Student Perspectives on Teaching and its Evaluation

Abstract

The research on student ratings of instruction, while voluminous, has had minimal focus on the perceptions of the students who do the ratings. The current study explored student perspectives on course and teacher ratings as well as some issues related to teaching effectiveness and faculty roles. It was found that students are generally willing to do evaluations and to provide feedback, and have no particular fear of repercussions. However, they have little con dence that faculty or administrators pay attention to the results, and do not even consult the ratings themselves. The students view teaching and advising as the most important roles that should be played by faculty, yet project that faculty, while also viewing teaching as the most important, would rank research above the more student-interactive advising. Canonical correlations among various scales reveal a strong emphasis on such issues of the importance of faculty respect for student views.Student ratings of instruction have been in extensive use on college campuses for several decades (e.g. Marsh, 1987;Seldin, 1993), and, despite some inconsistencies and unresolved issues, have been relatively well accepted by researchers and practitioners in the eld. The vast research literature has primarily focused on such areas as their reliability, validity, relationships to other variables, and potentially biasing factors, leading to such conclusions as those by Marsh and Bailey (1993), who held that for well-constructed instruments, such ratings are: (a) multidimensional; (b) reliable and stable; (c) primarily a function of the instructor who teaches a course rather than of the course that is taught; (d) relatively valid against a variety of indicators of effective teaching; [and] (e) relatively unaffected by a variety of variables hypothesized as potential biases to the ratings. (p. 1) Among the plethora of studies are many that have uncovered various dimensions used as organising structures in the creation of instruments. Others have explored differences

Student Voices about the Role Feedback Plays in the Enhancement of their Learning

“…For this reason, it is advantageous if teachers signal to students changes they have made in their teaching as a consequence of student feedback (Spencer & Schmelkin, 2002). The students spoke in an approbatory manner of teachers who consulted with them on action plans they had formulated in response to formal feedback.…”

Technical College Teachers’ Communication and Its Impact on Student Motivation

“…According to Fraser (1998), Shuell (1996, and Shulman (1986), it can be assumed that students' learning and motivation are determined by their perceptions, and not by teachers' intentions and emotions (Mayer, Solovey & Caruso, 2000). Spencer and Schmelkin (2002) found that the instructor's personal characteristics were perceived by students as preferred effective teaching attributes. These preferred personal characteristics included (a) demonstrating concern for students, (b) valuing learners' opinions, (c) clarity in communication, and (d) openness toward varied opinions.…”

Rethink Student Evaluation of Teaching

“…Due to the fact that SET might affect the employment decisions, instructors might grade leniently. Spencer and Schmelkin (2002) argued that if schools use only one evaluation conducted at the end of the semester, there might be a tendency that students remember more about what the instructor has done right before the evaluation. Although, at the end of semester, students could give an overall evaluation, students' attitudes towards the evaluations are seldom inquired.…”