FACTORS AFFECTING FACULTY EVALUATION BY STUDENTS IN KERMAN UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES

Abstract

Background Using students 'judgment through opinion questionnaires is one important tool in determining the faculty members' success in the education process. Purpose To determine the factors affecting faculty evaluation by students. Methods In this cross sectional study the students in different years from all schools of Kerman University of Medical Sciences (KUMS) participated. Data was gathered from 505 students by a questionnaire consisting of two parts; the first part included the demographic data of the students and faculty members and the second consisted of 10 questions in Likert 5-level scale. These questions were based on the formal evaluation questionnaire developed by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education were modified after consulting with the experts of KUMS and determining the weight of each choice by the trim mean method. The validity of the questionnaire was determined by considering the experts' opinion through Delphi method and by using the content validity method (r=0.89). The reliability of the questionnaire was determined by a repeat test (r =0.91). Results Using SPSS software, data were analyzed by central and distribution indices with T-test. univariate test and regression test. In general. the majority of faculty members (69.8%) have u good rating in education, in the viewpoint of students. In assessment of /he effective factors, these variables were found to have a significant influence: the academic degree of the faculty member (P<0.001), faculty member's sex (P<0.01), the subject (P<0.05), student ·s age (P<0.05) and final score (P<0.01). the instructor's dedication and interest in the subject {P<0.001) and instructor's strictness (P<0.02), so that the higher scientific degrees, male faculty members, specific subjects and dedicated faculty members received a better score and strictness had a negative impact. Conclusion The students' evaluation of faculty members is affected by some factors, which reflects the complex nature of evaluation, the necessity of caution and attention in making conclusions and judging on the basis of a multi-dimensional assessment of the educational performance of the faculty members. Keywords faculty evaluation, Effective factors, Student faculty evaluation