tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post1454699371593504220..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: Midterm EvaluationsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-12055358888311825092016-02-22T17:45:05.988-05:002016-02-22T17:45:05.988-05:00If the instructor hands out a mid-term evaluation ...If the instructor hands out a mid-term evaluation or a private evaluation, I'll obviously fill that out.Conan the Grammarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05958152840132897163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-8130567702081494402016-02-22T08:21:19.927-05:002016-02-22T08:21:19.927-05:00Regarding the means of Likert scale data, I recall...Regarding the means of Likert scale data, I recall reading something on a related issue when I was trying to teach myself stats. Suppose you give 1000 people a test comprising a single true-false question, and 501 of them pick the correct answer. You wouldn't say that the mean score is 100% on the basis that an individual score can only be 0 or 100%.<br /><br />So, saying that the mean of a Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-2851386437460330712016-02-21T22:40:28.824-05:002016-02-21T22:40:28.824-05:00Cheers, Ben. I remember data can be nominal, ordin...Cheers, Ben. I remember data can be nominal, ordinal, interval, or ratio (but only because it spells "noir"), but that's about it.<br />I'm pretty sure that if my teaching effectiveness was 3.2 last and 3.1 this year, it doesn't necessarily show that I have got worse, although I believe that's how admin see it here. EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-86054446447766660722016-02-21T20:58:28.899-05:002016-02-21T20:58:28.899-05:00Means make more sense if you have a continuous ran...Means make more sense if you have a continuous range of values to choose from, instead of integers 1 through 5 (strongly agree, agree, neutral, etc.) It's like an average household having 2.3 children. That doesn't really make sense. It's my understanding that you are supposed to use a different type of statistics when handling data consisting of integers but I'm not real sure Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-82482448204769483312016-02-21T20:52:28.764-05:002016-02-21T20:52:28.764-05:00Our end-of-term evaluations are the administration...Our end-of-term evaluations are the administration's sole metric of being a "good teacher" but our midterm evals are only read by the instructor. That's actually useful, in three ways. It gives the students a chance to give useful feedback, like "please write larger, we can't read your writing." Students can blow off some steam, like complaining about the number ofAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-25796245128644768682016-02-21T16:31:44.379-05:002016-02-21T16:31:44.379-05:00I stopped filling them out the last few years I st...I stopped filling them out the last few years I started reading this site and realized how shitty the evaluation system is. It alo seemed so ridiciculous that we're supposed to evaluate instructors on how well they covered relevent hamster-fur weaving material. Well, since I'm new to the subject (most of the time), how the hell am I supposed to judge that? <br /><br />I also suspect theseAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05086727387857705638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-23322874663951311912016-02-21T11:51:29.075-05:002016-02-21T11:51:29.075-05:00I agree with the part that says students not filli...I agree with the part that says students not filling out stuff they are sent has a negative impact on instructors (although I understand why students might not do it), and I understand about return rates, but can you say more about the issue of means? It always irks me, but I don't know enough about Likert scales and how they do (or don't) work.EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-6806917554027443582016-02-21T10:46:05.827-05:002016-02-21T10:46:05.827-05:00Thing is, we KNOW they aren't good at what the...Thing is, we KNOW they aren't good at what they aim to do, but departments are still required to collect them.<br /><br />Getting less than a set return rate, or lower 'scores' (usually expressed as means even though those don't make sense for Likert scales), leads to various 'consequences' which take away time and energy from actual teaching, and can make your academics Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-11606165869469224282016-02-20T13:29:32.147-05:002016-02-20T13:29:32.147-05:00I... I don't fill out student evaluations. I&...I... I don't fill out student evaluations. I'm sorry. I'm that guy. I've been told repeatedly they're meaningless. If I want to congratulate the professor on something they did particularly well, I'll tell them face to face. If I want them to be rewarded for it, I'll write a letter with my Goddamn name attached.<br /><br />If they did something that I didn't Conan the Grammarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05958152840132897163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-71688821971710037012016-02-20T11:12:53.968-05:002016-02-20T11:12:53.968-05:00Oy.Oy.Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-3183525045037997022016-02-20T11:12:44.317-05:002016-02-20T11:12:44.317-05:00Yep. Yep. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-84708448824516688332016-02-20T11:11:58.995-05:002016-02-20T11:11:58.995-05:00My high school ethics teacher went to jail for mur...My high school ethics teacher went to jail for murder not long after I took the class (it was actually a bit more complicated than that -- it was a domestic situation, and one could argue that the guy had it coming to some extent, though not to the extent of murder not in self-defense, which was the situation -- but still, it did cast question/a new light on some of our discussions). Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-91449454646309663562016-02-20T09:02:29.469-05:002016-02-20T09:02:29.469-05:00Yeah, the students being experts in the field and ...Yeah, the students being experts in the field and fully qualified to judge who else is expert as well, and all that.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-13421097372855471922016-02-20T03:31:18.047-05:002016-02-20T03:31:18.047-05:00"He seems to know what he's talking about..."He seems to know what he's talking about." <br /><br />This was an eval I collected at midterm, so we had completed chapters 1-5 of the textbook - mostly high school chemistry-level material. Christ on a popsicle stick, I hope that I know that stuff. I just love the "seems" in the statement, as if the student isn't quite sure but he's willing to give the benefit Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-76267587117747766992016-02-19T22:58:04.739-05:002016-02-19T22:58:04.739-05:00I mean... that's pretty accurate if the behavi...I mean... that's pretty accurate if the behavior of law enforcement is anything to go by.Conan the Grammarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05958152840132897163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-67968908421540683792016-02-19T22:29:23.978-05:002016-02-19T22:29:23.978-05:00I had the "pleasure" of busting some kid...I had the "pleasure" of busting some kids for cheating on...<br /><br />their ethics exam.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.com