Mid-Semester Check-Ins

What are mid-semester check-ins?

Mid-semester is a great time to check in with your students in order to make any adjustments or course corrections based on feedback from them. Mid-semester check-ins are simple information-gathering tools that you use to find out how your course materials and activities are working for your students.

Benefits of mid-semester check-ins

  • Can improve end-of-semester evaluations and increase student exam performance.1
  • Suggestions can be applied immediately to the course and benefit those students giving feedback (unlike end of semester course evaluations).2
  • Results in more positive student response.3

Thanks to the Office of Faculty Excellence for compiling this information!

What to ask (anonymously!)

Note: Bold items below (items 1-4) are the minimum; the other items are suggestions. Thanks to our DELTA Faculty Fellows for sharing their suggestions!

  1. Successes
    1. What has helped you to learn in this class?
    2. What are your successes this semester?
  2. Concerns
    1. What has hindered your learning in this class?
    2. Where are you stuck?
    3. Has any content presentation presented an accessibility barrier for you?
  3. Solutions and Suggestions
    1. What can I do to improve the learning environment?
    2. What do you need to get “unstuck” (time with instructor, audio versions of content, visual versions of content, etc)?
    3. How can I improve the course accessibility?
  4. Additional comments?
  5. Time spent
    1. How much time per week do you spend, on average, outside of scheduled sessions?
  6. Class components
    1. How helpful are the following components of the class in your learning? (Likert scale listing items like lecture discussion/slides, projects, homework, etc.)?

What to do with the responses

  • Review for common themes and consider how you might address suggested changes.
  • Be sure to report back to students; for example, share common responses and identify how you intend to address them.
  • Remind students that the end of course evaluation is still important!

Example and Templates

DELTA provides a Mid-Semester Check-In template as a Moodle Feedback activity. A step-by-step guide to using this template is available in our Knowledge Base Article: Using the Mid-Semester Check-in template with Moodle Feedback Activity. Learn more about using Feedback in the Moodle docs page for the Moodle Feedback activity.

Other examples and template include:

Screen shot showing page where template is chosen in the Feedback activity.
Choose the “Mid Semester Check-In” Template
Screen shot showing page where template is chosen in the Feedback activity.
Choose the “Mid Semester Check-In” Template
Screen shot showing page where template is chosen in the Feedback activity.
Choose the “Mid Semester Check-In” Template

Further Reading / References

1Overall, J.U., and Marsh, H.W., 1979, Midterm feedback from students: Its relationship to instructional improvement and students’ cognitive and affective outcomes; Journal of Educational Psychology, v.71, #6, p.856-865.

2Bullock, C.D., 2003, Online collection of midterm student feedback; New Directions for Teaching and Learning, #96, p.95-102.

3Keutzer, C.S., 1993, Midterm evaluation of teaching provides helpful feedback to instructors; Teaching of Psychology, v.20, p.238-240.

Conway, A. Nov 2, 2022. “Recovering Student Engagement at Mid-course Time.” Faculty Focus Blog.