuned with the students wants and needs of the class. I belive having an Student Mngmnt. Team was important in order for the professor to have "fly on the walls" to address students concerns and your teaching style was impressive in that you mentioned alot of personal facts that related to the course in some way-this helped students remember information better and it personalized the class a little bit. Thank you.
If the object of doing the quizzes is to do them by yourself to get a grade then they need to be easier, more like the practice quizzes at the end of the notes but if the purpose is for the students to learn the material then you should promote doing them in groups if you aren't going to make them easier.
This was my first experience that included onlines quizzes and information for students. I thought it was a good experience because I could not make any office hours if I wanted to. The web access was a way of compensating for that. Thanks for the experience and useful education.
I really don't have anything to say. I know that the reason I and many other students took the course this semester is because you were teaching it. I think that interacting with the student the way you do makes the students want to come to class and learn. The only complant that I am making is that if we are to take two quizes on the web, I woul omit the quiz from lab. Afterall, we did do quite a bit of work, including coming back to check on cultures numerous times. Other than that, I though the class was perfect.
it was a great class and I am interested in working the field of biology.
I think the course was really good. I learned a lot and the course kept me interested throughout espcially during labs. I felt that I should have attended more lectures because I now feel really disconnected to the class. It was just so hard to get up at 8:00 am especially after working the night before until 1:00 am. This is not an excuse but it is the reasoning behind the missed classes. I feel that Dr. Terry is very sensitive to the needs of his students by providing the study guides and such.
I loved the laboratory part of the course. I think that if more laboratory courses were structured in this matter, people might not grumble at the thought of taking hard-core science courses such as this one. I also believe that this course prepares you for a future in microbiology, which is not something easily said about other science courses. I feel I learned a lot and had a great time, although it was a Lot of work. I think that more time should be allowed for the Bacterial Scavenger Hunt, or students should be made more aware of the amount of time they must spend on this, so they can plan ahead and approach the experiment wisely instead of scrambling for time, neglecting other classes, and using sloppy laboratory techniques in an effort to get things done so one doesn't have to come in tomorrow!
I had a hard time knowing what to study for the tests. The lecture notes seemed very different formt he readings that they supposedly followed. For the first test, I studied mainly the lecture notes and found myself not prepared for the test at all. There's so much information paked into each test that it's difficult to know everything.
I think the course is well organized and I love having access to the notes on the web. I have always disagreed with professors who don't provide similar resources because they feel students will not go to class. I use the notes so that I can pay more attention to listening and absorping the information that is being presented in lecture. Often in big lectures all you do is furiously write and don't know what you're writing, then go back to the notes later and say to yourself - "What?"
the group part of the course was very original and at first i must say i was skeptical but it was a good reinforcement of what we had done on the exam and definitely has helped me out in the long run. if there was more group work you could scare people into going to class more often... which brings me to my only major problem with this class! its time slot! if at all possible have your class other than at 8 oclock! then more people woulld go and be able to appreciate you... one of the best things about this class was if i was taking the quiz and wasn't quite sure of what I was learning, I had the reassurance that by going to class that you would clear everything up for me. Thank you for the best 8 oclock learning experience I have ever had. as for all my friends who had planned on taking mcb 229 in the fall, i have persuaded to take the class in the spring with you, so that they too can have a positive learning experience, the effort you put forth and your concern for your students was refreshing on a campus where most professors are more concerned with their research than a bunch of apathetic undergraduates. thank you again, no i am not saying this because i am trying to get bonus points.
I really enjoyed your class this semester and regret every lecture that I have skipped. I took this class this semester instead of during the fall semester because my friends highly recommended you. I have also recommended this class to other people, but they said that they have heard that you are not teaching it anymore. Because of this, they have elected to take other courses instead. They said that if they can't take it with you, they would rather not take it at all... I just thought you'd like to hear that.
I really liked having practice exams on the web and having the quizzes. The practice exams help to guide me on what to study the most and the quizzes help me to understand concepts which makes it easier to follow along during lecture and helps me to learn things better.
I just though the class taught me more than I have ever learned in any science course here at Uconn. The only bad thing is that I was always doing work for thsi class none sto
The laboratory partion of the cource was also very interisting and helpful. This practical approach to many microbiological concepts reinforced my understanding of the fascinating world of microbiology.
This was probably one of the least stressful learning processes, though i thought the course was very demanding a rather hard the presentation and multi-facceted way of teaching was very inspiring. I thoroughly enjoyed the class and hope to take another one with you in the future.
i thought is was a great class that captured my attention and actually enjoyed comming ot lecture.
One suggestion I have for lecture is to involve the students. Perhaps do more group activities. That way more people would attend and stay awake, and the lectures would be more interesting.
I think that if you want us to know specifics about something that you should point us to that in class. For instance you said you just wanted us to know the basic idea about the carbon benson cycle and then you asked us on the exam what ribulose 1,5 biphosphate was and what it did. I knew the answer cause I had studied it in another class but I didn't think that would be included in a general idea of the cycle.
Having access to lecture notes was helpful, especially on the day that i missed class, however, since these are the exact notes gone over in class, i feel that it gives students little incentive to come to lecture since they can get the same material online. Maybe a less elaborate outline, to be elaborated on in class would be better.
I definately enjoyed the class. I liked the format. It is the first time that I have ever participated in this type of class setting.I also enjoyed my lab. The TAs were very helpful and understanding and they helped to make the lab that much more enjoyable.
I have really enjoyed your class this semester. I am minoring in MCB and have found this class the most interesting MCB class that I have taken. I also enjoyed the lab portion of this course. I think that Cetta and Maria are the best TA's that I have had as well. I think that material that I have learned in this class I will be able to use in my professional career. I am studying medical cytogenetics and may eventually go into cancer research.
I thought it was esppecially interesting how the labs for each week related to the material in lecture. Not only doest it aid in understanding the material, but it's also neat to see what you're studying infront of you.
For me, a student who had constant access to the web from my room, I think the extensive use was very convinient. I was able to print off the notes right before class just in case you made a few last minute revisions the night before. The online notes helped to highlight some of the nit-picky details that were selected for the quizes. However, for someone without a computer, this could be a nightmare. I saw several students taking quizes in the 24-hour room or other loud labs. If that was me, I would have hated the quizes. Also, I know you don't want students to skip class, and the online notes are not a suitable substitution, but knowing what will be covered helps students to make such decisions. If we have another exam on the same day, and have already learned the material being covered in our class, then we know that the time could be better spent cramming.
I found the course more exciting than other science courses i have taken. i think that Professor Terry tried hard to to m ake the class as interesting and esy to learn as possible. i actualy felt like i have learned the material ( as well as developed a slight paranoia of microbes),instead of learning the material to get through a class. as i said befor the lecture notes on the web are a great helpt to get the detail covered in class. the practice tests were helpful because they reflected material covered in the exams. i felt as though i could understand the lectures and that it wasnt directly intended for microbiology majors.
-Hard Exams -A lot of time requiredfor this 4 credit class -A lot of extra time required for some labs -The good of labs was not equal to the amount of time spend on some labs -Not enough time to take the quizzes in -The quizzes are difficult and the exams were twice as difficult as the quizzes were.
I didn't know we would have to go to the lab so much outside the lab hours. Also, eight o'clock is mighty early...
This is the first course that I have taken that seemed to utilized the web to its fullest. The only concern I have is security in respect to having the grades online. How secure is the web?
I don't think it is fair to have a lab quiz on test weeks. I have lab right after class, and usually did not study for the quiz. It really isn't fair that I had to take the test and quiz back to back and others did not. This is really my only complaint. Otherwise the class was excellent and i think you did an exceptional job!
Certainly I don't fit the student prototype. I am confident that I would have resented the quizes tons less if I hadn't enjoyed the material so much - it's a fascinating class supplemented by the coolest and most creative lab section I've ever experienced. With my schedule between my classes I spent tons of time writing lab reports, taking quizes, and cramming for exams this semester. At this point in the semester, I am starving for a chance to actually think!!!
The class was great- mostly because of the lab. However, never in my career at UConn have I missed classes. But I missed 229 quite frequently. This was partially due to the fact that it was 8 am, and often this just seemed to early. However, I didn't have a problem with missing the lectures. I'm not sure exactly why this is. It may mostly be that I found the lectures sometimes repetitive after having done the reading and taken the quiz. But if you were to go on a completely different path in giving lectures, it would take away the point of actually studying from teh book and doing the study guides. lectures should definitely reflect the readings, but it is difficult to reach a balance so that it isn't just repetition.
I enjoyed this class and lab more than any other science course I have ever taken in highschool and with in college. I have taken many courses and this coures althought took up a great deal of time due to the lab was well worth it. I would not mind taking it all over agian. I will walk away from this class with the information that I was taught, I don't think I will forget much of it. I really learned the material, I did not just have the material to pass the exams or the quizzes. The material will stay with me for a very long time and I hope forever. I can't stress how much I enjoyed your classes. The TA's were phenomenol, I never had TA's that cared so much about their students, I guess you have rubbed off on them. Both Cetta and Maria helped me a great deal. As you know I have a writing disability and I beleive that for the first time my skills have improved because of them. They did not just assist me that taught me valuable information in lab and how to write lab reports. I hope in the future that I can be taught by you again. Quetion 38 Yes in lab and on the quizzes but no on the tests
This was one of the most interesting courses that I have taken. I feel very confident that I could go into a microbiology lab and know what I am doing. I enjoyed the fact that the labs were very independent allowing you to develop your skills at your own pace. Sometimes the reading and quizzes got to be too much when I had other important assignments to get done for other classes. In this way I would not like to have the reading an quizzing assignments for all my classes because there is simply not enough time in the day to get it all done. No matter how time efficient you are, it is sometimes difficult to get it all done. I am glad for the quizzing in this class because it was a change from the usual. Thank you for a very rewarding semester. I enjoyed your class very much.
I did not attend lecture very often and I know many students who did not either but it was never because the lecture was uninteresting. It was always because there was some other factor, whether it was another class assignment that was just overflowing into our personal time, or whether it was because we were overworked and found ourselves doing work during the allotted time for micro lectures. I know for a fact that many students who I talked with about how often we missed class, that this is probably one of the most interesting classes we've had and I myself have recommended it to many freshman and others who are interested in it or have to take it at some point. It was one of the most organized classes I've taken.
I thought that this was a good class. The use of the web was definately the highpoint and should continued to be used and updated and advanced.
The scavenger hunt took up too much time. I am a commuter student and it was hard to find times to get into the lab when it wasn't too crowded or at a time when another lab hadn't just begun. Because I take classes at another campus, my time at Storrs is limited. Often I had another class to on another campus and was unable to spend time in the lab and driving back to Storrs just wasn't an option for me because I would have ended up spending the day in the car.
I have really enjoyed this class. As opposed to other classes, I actually have retained the information. I did not have to cram because I basically study twice a week every week of the semester. The only complaint I have in any way is that the amount of time spent returning to lab was a bit much. Especially where I had lab on Wednesday, we would often have to return on Friday and I had lab and work all day on Fridays so Iwould basically have to run to TLS from my other lab, check the cultures, and run to work. It always got done but it was tough.
The class was very informative and enjoyable. Whenever i'm asked i always tell my fellow students to take any course taught by Professor Terry.
I found the way that the class was set up to be very beneficial. I did more work for this class than I would have if the material had not been on the internet, which has helped my grade for this class. I know people who have taken this class before with another teacher and have had to repeat it because they failed, so I think that you are doing a good job. Just to let you know, the classes that I missed were due to the time of the class and not because of the use of the internet.
Of all the courses I've taken so far at UConn, this course definitely ranks as one of my favorites. What is ironic, however, is that I've skipped more classes in this course than in any other. First, allow me to apologize for this - I know there are no real reasons for my low attendance rate. What I can offer are some suggestions on how to get more people to attend lecture. First and most important - a 90 minute lecture at 8 in the morning is very, very, difficult to attend. I know personally that I would make it to much, much more classes had the timing been better. Second, having quizzes on material that was previously taught in class would also improve attendance. I personally felt that after reading the entire chapter carefully to ensure a good quiz grade and then going to class to learn the same thing was superflous. Your enthusiasm in teaching was remarkable - that alone helps more people attend your lectures than in an average MCB lecture. Please don't let anything change your love for teaching, you are one of the few professors I have encountered that have their knowledge of course material matched, and perhaps surpassed, by their ability to teach. It's been a pleasure to be in your class.
about the quizes, i think it would be very helpful for our exams later if we have more questions. also, would you please post the answer key after the quizes time is expired--so we can refer to it if we have wrong answer. overall, you did very well in helping us learning better i like the way you teach--provide us with notes--online quizes--and group tests. i like the group test very much it helps us to learn and remember more when we discuss.
the only thing that i had a problem with in your class was the exams. it seemed that we needed to know a great deal of info in great detail for each exam. preparing for the exams was very tough. i think that it would be better if you had another exam or two during the semester to make the study load a little easier to bear. i do like the group exams and the curves on the exam though!