HIS 373/573, CONTEMPORARY JAPAN: COURSE EVALUATION

HIS 373 / 573, CONTEMPORARY JAPAN IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE SPRING SEMESTER 2000 COURSE EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE

The syllabus for the course listed a series of specific learning objectives for HIS 373 / 573, CONTEMPORARY JAPAN IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE. The following statements seek your reaction to this procedure.

The specific objectives listed in the syllabus were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in orienting and guiding my study of the course material.
The specific objectives for the course were achieved FULLY / TO SOME DEGREE / NOT AT ALL.

COMMENTS:

Students in HIS 373 / 573 were asked to read Mak, Sunder, Abe and Igawa, eds., Japan: Why It Works, Why It Doesn't, Patrick Smith's Japan: A Reinterpretation, Karl Taro Greenfeld's Speed Tribes: Days and Nights with Japan's Next Generation, Stephen Addiss' How to Look at Japanese Art and a collection of articles and excerpts on reserve in the Cleveland State University library. Selections from these varied sources served as assigned reading for HIS 373 / 573. The following statements seek your evaluation of these readings. The following statements seek your evaluation of these readings.

Mak, Sunder, Abe and Igawa, Japan: Why It Works, Why It Doesn't was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in increasing my understanding of contemporary Japanese civilization and culture.
Patrick Smith's Japan: A Reinterpretation was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in increasing my understanding of contemporary Japanese civilization and culture.
Karl Taro Greenfeld's Speed Tribes was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in increasing my understanding of contemporary Japanese civilization and culture.
The selections from Stephen Addiss' How to Look at Japanese Art were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in increasing my understanding of contemporary Japanese civilization and culture.
Other readings assigned were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in increasing my understanding of contemporary Japanese civilization and culture.
Available resources (in-class lectures and videos, online and in-class discussions; assigned texts and readings; Internet, library and community resources) were INSUFFICIENT / SUFFICIENT for the achievement of my own personal research and learning goals.
I would RECOMMEND / DISCOURAGE this approach to reading and research assignments in subsequent offerings of this course.

COMMENTS (include suggestions for additional or substitute general readings for the course):

The course was built more around a series of classroom presentations, discussion sessions and videos (rather than a following a strict lecture format) and touched on a variety of topic areas.

The classroom presentations by the instructor were FAIR / GOOD / EXCELLENT in increasing my understanding and appreciation of the subject matter of the course.
The small group discussions were FAIR / GOOD / EXCELLENT in increasing my understanding and appreciation of the subject matter of the course.
The online discussions available in the KISSATEN provided a WORTHWHILE / LIMITED / POOR means to stimulate informal discussion of course-related topics.
MORE / FEWER / THE SAME NUMBER OF videos and other visual materials should be employed as supplementary materials in the course.
The chosen subject matter addressed in the course was APPROPRIATE / INAPPROPRIATE as an introduction to contemporary Japan in historical perspective.
This varied class schedule format should be DISCONTINUED / CONTINUED in future offerings of the course.

COMMENTS:

Testing was confined in HIS 373 / 573 to a series of six quizzes on various assigned topics. In addition to these, a set of four journal assignments, a research paper and participation in a pair of role-playing exercises were required (the latter accompanied by a written autobiography assignment and a set of survey questions). Together with class attendance and participation in online discussion, these exercises provided the basis for evaluation in the course.

As a student in this course I DID / DID NOT appreciate the degree of individual responsibility and freedom I had to assume to assure my academic success in this course.
Overall the evaluation procedure was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in stimulating my study of contemporary Japan in historical perspective.
Assessment feedback provided by the instructor and fellow classmates was APPROPRIATE AND USEFUL / INAPPROPRIATE AND USELESS . The opportunities to demonstrate mastery of course expectations was ADEQUATE / INADEQUATE .
The quizzes were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE in stimulating keeping up with reading assignments on a regular basis. They provided ADEQUATE / INADEQUATE regular feedback on my progress in the course. A midterm and /or final examination would have provided a BETTER / WORSE opportunity to demonstrate my mastery of course content.
The four journal assignments were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE as a self-evaluation and teaching tool.
The extended research essay was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE as a teaching tool.
The written autobiography assignment was WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE as a teaching tool.
The role-playing exercises were WORTHLESS / ADEQUATE / VALUABLE as a teaching tool.
This evaluation procedure should be ABANDONED / MAINTAINED / MODIFIED in future offerings of the course.

COMMENTS:

An ongoing Journalassignment sought to encourage an intensive examination of, and a more in-depth formulation and assessment of, personal guiding interests, goals and objectives to be explored in the course. The following statements seek your reaction to this approach to the course material.

The Journal assignments proved a VALUABLE / ADEQUATE / WORTHLESS opportunity to assess, during the entire duration of the course, the breadth and depth of my interests in contemporary and traditional Japanese culture and history. In retrospect I feel I was able to pursue my identified interests FULLY / TO SOME EXTENT / NOT AT ALL in the course of my study for HIS 373 / 573. I have found my identified interests DEEPENED / ALTERED SUBSTANTIALLY / MODIFIED TO SOME DEGREE by the course of study I have just completed. COMMENTS:

The HIS 373 / 573 Internet Web-site served as a basic source of information related to the course. In the space below, evaluate the utility and convenience of the site. Was it readily accessible for you personally? Why / why not? What value did it provide as you worked your way through course materials and assignments? Was the site appropriately structured and organized -- could you easily find what you needed when you needed it? How important was the availability of instructor email access? How often did you visit the site? Was enough training and direction provided to make it easy for you to use the site? What portions of the site were most valuable and useful for you? What new computer-related skills, if any, were acquired as a result of having to access the Web-site? Did you take advantage of Web access to explore other Internet resources? What suggestions do you have regarding additional elements to add (or subtract) from the site?

The Expectations and Assumptions portion of the Course Web Site INADEQUATELY / APPROPRIATELY reflected the scope and demands required (in terms of reading, writing, research and pre-course skill preparation) for success in this course. Knowing these in advance WAS / WAS NOT useful. My expected course grade ADEQUATELY / INADEQUATELY captures the amount of time and effort expended in pursuit of course goals and objectives and the academic skill level brought to bear on course assignments in light of these expectations and assumptions.

What academic skills (related to reading, writing, oral communication, analytical thinking, time management or conducting research) did you master or improve over the course of the last semester as a direct result of having enrolled in HIS 373 / 573? Which of these skills, if any, will transfer to other educational endeavors?

How many hours per week did you devote to HIS 373 / 573? How did this compare to the amount of time spent on other courses in which you were enrolled this semester? How much of the assigned reading did you complete? What relationship (if any) existed for you between the amount of time invested in the various subjects covered in the course and the amount you learned -- that is, when you read more about a topic, did you learn more as a result or not?

Please respond to each of the following statements by circling the appropriate phrase:

I am more familiar now than at the beginning of the course with basic terms, personalities and concepts associated with the study of contemporary Japan in historical perspective.