Small Group Instructional Diagnosis

 

 

What is a small group instruction diagnosis (SGID)?

 

Small Group Instructional Diagnosis (SGID) is a method of evaluation that uses facilitated classroom discussion to provide feedback to improve teaching and communication between students and instructor about the teaching and learning process.  SGID is not administered by the instructor of record and requires an entire class period. SGIDs are available during the third through tenth week of the fall and spring terms.

 

Who can request a SGID?

 

Any faculty member, graduate student, or post-doc teaching at TCU can request a SGID.  This is a free professional development opportunity the Koehler Center provides to the TCU teaching community.

 

How will a SGID benefit me?

 

The SGID technique has several advantages:

  • Students feel that their voices have been heard. Our experience is that students usually feel powerless and are more willing to work with a professor if they believe their needs are taken seriously. The SGID process itself seems to have beneficial effects, even before the instructor makes changes based on the feedback from the SGID.
  • SGID brings into the group those with extremely divergent views. Students often feel that everyone else shares their opinions of events that have occurred in the class. When they state their concerns to their small group, they may find out that others interpret events quite differently. Students must agree to a statement forwarded to the professor, so the anonymity of individual students is protected.
  • SGID provides reflective feedback and the information is qualitatively different than that assessed in end-of-the-semester ratings.

How do I schedule an SGID?

 

To arrange a SGID, simply call the Koehler Center at 817-257-7434. You may also email faculty development or Amanda Irvin, at least two weeks in advance. The Koehler Center staff will schedule the SGID.

 

For larger departmental needs, we can also train faculty members to facilitate the SGID within departments; this strategy is most successful for departments wishing to conduct multiple SGID sessions within a given semester or academic year.

What will happen prior to the SGID?

 

Before the SGID, the faculty developer will meet with the faculty to review the process and plan the SGID.  We determine together the high-order concerns for evaluation. After a preliminary discussion between the faculty developer and the instructor, the instructor prepares the class for the faculty developer’s visit. The instructor is not present for the SGID.

 

What will happen on the day of the SGID?

 

The procedure focuses on the components of the course that the class feels are important. The particular variant of the SGID that we use has the following process:

 

[Individual Writing]
  

  • What do you like best about the course?
  • What do you like least about the course/instruction, and how could the instructor improve the course?
  • What could you do to make the course better for you and the instructor?

 

[Small Group Discussion]
  

  • Break out into groups 
  • List three most important positive aspects of the course
  • Repeat for the negative aspects of the course
  • Repeat for the for course improvements
  • Form groups consensus 
          

[Reporting Out]

  • Place top SGID items on board
  • Decide as class which items are the most important
  • Rank key points
  • Score individually personal ranking of the key points

What will happen after the SGID?

 

A few days after the SGID, you will meet with the faculty developer to discuss the SGID.  The consultation is intended to facilitate the expression of student opinions and suggestions about the course. Faculty will receive a report on the student feedback with data; the report is your artifact for evaluation and class-level assessment.  As a reminder, all conversations with Koehler Center staff are confidential.