Student Evaluation:  a 20-question student evaluation will be administered in your first semester, perhaps in your second semester, and then evaluations will be administered in the every-third-semester pattern in the UWC.  The 20 questions:

 Survey Questions are listed below.  Possible responses were 5=A=Strongly
Agree, 4=B=Agree, 3=C-Uncertain, 2=D=Disagree, 1=E=Strongly, Any other
number=NA=Not Applicable

1. I really wanted to take this course.

2. I worked harder on this course than on most of my other college courses.

3. Compared to my other college courses, I feel I learned a great deal in
this course.

4. The text(s) and readings were useful in helping me learn.

5. The outside assignments (e.g., homework, reports, and projects) were
useful in helping me learn.

6. The in-class activities (e.g., discussions, small groups, labs and
problems) were useful in helping me learn.

7. This course was one of the most difficult college courses I have taken.

8. The tests, assignments and projects focused on the objectives of the
course.

9. The instructor was fair and reasonable in grading exams and assignments.

10. The instructor and/or syllabus provided an adequate description of the
course and its requirements. In class the instructor provided material
beyond that offered in the text or readings.

11.  In class the instructor provided material beyond that offered in the text or readings.

12. The instructor usually seemed well prepared for class.

13. The instructor seemed enthusiastic about the subject matter.

14. The instructor introduced stimulating ideas about the subject.

15. The instructor spoke clearly and distinctly.

16. The instructor was available to help with questions or homework outside
of class.

17. Overall, I consider this instructor to be an excellent teacher.

18. Overall, I consider this to be an excellent course.

19. I expect to get a grade of
5=A=  A
4=B=  B
3=C=  C (or Pass/Satisfactory)
2=D=  D
1=E=  F (or Fail/Unsatisfactory)

20. I am completing college credits of
5=A=  15 or less
4=B=  16-30
3=C=  31-45
2=D=  46-60
1=E=  60+ 

For justification of these questions in terms of the literature, see “20 Questions” at http://www.uwmc.uwc.edu/political_science/ 

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You will also receive a correlation matrix of each item, so that you can better tell what items were most important to students as they evaluated you and your course.  For example, in one class students thought the course description was poor and they didn’t see that class sessions were focused on the course goals.  That mattered to them—that was a key correlation with the q 17 instructor ranking.  Normally that’s a minor item.  It enabled the instructor to do just a bit more in class describing the course, and a sentence per topic to show how the session related to the goals.  That finding enabled the instructor to markedly improve the “overall” evaluation. 

  Department-wide summaries are available, so that you can compare yourself to  others, on each item and overall. 

 Typically committees assignment merit will use either q. 17 (“overall instructor”)  or the weighted score #22.  This score tries to account for biases that you have no control over.   What is added to your q 17 rank: 

§         points for student motivation (q. 1 --I really wanted to take this course) . If this is low, you get more points added.  It is more difficult to teach a course with students who are uninterested.  (Nothing is subtracted from your q 17 number.  Even if everyone really wanted the course you would get a minor boost.  If not, you get more.

§         Points for difficulty of subject matter (q7).  If students perceive it as very difficult, you will get more points added.  Just a note:  we don’t expect political science introductory courses to be at the high end of difficulty.  We’d expect greater difficulty for organic chemistry.  But we don’t want to have the easiest courses in the system.

§         Size of the class.  A large class is more difficult to teach than a small one, so large classes get a larger bonus (we’re talking .4 here).  Our courses are usually medium-sized—a .2  or .3.   

 While qs 17 and 22 are useful comparative (“summative”)  measures, normally used in the merit exercise, the other questions are formative—they are diagnostic tools for you, the department, and the campus.  For retention and promotion, these provide information about your teaching that is quite useful.  If you need some help in interpreting the correlations, ask the chair.