Students
often have questions about course evaluations. The following
list of FAQ’s will answer some typical
questions about the process.
• Why
am I required to complete a course evaluation?
• How do I ensure that my responses remain confidential?
• How is the information that I provide used at CSU?
• Why are course evaluations done online instead of on paper?
• How long does it take to complete a course evaluation?
• Can I view the results of CSU course evaluations?
• What if I have a question about course evaluations that is
not listed here?
Why am I required to complete a course evaluation?
CSU
is committed to providing the best educational experience
possible to help our students succeed intellectually, professionally,
spiritually, and personally. Course evaluations help us determine
how well we are meeting our commitment. Evaluation comments
from our students are especially helpful in identifying areas
in which CSU is doing well or to highlight where we can improve.
Direct feedback from you will serve your fellow students,
our faculty, and CSU’s administration by helping to
ensure that quality instruction is provided in all classes.
Maximum student participation further serves to make the
evaluation process more cost effective.
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How do I ensure that my responses remain confidential?
Your
course evaluation is opened via an Internet link on a server
hosted by Academic Management Systems at a remote
site, using CourseEval™3 software. The only data captured
is the course ID and your responses. In addition, collective
results are not released to instructors until final grades
are submitted. The system will know if you have completed
a particular course evaluation to allow follow-up email reminders
to be sent, but response data is not linked to individual
students.
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How is the information that I provide used at CSU?
Summary and trend data, as well as anonymous typed comments,
are provided to each instructor for the courses they teach
to support continuous improvement in their teaching effectiveness.
This data and appropriate roll-up summaries are also provided
to department chairs and deans. Institutional summary data
is made available to administrators such as the Vice President
for Academic Affairs or Director of Institutional Effectiveness
to support contract/tenure decisions and program level or
environmental changes.
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Why are course evaluations done online instead of on paper?
Administering
course evaluations online produces significant gains in
process efficiency. Summary results and comments
can be made available to decision makers almost immediately
following course completion. With paper evaluations, secretaries
must type all students’ written comments in order to
protect the anonymity of respondents. This process takes
several weeks to complete, resulting in feedback that is
often timed too late to effect change for the next time a
course is offered. In addition, paper evaluations have several
limitations (i.e. limited question sets, inability to capture
responses from absent students, divert time away from instruction,
too costly for frequent administration, etc.). Hosting course
evaluations online, from a remote site, provides a secure
environment in which you can express your thoughts about
courses and instructors. Finally, research indicates that
online and paper-based evaluations yield similar quantitative
ratings of instructor performance, but students completing
online evaluations are more likely to provide thoughtful
comments that are useful for making improvements.
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How long does it take to complete a course evaluation?
The time to complete your online evaluation is dependent
on the length of comments you choose to provide. The basic
evaluation can normally be completed in less than five minutes.
While your comments are optional, CSU does encourage you
to provide comments on any response that is extremely positive
or negative. Comments will give additional weight to your
scaled response and help inform decisions regarding change,
measure instructor effectiveness, and reward teaching excellence.
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Can I view the results of CSU course evaluations?
Currently,
student access to evaluation data is not available. The
system is designed to provide meaningful feedback to
instructors. As time goes on and student participation results
in high response rates, historical data should become sufficiently
robust to provide meaningful summary information that could
help students make informed choices in their class selection
process.
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What if I have a question about course evaluations that
is not listed here?
If you have additional questions about course evaluations,
please contact either Shirley Nuckolls (863-8082) or Jeff
Babetz (863-7921). You may also email the Director of Institutional
Effectiveness at jbabetz@csuniv.edu.
