Teaching Strategies: Evaluation of Teaching Effectiveness
The articles and links in this section provide information about multiple methods for collecting data on teaching effectiveness. The overview includes articles and links with advice for best practices in teaching evaluation and examples of comprehensive systems of evaluation. The section on peer review includes a method for sound classroom observation as well as discussion of reviewing course materials. Finally, the last section on student ratings and midterm student feedback includes summaries of the extensive body of research on this topic, including tips for best practices in the administration and interpretation of ratings. CRLT has numerous books and articles on evaluation, and we are available to consult with administrators and executive committees as they develop or revise their approaches.
Methods Evaluating Teaching
http://www.crlt.umich.edu/evaluation/teacheval.php
An overview of teaching evaluation that includes basic principles of best practice as well as a description of multiple methods and data sources for evaluation.
How
to Evaluate Teaching ( Felder and Brent, 2004)
http://www.ncsu.edu/felder-public/Columns/Teacheval.pdf
This article offers a brief outline of a process for obtaining a comprehensive evaluation of the quality of a faculty member's teaching using multiple sources of data.
IDEA
Paper #36: Appraising Teaching Effectiveness: Beyond Student Ratings
(Donald P. Hoyt and William H. Pallett, 1999, IDEA Center)
http://www.theideacenter.org/sites/default/files/Idea_Paper_36.pdf
This paper describes direct and indirect benefits of several sources for evaluating teaching effectiveness, including ratings from students, colleagues, and the department chair. It also details specific schedules for evaluating different types of teachers, such as first year faculty, non-tenured, and tenured (see p. 6). Evaluation and report templates are found in the appendices.
Obtaining and Giving Feedback to GSIs (from CRLT Handbook on Departmental
GSI Training)
http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/depthndbk/Chapt7(2007).pdf
This resource discusses several ways faculty coordinators can provide GSIs with feedback on their teaching, both for improvement and for personnel decisions. Methods include student feedback, self evaluation, peer observation, viewing a videotape of your teaching, and consultation with a CRLT staff member or someone from your department.
A
Protocol for Peer Review of Teaching. ( Brent and Felder, 2004)
http://www.ncsu.edu/felder-public/Papers/ASEE04(Peer-Review).pdf
An outline of a system for obtaining a reliable peer rating of the quality of course instruction.
How
do I design a peer review program?
http://teachingacademy.wisc.edu/archive/Assistance/MOO/design.htm
This resource from the University of Wisconsin–Madison teaching Academy aims to help departments design their own, unique, peer review program based on sound fundamental peer review ideas and the needs of the department.
How
do I conduct a review of a colleague's teaching?
http://teachingacademy.wisc.edu/archive/Assistance/MOO/reviewer.htm
This resource from UW-Madison details a five-step process for conducting a peer review of teaching. Specific techniques to assist reviewers in providing feedback are included at the end of the page.
Student Ratings and Midterm Student Feedback
Office of Evaluations and Examinations
http://www.umich.edu/~eande/
The University of Michigan’s E&E Office helps teachers and departments collect student evaluations of University courses, conduct classroom examinations, and administer placement exams.
IDEA Paper #32: Summary of Student Ratings Research (Cashin, 1995, IDEA Center)
http://www.theideacenter.org/sites/default/files/Idea_Paper_32.pdf
A review of the major literature on student ratings from 1971-1995.
Literature Review on Student Ratings (Ali and Sell, 1998, University of Calgary)
http://www.ucalgary.ca/usri/node/48
Making Sense of Student Evaluations (Reihman, Lehigh University)
http://www.lehigh.edu/~infdli/FD-evaluations.htm
Advice for reacting to your own set of instructor evaluations. The author’s view is that although no measure of teaching effectiveness is perfect, teachers can nevertheless gain a great deal by taking our student evaluations seriously. To that end, he offers suggestions for how to approach student evaluations.
RateMyProfessors.com versus
formal in-class student evaluations of teaching (Coladarci & Kornfield,
University of Maine, 2007)
http://pareonline.net/pdf/v12n6.pdf
Study finds a correlation between institutional student evaluations of teaching and scores on ratemyprofessor.com. The authors suggest that institutions should make student evaluation data available publicly, since students are using those data available to them.
Midterm Student Feedback (MSF)
http://www.crlt.umich/tstrategies/tsmsf.php
Description of a CRLT service that allows instructors to collect feedback from students while there is still time in the term to make changes. A CRLT consultant collects the feedback and consults with the instructor about the results.
Related Items:
Evaluation of Student Learning (Testing, Grading, Feedback) http://www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/teachings.php#studentlearning
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
http://www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tsst.php