PHYSICS 250 (Spring 2025) – Student Evaluation Summary

Quantitative Highlights

• Course understanding advanced: median $4.5$ (both sections)

• Interest increased: medians $3.9$ / $4.1$

• Expectations clear: median $4.8$

• Workload vs. same-credit courses: median $2.8$–$2.9$ (≈“Typical”)

• Instructor preparedness: median $4.9$

• Instructor clarity: median $4.9$

• Instructor respectfulness: median $4.9$

• Overall course excellence: medians $4.5$ / $4.6$

• Overall instructor excellence: median $4.9$

• Textbook value lowest item: medians $2.7$ / $2.8$

• Expected grades skew high: median $4.9$ (≈“A”)

Major Strengths (Student-Identified)

• Extremely prepared, clear, respectful, and passionate instructor

• Recorded/async lectures: YouTube videos with embedded quizzes; students control pace

• Abundant practice: homework (Mastering Physics), extra problems, in-video examples, studio worksheets

• Flexible & responsive: grading tweaks, added practice, adjusted policies mid-term

• Studio format:
  • 30-min concept reviews
  • Choice of talkative vs. quiet groups
  • Equation/summary sheet each unit

• Office-hour access (daily, fast e-mail replies)

• Organization: one-page Canvas layout, clear weekly schedules, fair exams aligned to taught material

• Emphasis on real-world / biomedical applications (e.g., MRI)

Common Improvement Requests

• Release content earlier (lectures, quizzes, HW, studio sheets) so students can work ahead

• Exam leniency:
  • Option to drop lowest exam or do corrections
  • More partial credit / larger question pools

• Additional practice: solved examples, step-by-step solutions, full practice exams

• Workload balancing:
  • Fewer new units during exam weeks
  • Spread difficult chapters apart

• Grading tweaks: shift HW/quiz to completion or provide automatic drops from start

• Technical/format issues:
  • TopHat stability & backup plan
  • Remove YouTube ads or host videos elsewhere
  • Improve Pearson free-response tolerance

• Studio enhancements: stronger facilitation, random TA check-ins, clearer collaboration expectations

• More lead-instructor office hours (despite high current availability)

Notable Patterns

• Textbook perceived as least helpful; students rely on instructor-made resources instead

• Workload viewed as typical despite accelerated schedule

• Vast majority rated instructor and course well above college & university medians

• Repeated sentiment: “Best professor / course experience at UM”