Dear Friends,
Many years ago I posted a comment to an education list suggesting that if we really believed that the purpose of student evaluations was to improve teaching, there would be a well-established process to help a professor respond to bad evaluations and improve his/her ratings.  Lacking that, student evaluations just become a way for an institution to look good and have little to do with improving teaching.  At that time, I also cited a study that showed that the way for a professor to improve student evaluations was to give students more control over the unimportant parts of the class, i.e. let them vote on what day the examination would be held, etc.  I was amazed when this post got reposted to several bulleting boards, although I shouldn't have been surprised.

Here is an equally distressing study that asks what exactly is being measured when we do student evaluations.

http://derekbruff.org/blogs/tomprof/2012/04/16/tp-msg-1170-the-role-of-student-evaluations-in-tenure-and-promotion/

Just another posting from the Twilight Zone,

Harry


Harry E. Pence
SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus
SUNY Oneonta
________________________________
From: Teaching Breakfast List [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Greenberg, Jim
Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2012 8:45 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Electronic Textbooks Pilot

TBers,

Yesterday, the Educational Technology Committee (ETC) had a brief conversation about electronic textbooks.  Many interesting questions and concerns came up.   Are any of you using, or do you know if students have found and are using,  electronic versions of your textbooks?

Mr. James B. Greenberg
Director Teaching, Learning and Technology Center
Milne Library
SUNY College at Oneonta
Oneonta, New York 13820

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"Ignorance is curable, stupidity lasts forever"