Physics Learning Center Fall 2012 Semester Report

To:

Dr. Robert Weidman

Coordinator, Physics learning Center

From: Brent Nicklas

Head Coach, Physics Learning Center
Date: January 21, 2013

Physics Learning Center Staff

Beau Barber
Neala Creasy
Stephen Dipple
Greg Furlich
Jared Nakamura
Brent Nicklas
Emily Makoutz
Ben Malec
Anna Stephens
Lisa Vaught
Tyler Vincent

First semester coach

Will not return Spring 2013
First semester coach
Will return Spring 2013
First semester coach
Replaced Ben as head coach, will return Spring 2013
First Semester coach, Resigned early in the beginning of October
Former head coach, Resigned early on October 30, 2012
First semester coach
First semester coach, Hired to replace Emily, will not return Spring 2013
First semester coach

Special Notes
- The PLC is now located in 128 Fisher
- There was no computer to keep track of walk-ins until October 15th

Attendance
From the PLC Registration Log, walk-in attendance (post October 15th) was the following:
Number of visits total:
368
Number of visits for PH2100: 85
Number of visits for PH2200: 164
Number of visits for PH1110: 109
Number of visits for PH1210: 5
Number of unique students: 98
Note that attendance was consistent and regular enough that a fair estimate of the total
number of visits could be obtained by multiplying the total number of visits from above by the
number of operational weeks (13) and dividing by the number of recorded weeks (9). (Best
guess for total number of visits in Fall 2012: 532)
Total number of appointments:
54
Number of individual appointments: 47
Number of team appointments:
7

Evaluation Results
Total number of evaluations received:
Number of evaluations walk-in received:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

I feel that I have benefited from walk-ins.

I feel that I had enough time to get all of my questions answered.
I felt comfortable working in the PLC.
The coaches were knowledgeable.
The coaches were helpful.
The coaches were friendly.
I would recommend walk-ins to another student.
I would recommend the PLC to another student.

Number of coach evaluations received:

1.
2.
3.
4.

57
9
4.7
4.3
4.5
4.6
4.4
4.6
4.8
4.8

48

I feel that I have benefited from my appointment.

I felt that I had enough time to get all of my questions answered.
I felt comfortable working in the PLC.
My coach was knowledgeable.

4.9
4.4
4.5
4.9

5.
6.
7.
8.

My coach was helpful.

My coach was friendly.
I would recommend my coach to another student.
I would recommend the PLC to another student.

4.9
4.7
4.6
4.8

Comments:
The physics learning center had very consistent reviews and they all had the same complaints:
they want more time, more coaches, and more space. Many students from all evaluations
(including appointments) indicated that the PLC was not a comfortable environment due to a
lack of outlets for computers and occasionally due to crowdedness. It is highly suggested that
we obtain a couple extension cords with multiple outlets. It is observed that most students
crowd around the one table near the only outlet, and I believe this is a source of the problem.
It seems to be an issue that the learning center is actually crowded from time to time. Most
students either complain that they need more than one coach on duty since it takes so long for
the coaches to get to them, or that we need to be open at earlier times. Students indicate that
they would enjoy being able to work in the learning center throughout most of the day, such as
before noon and early afternoon.
Other suggestions made by students include advertizing general exam study sessions, where
the one or more of the coaches runs through an exam review packet with a group of students
who show up at a time set by the PLC. There was one mention of having posters of specific
concepts and formulas around the room.
Summary of Suggestions for Change
-To increase efficiency and benefit more students, teams appointments should be emphasized
more.
-We currently have two walled off sections for appointments, but they are not often used as
often as originally expected. I suggest we remove the walled off section furthest from the
windows in order to give more space for walk-ins and provide an additional outlet.
-It would be ideal if we could have more information concerning when students would like us to
be open. Perhaps an online survey could be conducted.

Summary of Evaluations of Individual Coaches

Brent Nicklas:
Number of evaluations received: 13
Strengths:
-Helpful
-Knowledgeable and good at conveying information
-Thorough with problems
Potential areas to improve:
-Gets off topic occasionally
-Begins problems before students have ask questions
Overall Impression:
Students conveyed a very high degree of satisfaction saying that they had fun and were very
thankful for the help. Evaluation questions were answered with consistent fives, and no trends
were observed for non-five answers that concern the performance of this coach.

Stephen Dipple:
Number of evaluations received: 6
Strengths:
-Makes connections to previous material
-Got students through a lot of material
-Outgoing and energetic
Potential areas to improve:
-Occasionally goes too far in depth
-Gets off topic occasionally
Overall Impression:
Students commonly said that Stephen cleared up a lot of confusion. Some students said they
learned more about physics than the class actually covered and appreciated it. Stephen is also
exciting and fun to learn from. Evaluation questions were answered with consistent fives.

Greg Furlich:
Number of evaluations received: 7
Strengths:
-Stayed on task
-Explanations provided depth
-Easy going
Potential areas to improve:
-Occasionally skips steps in arriving to a solution when the steps may not be as clear to the
student
-A few scores for my coach was helpful and friendly were low
Overall Impression:
Students indicated that they were very satisfied in getting all of their homework done and
having a better understanding of physics. Evaluation questions were ranged in answers with
some evaluations having straight fives and others having a mix with a minimum of two for
helpful and friendliness on two evaluations.
Neala Creasy:
Number of evaluations received: 4
Strengths:
-Got through a lot of material
-Thoroughly explains the basics
Potential areas to improve:
(No suggestions were given by students)
Overall Impression:
Neala received all fives on evaluation questions concerning her. Of the four evaluations, no
general comments were given indicating any complaint. The students indicate that Neala is very
friendly and they enjoy working with her.

Anna Stephens:
Number of evaluations received: 3
Strengths:
-Worked at the students pace
-Made appointments fun enjoyable
-Got to know students personally
Potential area to improve:
- Would occasionally not know how to do a problem
Overall Impression:
Students indicate that Anna is a pleasure to work with due to her social skills and general
friendliness. Students seemed to indicate that working with Anna didnt always feel like work.
There was only one of three students who indicated that Anna needed to review the Mastering
Physics problems more before the appointment. Otherwise, all evaluation questions were
answered with straight fives.

Beau Barber:
Number of evaluations received: 4
Strengths:
-Very energetic and animated
-Helped students learn material
Potential areas to improve:
(No suggestions were given by students)
Overall Impression:
Very little feedback was given for Beaus performance specifically. The evaluation questions
were answered with straight fives including areas that didnt concern the coachs performance.
While details are unspecific, it would seem the students have a very strong satisfaction with
Beau.

Tyler Vincent:
Number of evaluations received: 3
Strengths:
-Students felt prepared for exams
-friendly
Potential areas to improve:
-Occasionally did not know how to solve a problem
-Sometimes didnt give a thorough explanation of a solution
Overall Impression:
All three students indicated great satisfaction from their appointment with Tyler. Evaluation
questions were answered with fours and fives. Two evaluations from a team indicated that the
team had occasional disagreements which would imply that Tyler could be more comfortable
with the material; however, this did not seems to interrupt the coaching session overall, and
may have even aided in student learning.

Jared Nakamura:
Number of evaluations received: 7
Strengths:
-Knew the physics immediately when asked (very knowledgeable)
-Provided tips and hints rather than just working through the solution
-Got through a lot of material
-Provided further understanding of material
-Simplified problems when students were lost
Potential areas to improve:
-Was sometimes not personable during appointments
Overall Impression:
Students painted a clear picture of Jareds performance, indicating that he never gave away the
answers; but rather, he provided explanations of the concepts in ways that usually made the
path to the answer more clear. Some students seemed to indicate that Jareds approach made
the appointments go slow, while others indicated that they learned a lot more as a result of his
technique. Jared is possibly the most knowledgeable coach on staff, and his method of
conveying it is student oriented. The evaluation questions had consistent fives for all questions
except friendliness, which scored low in some accounts, but there were also a few fives.

Lisa Vaught:
Number of evaluations received: 1
Strengths:
-Knowledgeable
-Friendly
-Goes of the way for students
Possible areas of improvement:
(No suggestions were given by student)
Overall Impression:
While there was only one evaluation received for Lisa, it is clear that this student was very
happy with the appointment. The evaluation questions were straight fives, and the questions
indicated that Lisa was a well-rounded and good coach.