مرکز منطقه ای اطلاع رساني علوم و فناوري - Evaluation of Internet Based Application of Students’ Evaluation of Teaching Questionnaires Used in Higher Education Institutions

Abstract :

One of the most important indicators regarding the quality of a higher education institution is the lecturers and the quality of the classes they deliver. The data collected to evaluate the performances of the lecturers are sources for formative and summative evaluation; and the results of the evaluation provide information to the lecturers as well as students and administration on the teaching performance of the academics. Assessment of the lecturers and the classes in higher education institutions is basically carried out in two ways: paper-pencil based assessment and internet-based assessment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate internet-based applications of Students’ Evaluation of Teaching (SET) questionnaires used to assess the performance of the lecturers in higher education institutions based on student opinions. The model of the research was descriptive. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. Maximum variation sampling technique, which is one of the purposive sampling methods, was used in this study. And accordingly, a total number of 150 students chosen among second, third and fourth graders from six different degree programs, in which each two of them belong to one department, made up the sample of the study. The data in the study was collected through a questionnaire which included three open-ended questions. Content analysis method was used for the analysis of the data. Important findings of this study were that of the participating students, 70% made a negative comment about the internet based application of the SET questionnaires. Another significant finding was that 37% of the participating students indicated that they rated the items randomly without actually reading them. It may prove positive contributions in improving the quality of teaching if higher education institutions using these SET questionnaires take these findings into consideration.