Evaluating student team project experiences

Abstract

The first two courses in the computer science major at Rose-Hulman (Algorithm & Program Design and Data Structures) each have a five-week team-programming project as a component of the course. At the end of the projects, in addition to their program code, each team has to submit a user's manual and a technical manual for their product, and give a 15-20 minute oral presentation. The students are also required to evaluate the project experience on an individual basis.To facilitate the project evaluation, I designed three forms. One form is given to each team leader to complete, one form is given to the other team members, and the third form is used by me to evaluate (i.e., grade) the project. The general team member evaluation form asks the student if, in the student's opinion, everyone contributed his or her fair share to the project, how they viewed their time commitment to the project, what the strengths and weaknesses of their team leader were, to summarize the team dynamics on the project, and to comment on how worthwhile the project was. The evaluation form the team leaders complete asks them about the contributions of their team members; recommendations for "pay raises," "promotions," and "dismissals;" team dynamics; their strengths and weaknesses as team leaders; and how worthwhile the project was. The form I use to evaluate the projects has areas for me to comment on their oral presentation, the software quality, the program design, and the documentation, as well as provide a numeric grade in each area.