The Research Behind Student Evaluations

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The Research Behind Student Evaluations
Steve Fitzpatrick, MEC and Marilla Svinicki, CTE

CIS Item #5

	CIS ITEM
	#5 The instructor made me feel free to ask questions, disagree, and express my ideas.
Correlation to student learning	Feldman #7 r =.36 Students do better in courses of faculty who encourage discussion and listen to the students.
Theoretical rational for correlation	This factor probably taps two different sources of effectiveness. One is the value of active learning. Encouraging students to ask questions and to discuss encourages a deeper processing of the material. In addition the instructor is providing a role model of scholarly discourse to help students learn how to disagree in a scholarly manner.

8 Ways to Improve Students' Questioning and Idea Expression

Model how to react to difficult or challenging questions so that students understand what scholarly discourse sounds like. Think aloud as you solve problems so they can see what strategies you employ.
Be open and interested in what your students are saying and asking by making eye contact, actively responding to their comments, not interrupting them in mid-comment, and using all the other courtesies that you would accord to another adult.
When responding to student comments and questions, respond in a way that will not discourage future comments from this student or others. Agree to the extent you can, explore the basis for difference when you can not, and build on their ideas.
When you do not know an answer, say so and then model how you would go about thinking about the question in order to estimate an answer.
Engage students in active learning strategies that require them to think in more depth about the material being presented.
Use activities in class as a way of preparing for exam questions.
If you are teaching a controversial topic, have the class discuss the guidelines for handling disagreements and discomfort that might arise during the discussion.
Praise the student, not necessarily the answer.

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