instructor FAQs

When is the MCLA course evaluation period?

Generally, evaluations open the last two weeks of the semester or course period.

How do students access their course evaluations?

Course evaluations can be accessed in a number of ways:

Students will receive an email with a link to their course evaluations. This email is sent the first day of the evaluation period and two reminder emails are sent prior to the close of the evaluation period to students who have un/incomplete evaluations
Faculty may share a QR code in class which provides students with access to the course evaluation for that class
Instructions for how to obtain a QR code for a class

How do I monitor student response rates?

Log into Blue Course Evaluations
On the left-hand side, just under your profile, you will see a link to view response rates:
Alternatively, faculty will be sent an email once course evaluations are active, that includes a direct link to their course response monitor.

My student response rates are low; what can I do to increase them?

Talk with your students about the importance and use of course evaluations. If you can share an example of change you have implemented because of feedback from your course evaluations that will help your students to see your investment in their feedback
Give students time in class to complete their evaluation(s)
Create a 0-point assignment in Canvas with a due date of the last day of the evaluation period. This puts the evaluation on the students' Canvas calendars. The assignment can be created as a 'no submission' assignment.
Or consider an incentive (see below for details on how to set that up)

I would like to provide students with credit for completing their course evaluation. How do I do this?

Once a student has completed a course evaluation and submitted their responses, they will see a ‘thank you’ page that includes a link to download a certificate of evaluation completion. Instruct your students to download the certificate, save it to their computer, and submit a copy to you via your instructions.
Faculty can create an assignment within Canvas to which evaluation certificates of completion can be submitted.
You can direct students to send you the certificate directly to your email.

I never received an email notification about my course. Why?

There are several reasons why this might happen. If a course section has less than 3 students, the course will not be evaluated using Explorance Blue to protect student anonymity. If this is not the case, first, check your spam folder in your email mailbox to see if it was marked as spam.

When will the results of the evaluations be available?

Generally, it takes about 10 business days after final grades have been posted for evaluation results to be published. Alternate calendar courses may take longer depending on when the last class ends.

Where can I view my course’s evaluation results?

Evaluation results can be viewed in Explorance

One of my classes does not show any results. Why?

While it is not common, a small number of course evaluations will not have any respondents. Also, if you as an instructor were not properly assigned to the course, there will not be any evaluations for the course.

Students have told me that they did not get an evaluation for my course. What is the problem, and how can we fix it?

Generally, there are two reasons this can occur. First, if you as an instructor are not properly assigned to the course, there can be no evaluation. Second, for anonymity, course evaluations are only available for courses that have 3 or more students. If they cannot find the link students should search their email for an email from courseevals@blue.mcla.edu

Will students who drop my course be able to evaluate the course?

Generally, no. Students who drop a class will not be included in the course evaluation if they are dropped from the class before the close of the evaluation period. If a student has not yet been dropped from a class when the evaluations begin, they may be able to submit an evaluation.

Who has access to the course evaluation data?

The data from course evaluations are included in promotion and tenure decisions for faculty. Therefore, administrators reviewing promotion and tenure will have access to the course reports. Department chairs also have access to course evaluations. The Dean for Institutional Assessment also has access to the data.

What is the Blue Dashboard and how do I use it?

The Blue Dashboard is an interactive display of course evaluation results. Additional evaluation results will be added each semester to allow faculty to look at trends, filter results (for example - all online sections for a single course), drill down to a specific question group, and view results in numerous ways. For further information regarding the dashboard, please refer to the guides linked below. (The guides may include features that are not yet available.)

Individual Dashboard Guide
Aggregate Dashboard Guide

Who may I contact with questions?

You can contact the Dean for Institutional Assessment.