Teacher evaluations do make an impact

Megan Bowen
Staff Writer
May 6, 2004, Page 1

The time has come when students get a chance to grade their professors.
Teacher evaluations take place at the end of every semester. These evaluations consist of several questions dealing with the professor’s teaching skills, attitude, relationship to students, assignments and tests. The students fill in the circles ranging from “Strongly Agree” to “Strongly Disagree.”
Many students feel that these evaluations are just a waste of time and have questions about what happens to the forms after students fill in their opinions.
The envelopes are sealed and handed in by a student after they leave the classroom. The evaluations remain anonymous to the professors.
Kathy Sand, Faculty Office Manager and Head Secretary, said that once the envelopes are handed to her, she scans them and the evaluations are turned into numerical data. She says this takes three or four days to do.
Following scanning, this data is sent to the Institutional Research office for analysis. This is where Rebecca Gonzales’ role in the process begins.
“After the results are given to me, I turn them into a statistical analysis,” Gonzales said. “From here, they go to Academic Affairs.”
Director of Academic Affairs Nan Weilage said that the analysis becomes a summary sheet. Each course has an individual ranking and all the courses together get an overall ranking. Each department keeps a copy in their file to use in faculty reviews.
“These definitely are considered in the reviews,” Weilage said.
While faculty does get reviewed every year, the first, third and sixth year reviews are considered more important than most years. Student evaluations play a major role in these reviews.
The evaluations are then handed back to the professors, but if everyone involved in the process is busy, this can take up to two months. Giving the sheets back to the professors is designed to help them improve in weaker areas.
Not only does the evaluation go back to the faculty member, a cover sheet that explains it and the overall evaluation of the faculty is attached. Professors do not see others’ individual reviews, they are only shown the general results.
Kathy Sand said that handwritten comments by students are also given to the professors once grades are turned in.
After learning how the evaluation process works, students have some ideas on how to improve it. A number of students said that they felt the evaluations were too broad.
One student commented on how the questions are the same for every course. For example, a music professor and a math professor have completely different forms of teaching, yet the same questions are asked about the way they teach.
“I think they’re vague,” junior Jason Sillasen said. “I never see anything happen with them.”
Students suggested asking for actual, written answers from students, instead of just filling in circles. They feel this might be a more efficient way of seeing if students feel the professors are doing a good job.