Evaluations of my teaching have been positive.

At Towson, students are asked to fill in Scantron evaluation forms, ranking 1 - 5 (5 being perfection) in twelve areas such as instructor's depth of knowledge, use of class time, interest in teaching, fairness of grading, willingness to answer questions and provide help, etc. Here are my scores from the two courses I was teaching in fall '99 (an 80-student MUSC 205 Women in Western Music, and a small MUSC 107 Fundamentals):

MUSC 107 Mean scores for each of the twelve evaluated criteria, 15 respondents:
5.0, 4.8, 4.9, 4.9, 4.9, 5,0, 5.0, 4.5, 5.0, 5.0, 4.9, 4.9

ave = 4.9 out of a possible 5

MUSC 205 Mean scores for each of the twelve evaluated criteria, 70 respondents:
4.8, 4.6, 4.6, 4.5, 4.7, 4.7, 4.7, 4.7, 4.9, 4.8, 4.6, 4.6

ave = 4.7 out of a possible 5

Even those students who knew full well by this moment at semester's end that they were not getting a good grade still knew the grading was fair and my criteria had always been clear. Even those still struggling knew that I would be there to help them any way I could right up until the final exam. I love teaching, I love teaching at the college level, I teach well regardless of class size, and I am proud of what my evaluation scores over the years reflect.

Spontaneous handwritten remarks:

At Towson, there is no "place" on the form for narrative remarks, and the front of the Scantron form must be without any extraneous markings, but students sometimes handwrite comments on the back of the form, and these comments also become part of the record. Here are a few excerpts:

"Kathleen is wonderful, encouraging, and positive - she is an excellent example of what a teacher should be."

"This is my third class with professor Pierson and she is well organized and loves music. Her grading is fair and I wish I could take more classes with her."

"Prof. Kathleen Pierson does a great job. I've learned and had fun doing it. She has great zeal and passion for what she teaches."

"Professor Pierson was so excited about the subject matter that it made me want to be excited. I really learned a lot."

"Professor Pierson is a great person to work with in class and out of class. She is very positive towards our learning and I love her enthusiastic teaching style. She is also very knowledgeable on the subject matter she teaches."

"Pierson is one of the best professors I have ever had. I've learned more in one semester with her than I did in twelve years of violin playing."

"I chose to take this class after taking Music 101 with Ms. Pierson because I really enjoyed her style of teaching and learned a lot."

"Professor Pierson is the most passionate, lucid, and well informed teacher about her subject. I am so glad I had the chance to be in this class."

"Kathleen Pierson is the best teacher I have ever had. It has been a true pleasure being one of her students."

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