Students’RatingofTheirTeachers
Students’RatingofTheirTeachers
Nowadays,ithasbecomeascommonincollegesanduniversitiesforstudentstogradeteachersasforteacherstogradestudents.Insomeuniversitiesstudents’ratinghasevenbecometheonlysourceofinformationonteachingeffectiveness.
This,however,hascausedgreatcontroversy.Someareinfavoroftheratingsystem.Theyholdthatsincestudentsattendtheteachers’classeseveryday,theyshouldhavetheiropinionabouttheirteachers’effectiveness.Others,onthecontrary,arestronglyagainstit.Theybelievethatthereismuchmoretoteachingthanwhatisshownonstudents’ratingforms.Studentsshouldnotbeexpectedtojudgewhetherthematerialsusedareuptodateorhowwelltheteacherknowsaboutthesubject.Thesejudgmentsrequireprofessionalknowledge,whichisbestleftfortheteachers’colleagues.
Ithinkstudents’ratingoftheirteachersisnecessary,butitshouldbeconductedinawaythatcanreallyshedmeaningfullightonteachers’performance.Insteadofratingtheteachers’knowledgeonthesubject,studentsshouldbeaskedtoestimatewhattheythemselveshaveleanedinacourse,andtoreportonsuchthingsasateacher’sabilitytocommunicatewithstudents,hisrelationshipwithstudents,andhisabilitytoarouseinterestinthesubject.