End-of-course evaluation should never be used as the only course of information regarding the quality of your course or your instruction, but it does provide some valuable insight. Although there are plenty of researchers who question the validity of end-of-course evaluations (Brickman et al., 2016; Marcham et al., 2020), there is also a lot of research that explains that end-of-course evaluations are still worthwhile and when correctly conducted and used, are an excellent source of information to help you continually improve (Gravestock & Gregor-Greenleaf, 2008 Signorini et al., 2020; Weimer, 2017).
The one-page guide presented above will allow you as an academic to get the most out of the end-of-course evaluation process. Key components are to remind and motivate students to complete the evaluation (not all institutions provide time in class and require students to complete the evaluation), 2) take time to write out your own reflections about how you personally believe the class went and what aspects you might alter/enhance for next time (this reflection needs to be done before you review the students-end of course evaluations), 3) finally, review the students’ evaluations and see if there are patterns in their ratings that might indicate an area that needs specific action.
This special presented End-of-Course Evaluation: Interpretation and Usage Guide was developed by me with the Center for Teaching and Learning at the American University of Armenia. It has been made public to help anyone in academia.
What are your thoughts regarding end-of-course evaluations?
References
Brickman, P., Gormally, C., and Martella, A. M., (2016). Making the grade: Using instructional feedback and evaluation to inspire evidence-based teaching. Cell Biology Education, 15(1), 1-14.
Gravestock, P., & Gregor-Greenleaf, E. (2008). Student course evaluations: Research, models and trends. Toronto: Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.
Marcham, C. L., Ade, A. M., Clark, P., & Marion, J. (2020). Bias and trends in student evaluations in online higher education settings. The Collegiate Aviation Review International, 38(2).
Signorini, A., Abuan, M., Panakkal, G., & Dorantes, S. (2020). Students helping students provide valuable feedback on course evaluations. To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development, 39(2).
Weimer, M. (2017). How can I gain valuable insight from course evaluations? Magna 20-Minute Mentor.