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This paper examines the volume and type of anonymous comments academics receive in student evaluations of courses and teaching (SETs) at the 16,000 higher education institutions that collect this data at the end of each teaching period. Existing research has increasingly pointed to the negative issues of student surveys, but very little research has focused on the volume, type, and impact of anonymous student comments on academics. This paper analyses the survey results of 674 academics to inform higher education leaders and the sector more widely of the amount and type of abusive comments academics are receiving. The work also demonstrates that the highest volume, most derogatory, and most threatening abuse is directed towards women academics and those academics from marginalised groups. The paper finds that previous estimates of the rate and severity of abusive comments that academics receive, and the impact to academics' wellbeing, mental health, and career progression, have underestimated what is taking place. The paper argues that many universities are failing to protect their staff from this abuse, and the prejudice nature of SET results, which will continue to have a negative impact on the career progression of marginalised academics - a major flaw in a sector that prides itself on diversity and inclusion., Author(s): Troy Heffernan [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.1018.8, 0000 0001 2342 0938, La Trobe University, , Plenty Rd & Kingsbury Dr, 3086, Bundoora, VIC , Australia Introduction This paper evaluates [...]

The practice of completing a student evaluation of a professor's teaching effectiveness is a common experience among college students. Research of this practice can be found as early as the beginning part of last century. In recent years, a variety of web-based non-university approved tools are being utilized by students to communicate with their peers. The current study sought the correlation between three perceived factors: professors' ratings from a widely used external evaluation service, effects of the size of the institution within the same public university system, and the levels of difficulty of course content. The results indicated that students scored professors higher when they perceived the material to be accessible, with some academic challenge, and at a medium sized university. Limitations are noted and suggestions for further research are included., Introduction Higher education is no stranger to the use of student evaluations of teaching (SET). A study by Spooren and Christaens (2017) stated that it is 'important to recognize that [...]

This paper describes a process for developing a student-focussed survey to gather teaching- and learning-related feedback from university students and examines the psychometric properties of a short survey for confidential feedback to lecturers in higher education regarding teaching. Analyses were performed at the level of individual respondents and on teacher-average responses. Principal component and exploratory factor analyses at both levels indicated a single underlying lecturing effectiveness factor. Scale scores had high internal consistency. The items and subsequent scale were also consistent in terms of interrater reliability, i.e., the average consistency of ratings of an individual lecturer. Finally, at both levels of analysis, strong correlations between responses to each item and an overall rating provided support for the concurrent validity of the items. These analyses provide initial evidence of the suitability of the survey for gathering confidential student feedback on lecturing effectiveness.

When the Tail Wagging the Dog award was announced, I thought it a clever joke. After assurance from Professor Rott of its reality, I stopped laughing--SEF [student evaluations of faculty [...]

The lesson interruption method consists in interrupting the lesson at predetermined occasions on which students respond to a short questionnaire about the teacher's or the students' behaviors. Some experiences with this method are reported; it can be a useful tool both for research on teaching particularly when the behavior is situation-specific and when feedback to teachers is desired.

The impact of teachers' feedback on students' performance is examined.

Abstract Most end-of-course evaluation instruments elicit students' attitudes about instructors and the role that they play in the teaching/learning process. As thinking about university teaching becomes more student-centered, assessment must [...]

Abstract This article explains one school's efforts at redesigning student evaluations of courses and suggests appropriate uses of student evaluations for improvement of instruction. Introduction In many colleges and universities, [...]

At the first meeting in the week of December 9, 1929, every undergraduate student in the University of Washington was asked to appraise each of his classes and each instructor [...]

Most people groan when presented with an evaluation form. It is not too bad if there is just a column of boxes to tick, but it becomes a real pain [...]