The commonly used student rating of teaching, often mis-conceptually referred to as “student evaluation of teaching,” may be the most misunderstood instrument yet remains widely used in teaching assessment in medical education. Misinterpretation and misuse cause controversy, confusion, frustration, and unnecessary harm to teachers and impede student learning. Accurately interpreted student rating data, when combined with other teaching assessment methods properly, is crucial to ensure fair and balanced teaching evaluations that benefit both teachers and students.
Student rating of teaching has been the most extensively researched topic in higher education over the past 80 years. Experts in the field have obtained a comprehensive and nuanced understanding of the instrument and developed well-balanced guidelines for interpreting the data. Unfortunately, those guidelines haven’t reached most faculty members and evaluators, especially in medical schools, where interpretations heavily rely on personal experience and intuition. As a result, misinterpreting student rating data occurs too frequently, causing much confusion and frustration. When student ratings are improperly used as the sole measure of teaching effectiveness, the misinterpreted data can be very misleading and negatively impact both teaching and learning. Despite the ongoing development of other teaching assessment tools in many schools, the misinterpretation and misuse of student rating of teaching remain a significant issue. Formal training of medical educators in accurately interpreting student ratings is urgently needed.
Agenda & Methods
- Part One (30 minutes): Dispel Myths and Clarify Truths about Student Rating of Teaching
The session will begin with a brief presentation summarizing over a century of student rating of teaching practices and more than 80 years of research on the topic (10 min). Afterward, participants will break into small groups to review published guidelines on interpreting student ratings and generate key takeaways (15 minutes). The session will also include two live polling activities using Kahoot (5 minutes), which are designed to help participants 1) differentiate between myths and truths regarding student rating of teaching; and 2) recognize common pitfalls in interpreting student ratings based on personal experiences and intuition. - Part Two (30 minutes): Interpret Student Rating of Teaching Using Published Guidelines Grounded on Research
The participants will work in small groups to interpret student rating data from two real-world case studies using published guidelines (20 minutes). After the groups report and share their findings from the case studies, the participants will work together to summarize the best practices and pitfalls when interpreting student ratings upon reflecting on their current and previous practices (10 minutes). - Part Three (30 minutes): Develop a Comprehensive Toolkit for Teaching Evaluation
The participants will again work in small groups to develop a comprehensive toolkit for teaching evaluation (20 minutes). Then each small group will report and share the following with the entire group: 1) Various tools in their toolkit and the key specifics of each tool; 2) Their plans for testing and adopting the tools; 3) Any anticipated challenges and strategies to overcome them (10 minutes).