Student Feedback and Evaluation: Entrepreneurship Course 2017

In December 2017, we asked students at three AEA schools to evaluate and provide feedback on an innovative Entrepreneurship course we offered together with outstanding educational professionals inside of the school.

​In their first semester the students develop a business concept in small teams using Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur’s Business Model and Value Proposition Canvas. The teacher taught the content in conjunction with a variety of guest instructors who came in weekly to share subject matter expertise on a specific aspect of the business model canvas or the entrepreneurial process in which they had specific experience.

The semester culminated in a “shark tank” style competition across the three schools where over sixty executives advised students on how pitch their business ideas and then judged their business ideas. After completion of the shark tank competition, we surveyed students on their experience in the course. Both the quantitative and written feedback from the students is provided below.
 

Student qualitative feedback: Guest instructors/panels

• Good to have them come in. Really helped me better understand the content.
• They taught us a lot of valuable information
• They we’re really good
• I would have no idea about any of these topics if it wasn’t for the guest instructors.
• I thought that the best part of this class was the guest instructors because they taught us so much about a variety of topics.
• The guest instructors were helpful in teaching the content and putting the information in a real-world aspect.
• Having guest instructors come in helped us see how what we are learning applies to the real world and how we can take what we learn and apply it.
• They were able to give first-hand experience, which really helped
• The guest instructors were great and helped us understand the material better in an actual business setting.
• They helped explain the importance of what we were currently learning.
• It is a better way to learn than just having us take notes that I will not remember after class is over. The guests explained their topic in a way that helped me remember it even to this day.
• They were very helpful and kept me engaged.
• They were really personable and they were great to have.  It was nice to have someone come in and talk about what we might be interested in and hear about how they started their own business.
• The guest instructors were really fun. 
• The guest speakers are one of the most important parts of this class because they are real experts in the fields they are working so they are more qualified than anyone to teach about what they do for a living.
• The guest instructors helped to elaborate on the chapter we were discussing at the time to a greater extent, and helped me further understand how to incorporate it into my business.
• They had really good information for us, and I think it made the class better to have outside sources. I also connected with one of the guest instructors, and it is good to have connections.
• It really felt like real world experience showed what we were learning mattered and applied.
• I thought the input that was given was awesome. I learned a lot because of the panels. It was also good because I got the perspective of different business minded people.
• Having guest instructors was very useful and I learned very well through their teaching.

Student qualitative feedback: “Thinking back on this semester, how was this course different than the traditional classes you have had in high school?”

• It incorporated real world scenarios into the teaching and the class
• It will truly help me in my real world.
• A lot more hands on
• It was more involved outside of the class.
• It is useful, I will use this in my everyday life when I’m in the business world.
• I learned a lot more
• It was more real world
• This class is extraordinary compared to the regular classes.
• It helped me learn real life applications
• We were treated more like adults than high schoolers.
• It has more real world application than math class. and no breaks.
• We got to work hands on on a product of our own, also a lot more work time and not as much lectures
• I loved this course because I learned things that I will directly use in my life.
• It's more engaging and more applicable to the real world. There's more work outside of class than many of my other classes, especially when meeting with the rest of my group.
• This course gave me more real world experience which I enjoyed.
• It applies to real life
• The work was applied to real life
• I really enjoyed taking this class because it is all about application and taking what you know and applying it in the real world. This class has given me skills that I can take outside of high school which is really beneficial.
• Much more open ended
• There was actual competition, and we had a lot more time to work on it which was really nice.
• It was way more hands on, it felt like I was more in control.
• This class was a lot better because there was more hands on and we went places to see and make things more clear.
• The learning material was very different and offered more chances of critical thought
• We experience a lot of things about business and we have a chance to talk with many business professionals
• It was actually applicable to real life getting jobs.
• It was filled with surprises and you never knew what you would be doing in class.
• This was more hands on and more engaging.
• I learned a lot more useful things rather than just stuff I probably will never use in my life
• It was a lot more hands on learning and you got to make the product up yourself, we didn't just each have assigned projects and somehow had to make It unique.
• you have a different experience and you can see how the business world works
• It was more interactive and less just listening to boring lectures
• We didn't have anything like this before, so this was something new and something that became my favorite class to come because it was so different from any other class in the way it functions.
• We got to go on field trips. We have a lot of guest speakers. They taught us many helpful things. Even if some of us do not want to go into business, I think this class helped us with just ordinary stuff that a person should know. It is a very different class, there isn't a lot of work load but I think it is a very serious class. If you slack off then it isn't beneficial to you.
• This felt more like a college real life class. I loved it.
• The whole concept was different. The work, and the class were defiantly real world.
• It was much more hands on than any other course.
• This was more hands on and more engaging.

Student qualitative feedback: “Other feedback on the Entrepreneurship course?”

• All around great class
• It was a worthwhile course
• Overall very good and many helpful elements
• More field trips. Fun.
• It was a great class to be in. I learned a lot.
• great class!!!!
• A great learning experience, overall will be very helpful in the long run
• Great class.
• I really enjoyed this class and the opportunities that we got to have.
• If the team managed their responsibilities in a timely fashion, then the course was not that difficult. The harder thing was doing research and trying to differentiate the product from others.
• Overall I thought this class was really helpful and I am glad that I took it. I thought everything we learned was really important.
• Over all, it was a very fun class
• This was a very fun class to be a part of.
• It went really well
• Great class, awesome experience
• I love this class
• I really liked it.
• It was great, and when I first was entered In the class I didn't know if I was going to like it.  I ended up loving it, so this class has taught me about another side of myself.
• It was awesome
• Field trips are good because it shows us real functioning businesses
• This class is hard, but it is completely worth it to take. If I ever go into business or become an entrepreneur, I believe that this class will help me in that. I've been given so much valuable information and tips and things to avoid and things to take risks on. I would highly recommend this class to anyone looking for a challenge and a place to learn about business and entrepreneurship.
• It's a super fun class; it really is. I enjoyed every part of it. I learned a lot, and it helped me make my decision for college.
• I think it was a great class.
• I love this class!