Faculty Assessment

There are multiple ways instructor effectiveness can be assessed and documented as well as identifying opportunities for learning, growth, and professional development. An important element of faculty development is celebrating success, so we also offer examples of excellent teaching at Western Washington University via the Innovative Teaching Showcase.

Along with the evaluation of a student’s learning, how well students receive the instruction is pivotal.  Not every student reacts the same to different instruction methods — students have different classroom preferences and learning styles, leading to different responses about the quality of an instructor.   

Student Feedback

While the jury is still out on the overall reliability of students' feedback for assessing professor performance, it still does warrant consideration.  Studies have shown that certain characteristics are consistently prevalent in strong professors, including their ability to convey the course material, how well they can draw students in, and the ways and demeanor in which they deal with students.  Additionally, students can give direct feedback on things typically not considered, like course materials and the understandability of the syllabus.^[1]

Professional's Feedback

In addition to student responses, feedback from other professionals at an institution can also go a long way in the evaluation process. By looking at their teaching methods from an outside perspective, other professors can offer an educated, unbiased look and offer necessary praise and criticism. Experience professionals bring is simply missing from student feedback, and gives faculty influence over the overall quality of instruction at their institution.^[2] Furthermore, excellent faculty members also contribute to the college through both direct and indirect contributions to their educational programs.^[3] Student feedback often misses these important factors in assessing faculty.

Teaching Portfolios

Teaching portfolios are an excellent tool for reporting on faculty excellence and can be used both formatively, for assessing and improving teaching, as well as summatively, for personnel decisions.

Combining self-assessment with peer review and student feedback provides a well-rounded evaluation of your strengths and opportunities for improvement. To get started, here are a few resources for self-assessment of your teaching.

Self-Assessment of Teaching

• Faculty Teaching Self-Assessment (Form), Central Piedmont Community College
• Self Assessment, University Center for Teaching and Learning, University of Pittsburgh
• Instructor Self-Evaluation, Calvin College