"Building a thorough student evaluation form"
Hello again studio owners! Last time in our "Evaluation in the studio sector" series, we looked at the effects of student
evaluations and the most diplomatic ways in which to go about them for your business' clientele. This month I'd like to help you build an evaluation form
which is thorough, informative and will help to cover all the bases in terms of coming up with fair, introspective and appropriate recommendations for
student advancement!
Remember, you know your students and clientele best, so use these categories merely as a guide to add to or omit based on the needs of your business!
Remember however, when formatting the evaluation form to keep it clear, concise, easy to read and neat. The student's name should be listed; as well as the
genre, the teacher, the level and time and day of the class.
Rating:
Keep is simple. Have your teachers rate from 1-5 (*1 being least/poor and 5 being greatest/excellent) how they would evaluate each child in each of the
following categories.
Attendance
: Always important to demonstrate the child's presence in class. Progress can really be correlated largely by the student's attendance. It is the factor
which will establish consistency of all other categories.
Appearance in class:
How do they present themselves when they come to class? Is there hair neat? Do they remember the appropriate shoes? Do they remove all jewelry for class?
Do they follow dress code? Etc.
Performance in class:
How well is the child dancing? How are they performing dance wise? Are they consistently focused? Do they give 100%?
"Presence" in class:
Is the student there and ready to work? Do they ask questions? Do they actively try to work things out on the sides in class? Are they constructive? Are
they alert?
Ability to comprehend and execute genre vocabulary/vernacular:
Does the dancer understand the concepts being presented to them? Are they able to execute those given concepts, phrases, exercises? Are they able to
verbally articulate their movement with correct vocabulary use?
Ability to work with others:
Does the dancer work well with their peers? Are they receptive to other ideas and help? Are they there to offer help as well? Do they collaborate
effectively?
Technical improvement:
How has the dancer's technical execution improved over the course of the season?
Stylistic improvement
: How has the dancer matured in terms of picking up stylistic nuance of each genre or style?
Recommendation for advancement? Y or N?
(* add a "teacher's notes" column for teachers to explain if they choose.) Would the teacher recommend the dancer advance to the next level in
that particular genre the following year? Would the child be better suited to remain in the current level the following year? This category might be well
suited for the teacher to jot down some quick thoughts as well. They can be brief but might indicate the thought process of the teacher on this particular
recommendation.
Next time in the "Evaluation in the studio sector" series, we'll look at the effects of implementing teacher evaluations.
