Teaching Assessment: Practices for Graduate Student Instructors
The Research Behind Student Evaluations
by Steve Fitzpatrick, MEC and Marilla Svinicki, CTE
| CIS ITEM | RELATED ITEMS | ||
| At this point in time, I feel that this course will be (or has been) of value to me. | a. perceived outcome or impact of instruction | b. teacher's stimulation of interest in the course and its subject matter. | |
| Correlation to student learning | Feldman #4 r =.46 Students do better in courses they perceive to be of value to them at some point. |
Feldman #4 r=.46 Students do better in courses they perceive as having a positive impact on them. |
Feldman #5 r=.38 Students do better in courses in which the teacher makes an effort to make it interesting. |
| Theoretical Rational for correlation | This factor could be touching on two things as well. The first would be student recognition that what is being taught has relevance for their lives, a source of motivation and hence achievement. Alternatively, the students may be saying that they recognize how much the instruction is causing them to learn. | This factor could be touching on two things. The first would be student recognition that what is being taught has relevance for their lives, a source of motivation and hence achievement. Alternatively, the students may be saying that they recognize how much the instruction is causing them to learn. | Instructors who help students understand why they should be learning the content of the course improve student motivation and as a result learning. This is often manifest as the teacher's own enthusiasm, which through modeling affects students as well. |
3 Ways to Improve Course Value
- Make connections between the course content and future courses, career uses, and ongoing events in and outside the class.
- Bring in former students who have had opportunities to use the information in other arenas.
- Keep the course content current and look for ways of stimulating your own interest.