Designing evaluation forms to facilitate student learning

Most dental school instructors struggle to develop course evaluation criteria that can effectively be applied as valid and reliable learning instruments. Vague and unreliable learning assessments often lead to increased dissatisfaction among both faculty and students. Students complain about the "lack of faculty calibration," and faculty are often unable to adequately evaluate competence due to the need to provide an overall course grade by the end of the term. By systematically addressing Mackenzie et al.'s list of sixteen factors that contribute to faculty disagreements on student evaluation, we developed "Criteria for Writing Effective Evaluation Forms" as a guide for developing evaluation criteria. By using the guide for developing evaluation forms for student learning, course directors will have the components necessary to ensure validity and reliability of student assessment methodology. By providing students and faculty with clearly defined criteria and the training to apply those criteria, Mackenzie et al.'s concerns may be conquered.