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Student evaluations: are they an appropriate criterion for promotion?
Nursing & Health Care : Official Publication of the National League for Nursing
|February 1, 1990
Summary
Student evaluations offer a balanced view for faculty promotion considerations. This analysis explores their benefits and drawbacks in assessing teaching effectiveness and expertise.
Area of Science:
- Educational assessment
- Academic evaluation
- Faculty development
Background:
- Student evaluations are increasingly used in academic settings.
- Their role in faculty promotion decisions is debated.
- Concerns exist regarding student capacity to evaluate complex faculty attributes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically examine the appropriateness of student evaluations for faculty promotion.
- To present a balanced perspective on the advantages and disadvantages of using student feedback.
- To identify specific faculty competencies that students can reliably assess.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature and arguments on student evaluations in promotion.
- Analysis of the scope and limitations of student assessment capabilities.
- Consideration of factors influencing the validity of student feedback.
Main Results:
- Students may adequately assess presentation and motivational aspects of teaching.
- Evaluating deep subject matter knowledge by students presents significant challenges.
- Potential biases and external factors can influence student evaluation outcomes.
Conclusions:
- Student evaluations provide a partial but not comprehensive measure of faculty performance.
- Their utility in promotion decisions depends on careful interpretation and contextualization.
- Relying solely on student evaluations for promotion is not advisable due to inherent limitations.