2700 - Student Feedback on Teaching

2700

STUDENT FEEDBACK ON TEACHING

CONTENTS:

A. Purpose
B. Scope
C. Policy
D. Procedure

A. PURPOSE. Student feedback on teaching has two divergent purposes. First, student feedback assists individual instructors in improving course design, delivery, assessment, and expectations (“instructor,” as used in this section, refers to any teaching member of the faculty or staff, including graduate teaching assistants). Second, student feedback assists academic administrators in counseling instructors about their teaching and the feedback is carefully weighed as a factor in evaluating the teaching component in tenure, promotion, and salary determinations.

B. SCOPE. This policy applies to all instructors and students at the University of Idaho.

C. POLICY. All students will have the opportunity to evaluate each of their instructors in all sections of all courses during every academic term.

D. PROCEDURE

D-1. The Office of the Provost is responsible for oversight of the administration of the feedback process, except for feedback in the College of Law and the WWAMI Regional Medical Education Program, which will be administered by those programs.

D-2. Standard university forms for anonymous mid-term formative feedback (D-3) and end-of-semester feedback (D-4), as approved by the faculty, will be used by all instructors in all of their classes, except in the College of Law and the WWAMI Regional Medical Education Program, which will use evaluative devices tailored to their needs. The student evaluation summary referred to in FSH 3500 D-2 c shall comprise the questions denoted by an asterisk in form D-4.

D-3. Mid-term formative feedback on teaching may take place during the three-week period centered on the mid-term week of the academic term or the proportion thereof for courses of less than a semester duration. The feedback will be made available to faculty two weeks after mid-terms to encourage student input for faculty seeking to improve teaching. The data generated through the mid-term formative evaluation process shall be for evaluative use by the faculty member. The data are not considered part of the faculty member's record and are not to be used in any evaluation of the faculty member, unless included in the record at the discretion of the faculty member.

D-4. End-of-term feedback on teaching shall take place during the last three weeks of the academic term (excluding final exam week) or the proportion thereof for courses of less than a semester duration.

D-5. All student feedback on teaching will be provided to the instructor, irrespective of response rates or class size (excluding courses where only a single student is enrolled).

D-6. The Office of the Provost shall see that a database is maintained of end-of-term feedback for at least the last five academic years. The data shall be made available to colleges and academic units as needed, and the numerical summaries of an instructor’s end-of-term feedback shall be made available to students or other members of the university community upon request.

D-7. The Office of the Provost, in conjunction with the University Teaching Committee, will review the student feedback on teaching forms and processes at least every five years.

D-8. Student feedback on teaching must comply with all university policy, including FSH 2300 Student Code of Conduct. Instructors may submit to their dean requests for the exclusion of individual student feedback on teaching that violates university policy from materials used in annual evaluations and for promotion and tenure consideration. The decision of the dean is appealable to the Vice Provost for Faculty and then through the policies and procedures in FSH 3840.

D-9. Instructors who receive feedback on teaching effectiveness that fails to meet unit expectations will be referred by the unit chair to the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning to receive faculty development support and to design a strategy for improving their teaching.

D-10. Student feedback reported as not-applicable (N/A) on the standard university forms will not be included in annual evaluations and in the evaluation of the teaching component used in tenure, promotion, and salary determinations.

E. RELATED INFORMATION

E-1. Form D-3

E-2. Form D-4

Version History

Amended July 2024. Description pending.

Amended July 2008. The on-line process was evaluated which resulted in minor policy language changes and removal of section C dealing with implementation of the on-line system. This made the original Handbook section obsolete, and thus it was completely revised.

Amended July 2002. Following a period of testing in 2001, a paperless web-based evaluation system was given formal approval in 2002.

Amended July 1992. Edits were made to reflect the removal of student evaluations to the Office of Academic Affairs.

Adopted 1979.