More and more professors in the US are soliciting student feedback midway through their courses. Some universities, such as the Stony Brook University, Grand Valley State University and Western Washing University have adopted university-wide online system to collect midterm feedback from students. The reason for inviting comments earlier in the term is that it allows teachers to take steps to improve their teaching, to have a chance to discuss with students and get a deeper understanding of their needs. Midterm evaluation may even encourage teachers to ask more directed and open-ended questions. It is a good way for them to achieve better end-of-semester evaluations which may be used in performance reviews and promotion and tenure in some universities.
