Our publisher, Pearson/Prentice Hall, sends Jay and me a constant stream of feedback to help keep our OM texts current. We get reviews from profs teaching from the books, usage rates on MyOMLab homework problems, and even a report on what students using the books think the book and their class. I just reviewed the comments provided by the students and wanted to share some with you. Here was the question (one of many): Do you recall what you did the BEST day in your OM class? Maybe some of these answers will spark an idea you can use in your own class.
“We worked in small groups, went over homework, and then gave feedback to each other”.
“We played the Beer Game and the winning team got gift cards”.
“The day before each exam he gave everyone a chance to ask questions so the test would be easier to study for”.
“We had a fun group project that was worth extra credit on our grade”.
“We had a guest speaker who talked about the OM classes he took and how they made him successful. It made me feel confident about taking this course”.
“She showed us how to do a value chain –and then I did one all by myself”!
“The teacher told us about his life story and work experience”.
“We watched a video, had lots of discussion, and then worked on projects”.
“The day I realized I understood everything that was going on in class”.
“”We went outside and learned on the lawn”.
These are just a few observations, out of 100’s of comments, but they do seem to point to the importance (in students’ eyes) of the non-lecture part of your class. Is this a question you want to ask your own students?
