Newark Academy Science Department Course Reflection 2013-2014

1. Select from the following:

Teacher

Select

Mr. Bitler

Ms. Celente

Mr. Erlandson

Dr. Hobson

Ms. Hone

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

100.0% (10)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

Course

Select

Interactive

Interactive

Interactive

Investigation

Discovery

Systems

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

Biology

Chemistry

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

Chemistry
Honors

0.0% (0)

Physics

0.0% (0)

Physics
Honors

0.0% (0)

Slot

Select

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

100.0% (10)

0.0% (0)

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2. Please rate how strongly you agree or disagree with each of the following statements below based on your personal
experiences in this course thus far.
Rating

Strongly Agree

Agree

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Not Applicable

60.0% (6)

30.0% (3)

10.0% (1)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

60.0% (6)

40.0% (4)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

20.0% (2)

60.0% (6)

20.0% (2)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

60.0% (6)

40.0% (4)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

70.0% (7)

30.0% (3)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

60.0% (6)

30.0% (3)

10.0% (1)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

80.0% (8)

20.0% (2)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

0.0% (0)

10

answered question

10

skipped question

Count

I have found that my teacher

explains course material and
expectations clearly.
I have received helpful feedback
from my teacher on my work and
performance.
I have received timely feedback.
I have been given opportunities to
demonstrate my learning on a
variety of assessments.
I have been given opportunities to
engage in independent thinking.
I have found the learning
environment appropriate and
positive.
The teacher has been sensitive to
my needs.

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3. Describe your experience in this course.

Response
Count
10
answered question

10

skipped question

4. How effectively do the assignments, in-class activities and labs help you understand the material and develop your
skills? Please be specific.
Response
Count
10

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answered question

10

skipped question

5. What has been most effective for you about this instructor's teaching? What has been least effective for you about this
instructor's teaching?
Response
Count
10
answered question

10

skipped question

6. Which labs were most helpful? least helpful?

Response
Count
10
answered question

10

skipped question

7. Was the average workload for this course reasonable?

Response
Count
10

4 of 12

answered question

10

skipped question

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Page 2, Q3. Describe your experience in this course.

This has by far been my favorite Newark Academy science class. Mr. Erlandson is energetic, positive, and passionate,
and his personality truly creates a good atmosphere for learning. The lab work, which allows us to be creative and think
for ourselves, was a bit foreign to me since all the labs I've done in the past had rigid instructions; however, I quickly
figured it out. Mr. Erlandson is very helpful in his comments on tests and feedback on labs; my science writing skills have
improved drastically. The material is relevant and all coursework is inherently essential toward gaining a holistic
understanding of environmental sciences.

Jan 6, 2014 8:26 AM

I've learned a lot of things that I did not expect to be covered in the course material, such as, Population statistics, HDI,
etc. Overall I have enjoyed my experience thus far, and love Mr. Erlandson's anecdotes (i.e his theatrical hand gestures
and his dependency on excel).

Jan 6, 2014 8:25 AM

This class requires a lot of effort, reading in depth to all of the assignments, as well as paying attention to what Mr.
Erlandson says in class. There are large quantities of work, and most of the class time is spent going over questions
students had from the reading the night before, as well as points Mr. E would like to emphasize.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

Overall, I have had a generally positive experience in this class. While it is definitely my most challenging course, it is also
one of my favorite courses because of the interesting material.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

It's been an interesting journey in this part of my high school science career.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

This course has difficult material. We pack in multiple chapters in each test, making this a very high maintenance class.
Information is taught well and everything is covered, but there are sometimes surprises or unexpected material on the
tests.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

I really find my experience in this course enjoyable and useful. I find that my understanding of the material comes easily
with explanation, and Mr. Erlandson is pretty flexible about how we use our class time in order to fit in the needs of
everyone, which is super helpful.

Jan 6, 2014 8:23 AM

I like this course a lot, the issue sometimes is we don't cover everything in the chapter that is necessary for the test during
class. I am enjoying myself during class and feel that Mr. Erlandson is an engaging teacher although we sometimes trail
off topic. I think if the classes were a bit more focused that would improve test scores.

Jan 6, 2014 8:22 AM

This course has been very informational. I have learned a great deal about population and the environment throughout
the year.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

10

Mr. Erlandson is a solid teacher. I always know what the tests will be on and he is a fair grader. Sometimes he doesn't
explain things perfectly, but the book is a useful supplement. He is quite personable.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

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Page 2, Q4. How effectively do the assignments, in-class activities and labs help you understand the material and develop your skills? Please be
specific.

The material that we use for labs always manages to come up on tests, so as a result, our understanding is always very
thorough.

Jan 6, 2014 8:26 AM

They are very helpful. In preparation for the exam we went over formulas from months past, we talked about complex
topics such as winds, and even went over complex problems that included but were not limited to adding and subtracting.

Jan 6, 2014 8:25 AM

In class labs and activities always pertain to the material we are learning. They either reiterate what we were learning in
class, or begin a new chapter. For example, the elodea lab is an example of reiteration of material from book to lab.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The assignments, which are usually readings from either the book or from extraneous material, are usually very helpful.
In-class activities are engaging and generally helpful, though sometimes not as clear . The labs have been very helpful in
developing my environmental science skills because this is the first class I have ever taken in which I am required to
create my own lab instead of following a given procedure.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The in-class labs are hard but I manage.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

In class activities like the climatograph activity and group work is very effective in aiding understanding.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

I think that for the most part, the in-class activities and labs are pretty good at helping me understand the material. I like
having a variety of labs and going over material, which we do, so that's really helpful.

Jan 6, 2014 8:23 AM

The assignments are readings so that is the material and the questions to guide through the readings are always helpful
in understanding them. Sometimes the labs are vague but I understand that is a part of the IB curriculum, the issue is that
sometimes the labs extend beyond class time because the methods do not always work.

Jan 6, 2014 8:22 AM

Discussions and reading the textbook are effective ways of helping me understand the material, but I think having more
assignments (formal) would be better.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

10

The readings are effective and the online links we look at are interesting. The labs are fine.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

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Page 2, Q5. What has been most effective for you about this instructor's teaching? What has been least effective for you about this instructor's teaching?

Mr. Erlandson always gives a multitude of specific examples in his lectures of concepts that we're tested on. This helps,
because on our tests, he asks for specific examples. Sometimes I feel like there is too much material for the tests, and
that it could be possible to increase the frequency of the tests.

Jan 6, 2014 8:26 AM

I think one thing that is really helpful that Mr. Erlandson does that is really helpful is outline what will be on the test and he
stresses the importance of certain topics. One of the least effective things he does stress the importance of a major topic
and then not put it on the test.

Jan 6, 2014 8:25 AM

If you do the reading and are confused on some of the subject matter, you can always come into class the next day and
ask questions and Mr. Erlandson would be sure to go in depth to answer the question. The hardest part is trying to learn
some materials on our own, especially since there is so much material and we can't cover everything in class.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

What is most effective about Mr. Erlandson's teaching is his flexibility. If there is something we don't not understand, for
example, from the reading the night before, he is always more than willing to go back over the material with us and review
it. I think something that has not been as effective is the time we spend going over questions on the readings. Sometimes
we do not settle on a clear answer for a question, leaving it open ended, and it could show up on a test without us
knowing the concrete answer.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The most affective is when he answers out questions.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The most effective thing is that all questions are answered. Mr. Erlandson always addresses each students' concerns and
sometimes answering questions leads into a whole new dimension of what we are studying. The least effective aspect is
on the rare occasion when he accidentally skips over some material after teaching it to the other class, not realizing we
have not learned it yet. Its only human error, nothing major.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The most effective thing about Mr. Erlandson's teaching is definitely his awareness of trouble areas, and how he tries to
help. For example, putting together video for calculations, or extra practice for certain things. The least effective for me is
probably the minimal explanation of labs.

Jan 6, 2014 8:23 AM

The most effective aspect of his teaching is when we are directly discussing a chapter or when he has a lot of visual aids.
It is less effective when it is simply sitting and discussing.

Jan 6, 2014 8:22 AM

Mr. E does a lot of class discussions, which is sometimes helpful, but I think it would be better if he were to give us set
notes to study from.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

10

He has been very clear with his expectations and is very knowledgable about the subject matter at hand. Sometimes we
aren't completely productive, but this is not really an issue.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

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Page 2, Q6. Which labs were most helpful? least helpful?

The light labs and the Kung bean labs were helpful; the microscope one was not.

Jan 6, 2014 8:26 AM

The Energy budget lab.

Jan 6, 2014 8:25 AM

The reiteration of material are the labs that are the most helpful because the legitimately show you what's happening. I
don't find labs that are the gateways to new subjects helpful because we don't know what we're looking for or what's
supposed to happen

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The lab that was most helpful was the lab that we did with elodea. The least helpful lab we did was the biome lab, trying
to identify each location.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The labs that were the most helpful were ones that took less time to complete than time spent thinking about it.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The lab where we demonstrated insolation, absorption, albedo, etc. was helpful.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The most helpful lab was the one where we had to create our own experiment to examine four aspects of energy (albedo,
absorption, etc.). Although it was pretty tough, it was good to be able to work independently, and work on our own ideas.
That being said, I would not want to do it again! I don't think any of the labs were particularly unhelpful, because all labs
were done strategically when we were learning about the same sorts of material, so they all really helped my
understanding of the material.

Jan 6, 2014 8:23 AM

The albedo lab was the most helpful while the biome lab was least helpful.

Jan 6, 2014 8:22 AM

Each lab has been helpful to understanding the material.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

10

The most helpful lab was the one we did on Photosynthesis and Respiration with elodea. The least helpful (although it
was still helpful) was the Energy Budget lab we did.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

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Page 2, Q7. Was the average workload for this course reasonable?

Yes, very.

Jan 6, 2014 8:26 AM

There were some test, i.e the second one, that had alot of stuff on it.

Jan 6, 2014 8:25 AM

There is a lot of work, and at times, I think, the workload exceeds the amount deemed reasonable.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

Yes- while there is a lot of studying and reading that you are expected to do, the workload is reasonable.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The average workload for this course was totally reasonable. Every assignment had a relevance.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

Like I said before, the test questions are selected from a dense amount of information. Perhaps more specificity in what
to expect would make the workload, especially in studying for tests, more manageable. Otherwise the workload is
reasonable.

Jan 6, 2014 8:24 AM

The workload was definitely reasonable. Although the readings assigned are pretty long, they aren't assigned often so it's
easy to budget time well.

Jan 6, 2014 8:23 AM

Yes.

Jan 6, 2014 8:22 AM

Yes, very reasonable.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

10

The workload for this course is perfect. Not overburdensome, yet consistent.

Jan 6, 2014 8:21 AM

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