Sample Letter to Review Prof. René Descartes

I observed Professor René Descartes on January 25^th, 2018, when he was teaching Introduction to Philosophy. This letter contains a summary of my observations.

The course was a large 200-person lecture with several teaching assistants. It was an introductory class with a wide variety of students, held in a large lecture hall. Prior to class I met with Professor Descartes and asked him to describe his teaching goals for the day’s lecture, where he was in the class material, and how he would like to proceed. He told me that this would be one of the foundational lectures on critical thinking in philosophy and shared his interest in using active learning techniques. He said that he was a little concerned about engaging all the students and would particularly appreciate any advice I had for reaching those students who may be drifting off to sleep in the back row. I observed the entire hour and a half lecture and am happy to report on what I saw.

First, Professor Descartes had nothing to worry about concerning students in the back row. All the students that I observed seemed very interested in learning from such an eminent instructor, and eagerly awaited each new topic. His use of active learning techniques such as discussion questions and assignments where he asked students to write answers on index cards and share them with a neighbor kept all students awake and interested. It was quite a pleasure to sit through the experience. He gave a particularly clear and lucid explanation of how to employ logical thought puzzles to reach seemingly impossible conclusions. Professor Descartes is clearly very committed to teaching and has an incredible teaching style.

That said, I have some suggestions which may be useful. First, the lecture was crammed full of different objectives, from “describe the use of observations in philosophical reasoning” to “analyze different logical methods in the philosophical sciences.” While the professor is clearly an expert in all these areas, and clearly wants his students to know it all, he seemed rushed to get through the material in the short amount of time. It might be better to more carefully select two or three outcomes and focus the class on them instead of trying to do too much. In fact, students seemed to have many questions about each module that were cut short by the brief time available.

Sometimes Professor Descartes did not completely answer student questions in the most patient way. I noticed two instances in which he brushed off questions when they did not fully contribute to his agenda. This might have been related to the many lesson outcomes. I would suggest that Professor Descartes provide a little more patience in his responses and try to understand what the student really is concerned about.

Finally, time management may be a concern. When the time was up, Professor Descartes was so lost in his train of thought, he kept lecturing until students could be seen streaming out of the class. Though he is clearly very passionate about this material, students would surely appreciate it he would end when the time is up. One strategy that works for me is the use of a stopwatch on my desk – which I set for 15-minute intervals to cover each topic.

Overall Professor Descartes is a terrific instructor who serves our students well. I hope that he will take these suggestions into consideration as he continues to improve his courses.

Sincerely,

Professor Immanuel Kant