SGIF
Small Group Instructional Feedback
What is SGIF?
Pioneered at the University of Washington, SGIF is a voluntary, non-evaluative process for collecting feedback from your students on their experiences and perceptions of your course mid-way through the semester. In SGIF, an SGIF facilitator or faculty peer asks your students (via an online survey or 30-minute in-class activity) five questions about your course:
- What helps your learning?
- What hinders your learning?
- What can the instructor do to improve your learning?
- What can you to do improve your learning? and
- What increases (or could increase) your sense of belonging in this course?
The facilitator or faculty peer provides you with a confidential, written report shortly following the online survey distribution or in-class activity, allowing you and your students an opportunity to make positive changes.
Why try SGIF?
SGIF can favorably impact students’ learning and experience in your class. In a survey of 214 Harper students that experienced the SGIF process in one of their classes in 2019, many felt that SGIF has a positive impact on several important factors, including perception of the learning environment, understanding of assignments, and preparation for class. The graphic below provides more detail on the areas that students felt were favorably impacted by experiencing SGIF.
Two SGIF Options to Choose From
Option 1: Live, In-Class Session
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer conducts a consultation with you
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer visits your classroom (in-person or Online LIVE) and conducts a 30-minute session without you present
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer prepares a written report and reviews it with you in a debrief meeting
- You conduct a short debrief with your students about feedback received and modifications considered
Option 2: Asynchronous Online Survey
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer conducts a consultation with you
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer provides you with an online survey link to share with your students
- SGIF facilitator or faculty peer collects the results of the online survey, prepares a written report and reviews it with you in a debrief meeting
- You conduct a short debrief with your students about feedback received and modifications considered
Partner with a Faculty Peer to Earn CEUs
Partner with another faculty member (any full time or adjunct faculty teaching at Harper in the current semester) and conduct the SGIF activities in each other’s courses to earn 0.4 CEUs (awarded one time only). Faculty are encouraged to form their own partnerships but can also request a partner using the SGIF interest form below. You must complete all the steps outlined in The SGIF Process below and submit the SGIF completion form 3 weeks before the semester ends to earn CEUs and have SGIF appear on your transcript.
The SGIF Process
Faculty can complete the process below to bring SGIF to one or more of their courses.
STEP 1: Submit SGIF Interest Form & Receive Kick-Off Email from Academy (Instructor)
The instructor completes the SGIF Interest Form to notify the Academy of their interest in participating in SGIF. The instructor receives a kick-off email from an Academy representative with information on completing the SGIF process requested. If an SGIF facilitator or faculty partner was requested, the Academy representative will include the name and contact information of that individual within the email.
STEP 2: Attend Consultation Meeting (Instructor & Facilitator)
The instructor and their SGIF facilitator/faculty peer meet to discuss their goals related to the SGIF process and to confirm the logistics of completing the SGIF option preferred (online survey or in-class session). The instructor and facilitator/faculty peer may wish to download the SGIF Consultation Form Template and complete it during the meeting. Faculty peers completing the SGIF for CEUs should both go through the items on the form for their course so they are each aware of the logistics for running the SGIF for each other.
STEP 3: Conduct SGIF with Students (Facilitator)
The SGIF facilitator/faculty peer will conduct SGIF in the instructor’s course. Instructors partnering with a faculty peer for CEUs with conduct SGIF in each other’s courses. The steps for the facilitator to follow to conduct the SGIF are outlined below.
PART 1: Prepare the SGIF Survey
Paper survey option (in-person classes only): Print enough copies of the SGIF Paper Survey Template for use in the classroom – one form for each student plus one form for each small group. If possible, print the forms for the small groups in a different color than the individual forms for easier identification and reporting.
Online survey option (in-person, Online LIVE, Online ANYTIME classes): Prepare the online survey with the following steps:
- Click on this SGIF Online Survey Template link
- Click on “Duplicate It” and log into Office 365 with your Harper email and password if prompted. The form will now appear in your Office 365 > Microsoft Forms list.
- Edit the title of the survey by clicking on it. Remove the word “(Copy)” and include the Semester, Course Number & Instructor Name. Example: Mid-Semester Course Survey – Spring 2023 – MTH165 W66 – Patel.
- Click on Collect Responses > Copy to get the link to share with students to complete the survey. If you are using the online survey in an in-person setting, click on “Shorten URL” checkbox to get a shorter link to share. Also click on the QR code icon to download a QR code to share in the classroom.
PART 2: Collect Student Responses
Live session option (in-person and Online LIVE classes only): Download a copy of the SGIF Live Session Facilitator Workbook and save it in a place where you can access it during the online live session or from a classroom (such as saved on OneDrive). Complete the following steps to conduct the live SGIF session with students. These can be conducted in an in-person classroom or in Webex or another videoconferencing platform for Online LIVE classes:
| Step | Duration | Activity |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 minutes | Introduction: Introduce yourself and the purpose of the SGIF activity. If desired, display the first page of the SGIF Live Session Facilitator Workbook as a visual aid. |
| 2 | 4 minutes | Students Complete SGIF Survey INDIVIDUALLY: Hand out the paper surveys or share the online survey link with students. If you are using the online survey in a physical classroom, paste the link and QR code in the first page of the SGIF Live Session Facilitator Workbook where indicated. Students should mark the “individual” option on the survey. |
| 3 | 7 minutes | Students Complete SGIF Survey in GROUPS of 3-5: Ask students to sit in groups of 3-5 or put them in breakout groups in an Online LIVE session. Hand out a clean copy of the paper survey to each group or, if you are using the online survey, ask the recorder of each group to access the online survey link again and complete a new submission for their group. Group recorders should mark the “group” option and follow the group instructions on the survey. |
| 4 | 13 minutes | Conduct WHOLE CLASS Discussion: Display the CLASS NOTES page of the SGIF Live Session Facilitator Workbook and facilitate a discussion with the groups as instructed on the class notes page. |
| 5 | 2 minutes | Wrap Up: Wrap up the discussion, thank the students, and collect all individual and group paper forms if used. |
Asynchronous survey option: Provide the “collect responses” survey link to the instructor so they can share it with students in their Course Announcements, Course Assignments, via email, etc. along with a due date to complete it. You can also provide the suggested verbiage below for the instructor to share with students:
I care about your feedback on this course and have chosen to participate in a mid-semester survey process at Harper. I am asking for just a few minutes of your time to fill out this short survey about your experience in this course – what is working well, what might be hindering your learning, and your suggestions for how I and you might improve the course, your learning, and your sense of belonging. Your responses will be collected by a survey facilitator and will not be seen directly by me. The facilitator will review and summarize your comments and will provide me with a report to ensure all your comments are anonymous. Because this survey is conducted mid-semester rather than after the class is over, it gives me a chance to discuss the results with our class and potentially make adjustments that will benefit you and your classmates.
Your voice is important in your learning experience, so let it be heard! Please take a few minutes to complete the survey linked below by [DUE DATE]. Thank you!
LINK TO SURVEY: [INSERT LINK PROVIDED BY FACILITATOR HERE]
STEP 4: Review Written Report and Debrief (Instructor & Facilitator)
PART 1: Facilitator Prepares Written Report
The facilitator should review all student responses to the SGIF survey and complete the SGIF Written Report Template for the instructor. If a live session was conducted, the SGIF Live Session Workbook will have all of the group and class notes. In addition, the facilitator can review the collected individual and group paper forms or individual and group online survey submissions for additional details that may not have come out in the live session. If an asynchronous survey was used, the facilitator should review all student responses received in the Results tab of the survey in Microsoft Forms.
PART 2: Facilitator-Instructor Debriefing Meeting
At the time agreed on during the consultation meeting, the facilitator and instructor should meet to walk through the written report. Suggested debrief meeting agenda:
- Facilitator reads through the written report with the instructor.
- Instructor verbalizes their thoughts.
- Things they will continue to do in their class.
- 1-2 things they may consider changing based on the feedback.
- Rationale for choosing not to change issues that arose.
- Any questions or items they would like to brainstorm.
- Facilitator asks 2-4 powerful questions that prompt action (examples below)
- What specifically are you going to do?
- What obstacles might you meet along the way?
- How will you know that you are making progress?
- How will you know this made a difference?
PART 3: Instructor-Student Follow-Up Discussion
The instructor-student follow-up discussion is the heart of SGIF. It acknowledges the process that both the instructor and students participated in and opens the conversation regarding positive changes. Recommended steps the instructor should follow to conduct the student follow-up:
- Make a list of the main points you want to acknowledge from the debriefing, noting in your list both the things that you will continue to do (based on their feedback) and 1-2 things that you will change (based on their feedback). You may wish to give your rationale for choosing not to change issues at this time that you know students feel strongly about.
- Select 1-2 things that students said they would do to help their learning; prepare to offer your encouragement and support for these items.
- Schedule 5-10 minutes in class to address if planning to deliver the report synchronously. If addressing asynchronously, provide your report in the form of a written announcement, email to students, and/or video posted in your course. Consider asking students to respond via email/discussion board if they have further thoughts.
STEP 5: Submit SGIF Completion Form (Instructor – Turn in 3 Weeks before Semester End to Earn CEUs)
All instructors are encouraged to fill out the SGIF completion form to provide feedback on their experience. Instructors that completed the full SGIF process with a faculty peer can receive 0.4 CEUs (awarded one time only) must complete the form before the last 3 weeks of the semester to receive their CEUs and have SGIF appear on your transcript..
SGIF Completion Form (encouraged for all but required for those requesting CEUs)