Facultydropsicesforms Favorsamotion Toadopt Aproseevaluationform
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THE DAVIDSONIAN LXXII, Volume Number 11 The Weekly Newspaper of Davidson College Friday4February1983 FacultyDropsICESForms Favorsamotion toadopt aproseevaluationform ByDAVIDRESNIK'85 mended the ICES forms in September, standard or "global," questions which 1979, and JEFFREYMANN'84 but thefaculty rejectedit.Student ask the student to rate the course, the TheFaculty approved aProfession- evaluation forms were phased out fall content,andtheinstructoronasixpoint term 1975. al AffairsCommittee(PAC)proposal to scale. The professor can choose 23 dropthe IllinoisCourse Sys- After the facultyrejected the forms, questions fromamasterlist of623 ques- Evaluation the SGA tem (ICES) forms from student course institutedtheirownevaluation tions. Theback of the form had space system professors evaluationsbya vote of47-24 duringits for whochoseto par- forprose comments whichonlythepro- meeting Tuesday. ticipate."We are wearyof theprocrasti- fessor saw. nation on this issue," TheFacultyalso votedin ofa said then-SGA favor President John motion to adopt a prose evaluation Jackson. The faculty Thenew prose form has threeques- form. adopteddieICES forms amonthlater. tions: one asking for "a frank appraisal "The "The reduction of such a sensitive virtueoftheICESforms isthat of the effort invested in[thecourse],"a and complex matter as instruction and it recorded views of not just students second asking "what elements of the whospecifically the dynamic of teaching to numerical had something to say, course andinstructordid you find most but provided scoring seemedessentially wrong,"said a benchmark ofallstudent helpful," and a third seeking sugges- ReligionProfessor andPAC Chairman opinion," Zimmermann said. "It pro- tionsto improve thecourse. AlexanderMcKelway. vides a regular sampling term in and Students will be asked to sign the term Vice President for Academic Af- out." forms, but that part of the form willbe fairsandDeanoftheFaculty T.C.Price Zimmermann also said "many stu- removed before it is returnedto thepro- dents will fear that Zimmermann does not welcome the anonymity will be fessor. change,however. "It willmakefaculty lost," since professors may recognize Psychology Professor John Kelton students'handwriting.He was con- agrees with Zimmermann: "For i evaluation much more difficult. I'm also pur- B [of sorry to see thepresentinstrument dis- cernedmatthe"Dean Academic Af- poses ofevaluation,questions such as fairs] carded,"hesaid."Thenew form willre- willbe submerged in9000pieces the global items are more appropriate ducestudent inputinthe faculty evalua- ofpaper to read." Hedid not yet know thantheprose form." tionprocess." how he would evaluate the forms. Hebelieves "there are too manyop SGA VicePresidentBoeYoung '83 McKelway estimates that ifevery stu- portunites formisuseof theprose state- feels that dropping the form "won't dent wrote twohundred words,it would ments" because "the Dean willhave to create any majorproblems as far as the take 35hours toread the forms. select a few" evaluations out of thou- students are concerned because they The ICES forms consist of three sands ofessays. willstillhave input into facultyevalua- n ■ tions." SGA President Tim Johnston could not attend the faculty meeting, accord- ingto Young,becausehehada"jobin- SGA Receives Complaints terview that was rescheduled at the last minute." McKelway said the PAC believes of 'Discouragements' 1 HI ■P^RBjE HI1 the ICES forms were not "compatible "^ < with what was being ■II Hi* Bifll measured." He HbV^j^INI^^I^SBUJIIfll says thatthe global questions, the three ByJEFFHOLLAND'84 oral discouragements willoccurduring at the ofthe form a the ofthisyear's house L» 'Jl IIfll beginning "measure remainder eating senseofstudent approval butit tells you The SGA has reported that they selectionprocess." nothing." have received complaints from fresh- SGA President Tim Johnston esti- In order to competently evaluate a men concerning the self-selection sys- mates that between 20 and 30 people professor,according toMcKelway,one tem, including reports oforal discour- have come to either him or Mast with must know the "reasons for the judge- agements and other forms of discour- complaints,butsomeofthepeople were ment" not just "the judgement itself." agements from fraternaties and eating speaking for friends so theremay have He feels that an evaluation carries houses, according to aletter sent by the actually been less incidents than that. more meaning "when a student ex- SGA tothePattersonCourtCouncil,the MikeMasonof thePCCagrees.Hesaid presses himself instead of blankly ac- RushChairmen of allthe court houses, thatheknows of15 suspected violators, cepting "prefabricated answers." andDeanofStudentsWillTerry.Fresh- buthe saidhefelt someofthem were not McKelway also explained mat the man class President AllanMast and the valid. ICES forms are statistically inaccurate PattersonCourtCouncil(PCC)reported Mast said that some of the people whenapplied toacourse withless than similar problems. whocame tohimdidnot haveanycom- thirty students. The results produce a The letter statedthattherehadbeen plaintsofspecific discouragements, but curve that is skewed towardhigher rat- "flagrant abuses of the self-selective simply didnot fully understand the sys- ings. MostDavidson studentsratetheir system...inrecent weeks." Theletter tem. teachers "fairly highly," says McKel- went on to say, "We do not condone Severalcommittees arelooking into way, but one student in opposition these unnecessary actions which hurt these problems andpossible solutions. "moves the curvedowndrastically." anddemeanour fellow students"and"it Freshman Advisors Mike Mason and Zimmermann and thePAC recom- is our hope that no further incidents of (Continuedonpage 15) NewEvaluationForms Good&Bad Provide Little StudentInput A guest column Students are in an especially position to assess the favorable (DevilDog hexed Ann this week because he wanted instructor's enthusiasm for the subject, concern them, and to write this for week'sGood& Badcolumn.Initially,Ann to lethim;once clarity in presentation. They can testify to the instructor's refused he turnedher intoalargefern, sheconsented. Following availability, fairness and care in evaluating their work. The areDevil Dog'scomments concerning atDavidson. -Eds.) students withtheinstruction theyare life satisfaction of receiving isan By DEVILDOG importantingredientin the morale aninstitution. '666 of Here are some things whichare good. good to be a -Codeof Faculty EvaluationProcedures (Section Three) Itis dog.It is good because Ihave a secret about being a dog. The secret is that Davidson people cannot understandme butIcanunderstandthem. The Committee believes that student evaluation their of It is a funny secret. Only some knowIam and can write instructors shouldrepresenta minorpart faculty evaluation. literate in of English. Not very well,but Idid pass my TOEFL withsparingly -from thePAC faculty evaluation proposal room. So people think Ido not understand.Ido. One day IsitbehindSentelle Dormlike usually and a coed girl Last Tuesdaythe facultyvotedtodoawaywithICESformsused walked and said, "Oooh! That Devil Dog scares me so by students to evaluate their professors. They have essentially and Igo through Cannon to get away fromhim." What a stupid girl, dumpedthe firstside of the formsinfavor ofthe essay questions mostly on until Iturn her into a fruit tree. Now she is mostly the back. The new allow not only less student quiet. Frank forms for input but Hobart didthe same thing Ido now, present it and now Davidson has some to theDeanofFaculty in anunusable fashion. beautifullandscape. These new questionnaires have three questions. The first Here ismore.Iwalkedto the P.O. (Post Office)one day question,one thirdof the form,asksthe student toevaluatehimself, and a professor walked too. He was thinkingIcouldnotunderstandhim, not the professor. The second and third questions are provided to but Idid.He said, "I wishIwas a dog likeyou evaluate the professors. However, the emphasis has shifted from withno worry and care.No paperstograde. Justadog."Iwasverymad— "justadog!" critiquing theprofessor tocritiquingprimarily thecourse content. Ialmost turnedhiminto a smallbush but insteadIthrew at himmy It shouldbe obvious thattheDean of Faculty willbe unable to new Reader'sDigest. He respects me now and isa smart man. assimalatesome 9000evaluationsina year.He willbeforcedeither Hereisonemore thing. Itis funtobe a dogand scare coed tochooseafew "representative" forms orstatisticallyevaluatethem girls and turnhumansintoplants butthereare other things too. Like this (i.e.,42badresponses versus63 good). NotevenaDavidsonDean observationthatadog friendmade.ShereadsTheDavidsonian shouldbe expected tokeep9000sets ofcomments inhishead. too. She said, "Yes, Davidson students may stink butthen, so do The PAC faculty evaluation proposals states, "The fact that most people's upper lips." She is a political aware dog friend, and she scores on questions are averaged and used for comparison in the likes tobe a dog evaluationof faculty too. places facultymembers indirect competition —The End— withtheir colleaguesforstudent approval."Noone likescriticism, but protectionism of mis sort is counterproductive. Students Correction January, 1983. Margaret Lamotte compete withstudents for facultyapproval; We apologise for anerror inthe is theauthoroftheuntitledpoem at- why shouldthe reverse Arts Supplement published on 21 be so unacceptable? tributed toJaneRedd. -Eds. This is an especially bad time for this move. With