Perhaps you’ve heard of midterm evaluations, but you’re not sure if they’re effective and you don’t know how to implement them. Here are some points and tips to help you understand the reasons for gathering feedback by the middle of your course and the ways it can be done.

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Why should I get feedback at midterm?


At the Anaheim 2017 Lilly Conference for higher education professional development, Ida M. Jones, J.D., indicated several reasons for getting feedback early. Some reasons include:

  • Catching any issues before they have a negative effect on student learning.

  • Creating a feedback mechanism that is easier to coordinate than the typical peer or supervisor review.

  • Customizing questions for specific feedback that may be a better fit than end-of-term evaluations.

  • Being able to make changes that can positively affect end-of-term evaluations going into Retention, Promotion, and Tenure files.

How can I get midterm feedback?


At our institution, there are several ways to gather midterm data. You’ll need to choose if you want to do it in class (which tends to give you more data) or out of class (which tends to get low response rates), and you’ll need to decide if you want to do it with or without technology. There are several technologies that can help you to gather midterm feedback. Here are a few that we have at our institution:

  • Blackboard Surveys: A Blackboard-based survey that gives you the ability to see who has responded, but does not tie the name to the feedback.

  • Qualtrics: A link- or email-based survey that provides a high level of anonymity.

  • Poll Everywhere: A polling platform that can be used in or out of class and either anonymous or not based on your preference.

  • Google Forms: A simple survey platform that can allow a level of anonymity if you choose.


For more information on the types of questions you can use and evidence-based information on Midterm Feedback, visit the Slideshare file from Ida M. Jones, J.D., Professor of Business Law at Cal-State, Fullerton (see below).


Contact Kim Welch at kwelch@chapman.edu if you have questions about implementing midterm feedback.