End-of-Course Evaluations - Creating Realistic Tools That Provide Objective Feedback

How are Evaluation Responses Treated ?

A trend of negative responses should trigger awareness that something may be wrong. This can be used to corroborate administrative evaluations of the instructor. The evaluation documents, however, must never be used as an instrument of fear and intimidation. They can be successfully used to alter teaching methodologies that might better conform to curricular goals.

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Often, student “comments” sections provide the richest feedback. If students universally hated a particular reading, it might be time to replace it. If the instructor did not employ technology or utilize on-line tools like Blackboard, instructors may wish to redesign instructional formats.

Updating Course Evaluations Regularly

Schools and institutions using the same evaluation tool from year to year fail to take into account changing student demographics. It is also a lazy way of advertising, “We have a system of end-of-course evaluations.” The evaluation document must be subject to yearly review by appropriate institutional committees in order to retain integrity and objectivity. Only then will the evaluation become a useful barometer for instructors and department heads.

End-of-Course Evaluations

Many high schools and almost all colleges and universities facilitate end-of-course evaluations that focus on the instructor and the scope of the subject matter covered. In many cases, such evaluations are mandatory under regional accreditation guidelines and must be archived as part of the on-going self-evaluation of the institution. Not all evaluation documents, however, are constructed to elicit objective responses.

Problematic Questions on Course Evaluations

Frequently, students are asked to grade the instructor. Questions such as, “how knowledgeable was the instructor in this course” and “was the instructor fair” are far too subjective and relative. For such questions, students often have no basis for comparison. Further, students anticipating a final grade lower than expected will respond with hostility, giving an unfair picture of the overall instruction. As one department chair told a new adjunct professor, “Don’t be affected by the atrocities you supposedly committed in your classes.”

Some institutions use standardized evaluations that address everything from text books to labs. Many classes, such as English, History, and Psychology, do not have labs. Invariably, however, students will attempt to answer lab-based questions. Whenever possible, course evaluations need to be tailored to the specific subject area.

On-Line Evaluations Work Best

It can be argued that evaluations given out to students during one of the last class sessions ensure a higher degree of compliance than on-line evaluations. Web based evaluations, however, provide a greater opportunity for detailed feedback and the results can be graphed and compared to other similar classes. Some institutions offer rewards for compliance. For example, institutions may offer book store credits or gift cards if a certain threshold of compliance is attained by individual classes.

Using Course Evaluations in Lower Grades

Ideally, good evaluation responses are tied to student maturity. This is not possible in any grade under the junior year in high school. Evaluations depend on higher level thinking, conceptual processing, and the ability to compare and contrast. Younger students generally are not able to fulfill these characteristics and will fall back on subjective responses.