2011/2012 End of Year Survey Rees 7th Grade Social Studies

Please think about our year together and answer the following questions honestly and thoughtfully. Your responses will not affect your grade (I promise that I will not even look at your responses until AFTER I turn in your final grade). I am the only person who will see this. Your answers will help me make 7th grade Social Studies better for those who come after you!
Name: 


A red asterisk (*) indicates required questions.

  1. In general, I like social studies.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. This year I feel like I learned a lot about American history.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. I felt very comfortable with the pace of our social studies class this year.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. By the end of each unit, I felt very comfortable with the concepts we learned.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. The classroom rules in social studies were easy to understand, fair and consistently enforced.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. Mrs. Rees was clear about assignments and deadlines.*
      1 2 3 4 5  
    Strongly agree   Strongly disagree


  1. How often did you use our classroom website?*
    More than once a week
    Once a week
    Every other week
    Once a month
    Only when a test was coming up or a project was due
    Only 2 to 3 times the whole school year
    Never


  1. How difficult was social studies for you compared to your other core subjects?*
    A lot easier
    Somewhat easier
    Somewhat more difficult
    A lot more difficult
    About the same


  1. On average, how much time did you spend on social studies homework each night. I know that the time it took you to complete your homework varied widely over the course of the year, so just try to think of the average amount of time you spent reading, working, writing, etc.*
    less than 15 minutes
    15 to 30 minutes
    31 to 45 minutes
    More than 45 minutes


  1. On a scale of 1 to 5, rate how much each of the following activities helped you better understand American history and/or current events by giving a 5 to those activities that were very helpful to you and a 1 to those that were not helpful at all.*

          1 2 3 4 5    
      assigned readings from the textbook   
      answering daily WISKs   
      notes taken on an organizer and other packet pages   
      Cornell notes   
      correcting homework in class   
      lectures where students decide which notes to take   
      partner work   
      visual aides from treasure chest    
      study guides for tests   
      in-class reviews before a test   
      daily warm-ups   


  1. On a scale of 1 to 5, rate how much you learned from each of the following projects by giving a 5 to the projects where you learned a lot and a 1 to the projects that taught you very little.*

          1 2 3 4 5    
      Map activity from each time period   
      SHEEP organizer for each time period   
      Colonial fair with brochure, song, slogan, etc.   
      Pre-Revolutionary War Town Meeting   
      Constitutional Convention   
      Blue Constitution book   
      Federalist Era display   
      Civil War wiki project   
      Westward expansion play   
      Legislation/bill writing simulation at end of year   
      Andrew Jackson essay   
      Factory letter during Industrial Revolution study   
      Schoolhouse Rock   
      Tuesday Topics   
      Revolutionary War and Civil War battle charts   
      Westward expansion game   
      Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (movie)   
      Quarterly Challenges   
      Twelve Angry Men (movie)   


  1. What do you think went really well this year in social studies? Why?*


  1. What do you wish we would have done differently this year? Was there a topic/something else that you wish we spent more time studying or doing (remember, though, that our curriculum stops at 1877, so we do not study World War I or II, etc.)?*


  1. What advice would you give to next year's 7th grade social studies class?*


  1. We were lucky enough to receive grant money from a group called WSFEE that we used to buy our new History Alive textbooks. I need to write a report for WSFEE this summer to tell them how we used the textbooks and to describe how the textbook enriched your learning. Please share your thoughts on the following FOUR questions:

    A. Which do you prefer, the readings from the orange History Alive book or the readings from The American Journey book (blue with train on cover)? WHY?

    B. How easy to use and helpful were the History Alive note taking sheets that we used for Antebellum America and the Civil War (these are the packet pages that matched up with a specific reading from the orange History Alive textbook)?

    C. Did the music and lyrics that Mrs. Chomko used from History Alive help you understand the material better? Explain.

    D. How often did you use the online version of History Alive to complete your homework?
    *


  1. What was the most important IDEA/CONCEPT that you learned in 7th grade Social Studies this year?*


  1. What was the most important SKILL you learned in 7th grade Social Studies this year (ex., include taking notes, how to study for a test, how to use facts to support opinions, how to read/draw a map, how to understand a political cartoon, etc.)?*


  1. What is the best way to get 7th graders to actually read and think about the material in a textbook?
    *


  1. Do you think that we should spend more time in class reviewing how to read a non-fiction text and/or how to take notes from a reading or on a class discussion?*


  1. How can we improve the Constitutional Convention for next year (this was the first year that we did one)?*


  1. Please provide specific suggestions on how to improve the Civil War wiki project next year.*


  1. How can I improve the bill to law legislative simulation and political parties project for next year?*


  1. I thoroughly enjoyed having each and every one of you in class this year. I wish you all the best this summer and next year in 8th grade. You deserve a huge pat on the back for a year of great work in my class. Thank you for giving your all. Please be sure to stop by and say hello from time to time next year! In the meantime, use the space below to add any other questions/comments/ideas that you would like to share. Thank you for a remarkable year!





Ms. Krause
Spanish Teacher
McClure Junior High School