Measure Of Teaching Effectiveness Research Articles

Small programs, big challenges: Reimagining the evaluation of clinical teaching in genetic counseling.

Within the health professions education system, a significant proportion of teaching and learning occurs in the clinical setting. As such, the need to measure effective teaching for accreditation standards, faculty development, merit pay, academic promotion, and for monitoring the safety of the learning environment has led to numerous universities developing instruments to evaluate teaching effectiveness in this context. To date; however, these instruments typically focus on the student perspective, despite evidence demonstrating that student evaluations of teaching (SETs) lack correlation with learning outcomes and are not a true measure of teaching effectiveness. This issue is further exacerbated in small health professional training programs, such as genetic counseling, where clinical teachers may only supervise 1-3 students per year. As a result, not only are SETs more confounded due to small sample sizes, but a direct conflict exists between respecting learner anonymity and providing timely and relevant feedback to faculty. In such contexts, even using SETs to evaluate the nature of the learning environment may be unreliable due to student concerns about identifiability and fear of retaliation for unfavorable evaluation. This paper will review the literature regarding SETs, barriers to this process within the clinical setting, and the unintended downstream consequences. Options for addressing issues related to the use of SETs will be considered, with particular focus on the process of reflection and the use of teaching consultations or peer support groups as a means to improve teaching effectiveness in this learning environment.

Fostering young children’s scientific practices in urban and Indigenous areas: an investigation of instructional strategies

ABSTRACT This study examined children’s improvement in scientific practices, teaching effectiveness and the interplay of teaching and performances in Taiwan. Five teachers from two urban and two Indigenous classes were invited to implement a science learning module. They taught 73 children with an average age of 5 years and 8 months. Each child took a performance assessment of scientific practices before and after the learning module. Independent samples t tests and ANCOVA were employed to compare the performances of children in the two groups. Teachers’ lessons were videotaped and transcribed. Two coding schemes, teachers’ strategies and children’s practices, were developed and quantified to measure teaching effectiveness and analyse the interplay between two factors. We found that similar children’s improvement and teaching effectiveness provided a base for comparison of teachers’ instruction. Multiple strategies were used to guide urban children to make a plan and Indigenous children to share their investigation. Additionally, urban teachers tended to use strategies such as asking simple questions and reconciling disputes, while their counterparts often connected lessons to children’s experiences and guided them to compare and contrast. The findings shed light on effective early science instruction that responds to children’s cultural backgrounds, developmental needs and learning contexts.

Harmonizing Perceptions: Exploring Alignment of Numerical and Textual Evaluation Through Fine-Grained Sentiment Analysis

The assessment of faculty teaching effectiveness plays a pivotal role in shaping educational practices and ensuring academic excellence. While numerical evaluations provide quantifiable measures of teaching effectiveness, textual comments offer valuable qualitative insights into the faculty's instructional methods and interactions. However, discrepancies between these evaluation formats may hinder the accurate assessment of faculty performance. This study aims to determine the alignment between the numerical and textual evaluations of faculty teaching effectiveness using fine-grained sentiment analysis and determine the relationship between numerical ratings and textual comments to identify patterns of consistency or divergence. A large dataset of anonymized BSCS students’ feedback is analyzed through sentiment analysis to extract sentiments expressed in the textual comments. The study results reveal a misalignment between students’ subjective perceptions expressed in the textual comments and the numerical ratings. This misalignment arises due to several factors, such as student communication style variations, individual interpretations of rating scales, or subjective biases. This study advances faculty evaluation methodologies and offers useful recommendations for organizations looking to improve assessment procedures as well as educational institutions that want to improve the precision and efficacy of their faculty evaluation systems for better faculty development and decision-making.

Academic entitlement and Ratemyprofessors.com evaluations bias student teaching evaluations: Implications for faculty evaluation and policy-lenient professors’ occupational health

This study explored relationships between academic entitlement (AE) and Ratemyprofessors.com (RMP) use. It also investigated, while controlling for AE, if RMP evaluation positivity influences students' intentions to ask for policy exemptions, beliefs professors would provide them, intentions to reward and punish professors contingent upon provision of policy exemptions by improving or lowering their student teaching evaluations, and intentions to evaluate and reenroll with professors. Following exposure to RMP evaluations, participants (n = 320) rated their intentions and beliefs toward a fictional professor. They also completed an AE measure. AE was related to frequency of writing RMP evaluations as well as participants' intentions to ask for exemptions, beliefs they would receive them, and intentions to reward and punish professors. RMP evaluation positivity affected participants' intentions to ask for and beliefs they would receive policy exemptions as well as intention to evaluate and reenroll with professors. Effects did not differ by professor or student gender. Participants reported intention to improve the evaluation of professors who provide any policy exemption. This study's findings suggest that student attitudes related to AE and impacted by RMP evaluations have significant implications for professors' occupational health via requests for policy exemptions and the consequences of professors' responses to them. These findings also contribute to the body of evidence that student teaching evaluations do not exclusively measure teaching effectiveness. Similar to grade leniency, policy leniency may bias student teaching evaluations. These contribute to the ongoing discussion of the use of student teaching evaluations in faculty personnel decisions and underscore the need for robust approaches to professor evaluation.

A framework for using SET when evaluating faculty

ABSTRACT This paper presents a framework for utilizing Student Evaluations of Teaching (SET) in faculty evaluations. Recognizing the ongoing debate about the validity of SET as a measure of teaching effectiveness, the authors agree with scholars who propose viewing SET as a tool for gauging ‘student perceptions of learning’. They present a method that combines post-estimation residuals from an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) model, which accounts for key confounding factors, with simple mean SET scores. This approach provides a more nuanced perspective on each faculty member's individual ratings. The authors draw on SET data from courses taught by tenured faculty in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at a large, private university in the Northeastern United States. Their findings suggest that the proposed residual framework can help address some of the concerns associated with the use of SET in personnel decision-making. However, they caution that this approach requires careful explanation and should be used in conjunction with a comprehensive review of a professor's full teaching portfolio. The study contributes to the ongoing discourse on the use of SET in faculty evaluations, offering a more equitable and nuanced approach to interpreting SET data.

Fine-Grained, Nomination Coding in the Support Domain: Promising Teacher Discourse Measures

In this study, we report results from a novel coding of the Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) Study data that offers evidence on a set of teacher discourse measures in the domain of teacher support including: public praise vs. admonishment, autonomy support vs. controlling language, strategy suggestion vs. lack thereof, and discourse supporting (vs. undermining) learning mindsets. Novel coding of these constructs is paired with extant measures of instruction and achievement in the MET data. Several of the newly coded discourse measures have promising features, including high lesson- and teacher-level variability, and convergent and discriminant validity with existing protocols. We also report possible associations with change in achievement over two years.

Research on action recognition for college dance teaching based on deep learning

Abstract In this paper, Gaussian modeling is established to perform background subtraction of action feature images of dancers and combined with median filtering to denoise the background of feature images. The cumulative edge feature algorithm extracts relevant features from the dance dataset using the dance itself. Based on this, the directional gradient is introduced to output the extracted dance histogram features and cascade the optical flow histogram feature vectors in all blocks to form the HOF features of the image. The deep learning model is used to design the dance teaching model, and the teaching objectives are determined. The effect of dance teaching is tested through the method of simulation experiments and empirical analysis. The loss value of the model without deep learning is very high, reaching 1.25, and the loss values after convergence of the parametric model using deep learning are 0.85 and 0.95, and the deep learning algorithm has a better optimization effect on the model. The scores of the seven measures of teaching effectiveness are all above 12, and the significance p-value of each indicator is <0.05. The dance teaching effect is significant.

Evaluating the validity evidence surrounding use of value-added models to evaluate teachers: A systematic review

Local education agencies (LEAs) continue to use value-added models (VAMs) for teacher evaluation policies and purposes, often with consequences attached. Although the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) provides more flexibility to LEAs, few have discontinued VAM use, suggesting they interpret VAMs as a valid measure of teacher effectiveness. In this systematic review, we used a framework built on the Standards of Educational and Psychological Testing (AERA et al., 2014) to examine validity evidence contained in 75 articles published in high-quality, peer-reviewed journals in which article authors supported or challenged user interpretations and uses of VAMs. Results with implications for educational policy are presented.

How do Students and Faculty Consider Numerical Ratings and Comments About Daily Quizzing when Interpreting Student Evaluations of Teaching?

Background: Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are used to assess faculty performance, but prior research has identified sources of bias in the completion and interpretation of SETs. Objective: We investigated how SET ratings and comments about quizzes are interpreted by faculty and undergraduates. Method: Participants made judgments about teaching effectiveness after reviewing a fictional professor's SETs. SETs varied in whether the professor was rated lower or higher than the departmental average using quantitative measures, and whether qualitative comments about the professor mentioned daily quizzes. Results: In Experiment 1, more positive evaluations were provided for SETs with higher ratings, whereas comments about quizzing minimally influenced evaluations; this pattern was similar for student and faculty responses. In Experiment 2, qualitative comments were presented in isolation. Student participants provided more positive evaluations for some measures of teaching effectiveness when regular quizzing was mentioned in student comments. Conclusion: Quantitative SET ratings may overshadow qualitative comments about effective teaching practices yet qualitative ratings presented alone reveal some association between quizzing and evaluations of teaching. Teaching Implications: SET interpretation should focus on effective pedagogy such as quizzing, which can aid student learning. We found no evidence that comments about quizzing lowered perceptions of teaching effectiveness.

Student Evaluations of Teaching: Understanding Limitations and Advocating for a Gold Standard for Measuring Teaching Effectiveness

The arbitrator’s decision in Ryerson University v Ryerson Faculty Association [2018] CanLII 58446 (ON LA) rejected use of Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) for academic confirmation and promotion purposes. SETs provide largely quantitative data in response to pre-determined institutional, generic questions using a Likert scale applicable to all teaching modes. SETs may be efficient, but commonly low response rates mean the data is often statistically invalid. Studies of SETs suggest gender, age, race, and other biases are widespread, and they discourage teaching innovation because academics fear student backlash in SET scores. Consequently, SETs are of little value to academics for their professional development, confirmation or promotion, or as evidence for teaching grant or awards processes. The continuing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on traditional models of teaching has forced many changes in teaching, learning and pedagogy, often with a temporary suspension of SETs to allow teachers to innovate without negative impact on professional development measures. This presents a unique opportunity for us to revisit how the effectiveness of teaching and learning is measured. Academic teaching staff still need evidence of teaching effectiveness, as do sessional staff looking for continued employment and/or a career in academia. This paper discusses the strengths and weaknesses of SETs; seeks to equip law academics to advocate for other measures of teaching effectiveness that better reflect their contribution to student learning; and to pave the way for law discipline and institutional level changes that support a gold standard in measuring teaching effectiveness beyond reliance on SETs, for the benefit of teachers in law and other disciplines.

The Effectiveness of Teaching English of EYL Course In Elementary School

This study aims to describe the effectiveness of teaching English of EYL Course in SDN 07 Kota Bengkulu. It was designed as a qualitative research in which the data were obtained via interview and documentation. The data were also analyzed by applying main indicators and criteria in measuring teaching effectiveness. On the one hand, the indicators were consisted of mastery learning, student learning activity, management ability, and student responses. On the other hand, the criteria comprised time allocation and student motivation. The results indicated that the apprentice teacher of Muhammadiyah University of Bengkulu mastered in delivering lesson materials. Then, the students showed the different attitudes during attending the class of EYL. Some of whom were active and some tended to be passive. However, management skill of the apprentice teacher was not called to be well-structured yet. It was also observed from their ability to allocate time in delivering lesson materials of EYL. Additionally, motivation of the students mostly came from their perspective about English. Most of whom considered having skill in speaking English was very cool. In conclusion, teaching EYL in SDN 07 Kota Bengkulu is effective to conduct because both indicators and criteria have tendency to be positive, even though ability of the apprentice teachers are still not professional yet.Key Words: Effectiveness, EYL Course, Elementary School.

Psychometric analysis of a questionnaire with BARS. An opportunity to improve teaching effectiveness measurement programs and decision making in accreditation processes

In the field of teaching effectiveness measurement programs, studies on the validation of Behavioral Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) are minimal when compared with Likert instruments. The reason for this situation is a consequence of the limited number of universities opting for this type of questionnaire in their teaching effectiveness measurement programs. This situation is due to the thoroughness, time investment and strong involvement of human resources required in the design of these scales. The aim of this investigation is twofold. On the one hand, to analyze the validity of a questionnaire for measuring teaching effectiveness that uses BARS. On the other, to check whether this instrument, designed in a given university with the participation of the professors and students of this institution, can be valid for other universities. The study is carried out in three Spanish universities. The validation process considers: comprehension validity, EFA, CFA with structural equation modeling, and reliability analysis. The results show that BARS under examination are valid for measuring teaching effectiveness; not only in the institution where they are designed, but also in other universities different from the one in which the questionnaire is constructed. The findings of this research open new alternatives not only to improve teaching effectiveness measurement programs but also to enhance decision making in accreditation processes.

Why It Is Wrong to Use Student Evaluations of Professors as a Measure of Teaching Effectiveness in Personnel Assessments: An Unjust Risk of Harm Account

Abstract I argue that university supervisors should not use student evaluations of teachers (SETs) as a measure of teaching effectiveness in personnel assessments because the evidence suggests SETs likely violate several duties university supervisors have toward their instructional employees. I focus on the duty to not knowingly impose a wrongful risk of harm on nonconsenting and innocent others. Many university employers impose a wrongful risk of harm on instructors by not using relevant, merit-based performance indicators that have adequate construct validity, by using uncorrected indicators that likely perpetuate discrimination, and by incentivizing instructors to do wrong. The use of SETs imposes unjust risk of harm on all instructors, but the risk is higher for women, minorities, and those in precarious, teaching-focused roles. In conclusion, I tentatively suggest some other means of evaluating student learning and assessing instructors.

New frontiers in student evaluations of teaching: university efforts to design and test a new instrument for student feedback

Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are a ubiquitous feature of higher education. However, scholars have presented numerous challenges to the accuracy, validity, reliability and objectivity of SETs as a measure of teaching effectiveness. Given the potential for bias, the use of SETs in professional review may constitute a form of institutional discrimination. Therefore, institutions of higher learning need to develop, adopt and refine better methods for collecting and using student feedback. This paper describes the steps taken by a mid-sized comprehensive university in the USA over a three-year period to do that. We describe the work of our committee dealing with this issue, how we collaborated with the rest of the university to enact change, and the Learning Environment Survey (LENS) system that the university eventually selected and modified. We also report findings from a pilot study of the new instrument, which was favorably received by both students and faculty, and make recommendations for other institutions of higher education.

Abstract 80: Teaching Students To Teach About Stroke

Background: Inadequate stroke prevention and stroke symptom identification delays contribute to higher stroke incidence and worse outcome in African American patients and those living in disadvantaged communities. It is not known how best to improve community stroke awareness. Studies have shown effectiveness of children teaching parents about stroke. Evidence regarding students teaching other students is lacking. Primary Objective: To increase awareness of stroke risk factors and stroke signs/symptoms/call 911 in an urban high school. Secondary Objectives: 1. Teach students the principles of teaching peers. 2. Assess effectiveness of a creative versus standard teaching method. Methods: Prospective, cross-over, community-based study in which 48 sophomore students from an urban high school were taught stroke risk factors and signs/symptoms/call 911. These Student Teachers then taught these topics to peers from the same school using a creative or standard method. Student Learners were blinded to the teaching method. Pre and post-tests were used to measure teaching effectiveness with possible scores ranging from 0 to 39. Results: Forty-four Student Learners took at least one of three tests (pre, post and one-month retention). Thirty-three Student Learners took pre and post-tests, while 17 took all three. Improvements in both mean post-test scores (4.8, p < 0.001) and mean retention scores (3.4, p = 0.002), irrespective of teaching method, were observed. Thirteen Student Teachers took the retention test. There was no difference in scores relative to teaching method. Scores of Student Teachers who taught stroke risk factors, compared to those who taught signs/symptoms/call 911, were better (35.4 vs. 31.0, p = 0.049). Conclusion: Awareness of stroke risk factors and signs/symptoms/call 911 improved in high school students who were taught by peers regardless of the teaching method. Limitations which impacted the results include attendance, COVID restrictions, and scheduling challenges. We will mitigate limitations in the next phase of the project.

Race and teaching evaluations: evidence from the covid-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT While faculty of colour tend to receive lower course evaluations, it is unclear whether the lack of face-to-face interaction during the COVID-19 pandemic affected them differently. We examine this question using course-level data from a large US university. Estimates from our difference-in-differences models show that non-white faculty suffered a larger decline in ratings compared to their white peers, with the effect persisting even after controlling for English as the faculty’s second language. These findings contribute in furthering the discussion on how universities value course evaluations to measure teaching effectiveness and allocate faculty resources.

Unpacking the Relationship Between Classroom Teacher Characteristics and Time to English Learner Reclassification

Reclassification is a crucial outcome for English learner (EL) students’ academic progress. Though ELs spend a large portion of their academic time with general education teachers, we know little about the role general education teachers play in developing ELs’ English language proficiency. Drawing from a longitudinal administrative dataset from Tennessee, this study uses discrete-time survival analysis to estimate the relationship between ELs’ likelihood of reclassification and characteristics of their general education English language arts (ELA) teachers in Grades 3–8. The study finds that several measures of teacher effectiveness consistently predict EL reclassification. Sensitivity and robustness checks substantiate these relationships. Findings have important policy implications for the identification and assignment of ELs to effective general education ELA teachers.

Institutional Approaches to Evaluate Teaching Effectiveness: The Role of Summative Peer Review of Teaching for Promotion and Tenure

A growing body of literature has identified student evaluations of teaching (SETs) as introducing bias against minority faculty members and not serving as a reliable or valid measure of teaching effectiveness. This lack of reliability and validity presents issues for university tenure and promotion committees, as these institutional processes necessarily require accurate, objective, and holistically informed modes of evaluation to recognize teaching achievements. Summative peer review of teaching (SPRT) is an alternative mode of assessment that aims to provide evidence of teaching effectiveness to inform promotion and tenure. SPRT, as an institutional practice, has been adopted at a small cohort of institutions of higher education, marking a potential shift in practice. This article examines SETs to articulate the problematic elements introduced by SETs, specifically to examine if SPRT can serve as a viable alternative. By describing the SPRT processes that four institutions have taken, the authors aim to articulate these emerging approaches to collecting evidence of teaching effectiveness. In this descriptive work, it is our secondary contention that SPRT, through intentional design and facilitation, can offer a process that does not introduce bias in the same way as SETs and thus, can also be used to satisfy the growing need for practices that help achieve, in part, institutional goals related to equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).

Measuring Teaching Effectiveness with Behavioral Scales: A Systematic Literature Review

Measuring Teaching Effectiveness with Behavioral Scales: A Systematic Literature Review

The Chair's Role in Assurance of Learning

The Chair's Role in Assurance of Learning