Student evaluation of teaching (SET)

Purpose of Student Evaluation of Teaching

The purpose of student evaluation of teaching is to provide staff with valid and reliable information with which to make informed decisions about improving student learning outcomes.

Student Evaluation of Teaching is only one of the necessary components for making such informed decisions. It is a mandatory tool at Flinders but it does not prevent the use of other evaluation methods, such as reflective practice and peer review.

Evaluation is a positive process and should be used for the enhancement of staff development and student learning.

The process

The SET Process for Student Evaluation of Teaching/Topic

1. Downloading the form

Ensure that Adobe Acrobat Version 5.0 (or a later version) is loaded on the computer. If it isn''t, go to Adobe''s Adobe Reader page to download the latest version.
Go to SET forms and select the appropriate SET Form (Teacher or Topic; Standard, Offshore or Extended versions).

2. Completing the administration form

Complete all required fields such as teacher’s name, and the name of the topic.
For extended versions, select any additional questions from the dropdown menus.

3. Creating the survey

Click on the ''Press here to Create/refresh Survey'' button
This automatically transfers keyed information from the Administration Form to the Evaluation Form and generates a unique ID number that appears on both forms.
Check the questionnaire. If the questionnaire still has ''SAMPLE'' written over it, it has not been completed correctly. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until the word ''SAMPLE'' has disappeared. Do not manually alter this text after.

4. Printing the documents

Use double sided photocopying to make the appropriate number of clean copies for each evaluation on WHITE paper. Do not staple surveys together.

5. Organising an appropriate administrator

Determine who will administer the evaluation (ie another staff member or a student).
Negotiate a convenient date and time for the evaluation to be administered.
Sign the Administration Form and include the planned date and time of the evaluation.
Provide the administrator with the signed Administration Form and the copies of the evaluations as well as a suitable envelope addressed to Information Analyst (SET), Planning Services Unit, Registry Building, Level 1 and marked ''Confidential Evaluations''.

6. Conducting the evaluation

The administrator will distribute the evaluations to students and then collect the completed forms.
This should take place during a class, preferably at the beginning.
Allow a minimum of 15 minutes of class time for this purpose.
Leave the room while the evaluation is carried out.

7. Submitting the forms

The administrator completes Part C of the Administration Form, then places the signed form, together with the completed evaluations, into the envelope provided.
This envelope should be sealed. Surveys should be sent to the Information Analyst (SET) located in the Planning Services Unit office via the internal mail service.
The Information Analyst (SET) will check the administration forms have been completed correctly and administrative processes adhered to. The requestor will be alerted if there are any potential problems.
The Information Analyst (SET) will forward the forms to the Centre for Learning and Professional Development (CLPD), Evaluation Services, Adelaide University.
If the Administration Form is not received, does not have an ID code to match those on the evaluation forms, or is not signed by both the requester and the administrator, the evaluations will not be processed and the requester will be contacted for clarification. the Information Analyst (SET) will contact the SET requestor directly to correct the process.

8. Analysing the forms

The Centre for Learning and Professional Development (CLPD) will analyse the evaluations.
The process is automated and an optical mark reader scans both sides of the sheet concurrently.
A report is generated.

9. Receiving the data

The Requestor receives a PDF form without responses to open ended questions via email at the time the report is generated.
The original evaluations completed by the students will be returned to the requester after the examination period.
At the end of the semester, the Head of the Academic Organisational Unit (AOU)/supervisor receives a CD including:

reports from all teachers he/she is responsible for
an aggregate report for the unit
a list of all users of the SET service in the unit.

Executive Dean receives a CD with PDF forms containing:

aggregate results for all units
aggregate results for the faculty
a list of users of the SET service in the faculty.

The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) receives a CD containing aggregated results of all data.

The SET Process for Student Evaluation of Supervision

1. Downloading the form

Ensure that Adobe Acrobat Version 5.0 (or a later version) is loaded on the computer. If it isn''t, go to Adobe''s Adobe Reader page to download the latest version.
Go to SET forms and select the appropriate SET Form (Supervision; Standard or Extended versions).

2. Completing the administration form

Complete all required fields such as teacher’s name, the name of the topic and the supervisor’s email address.
For extended versions, select any additional questions from the dropdown menus.

3. Creating the survey

Click on the Create Survey button. This automatically transfers keyed information from the Administration Form to the Evaluation Form and generates a unique ID number that appears on both forms.
Provide students’ names and contact details on the request form.
Check the questionnaire. If the questionnaire still has ''SAMPLE'' written over it, it has not been completed correctly. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until the word ''SAMPLE'' has disappeared. Do not manually alter text after this.

4. Printing the documents

Use double sided photocopying to make the appropriate number of clean copies for each evaluation on WHITE paper. Do not staple surveys together.

5. Conducting the survey

Determine who will administer the evaluation (i.e. another staff member)
Negotiate a convenient date and time for the evaluation to be administered.
Sign the Administration Form and include the planned date and time of the evaluation.
The chosen administrator should either mail the evaluation directly to students.
Students should also be provided with a stamped envelope marked ''CONFIDENTIAL'' and addressed to: ''CLPD, The University of Adelaide, Level 2 Schulz Building''.

6. Analysing the forms

The CLPD will retain the forms until at least six students have responded, or three years have elapsed, to maintain confidentiality. CLPD will analyze the evaluations.
The process is automated and an optical mark reader scans both sides of the sheet concurrently.
A report is generated.

7. Receiving the data

The Requestor receives a PDF form without responses to open ended questions via email at the time the report is generated.
At the end of the semester, the Head of the Academic Organisational Unit (AOU)/supervisor receives a CD including:

reports from all teachers he/she is responsible for
an aggregate report for the unit.

Executive Dean receives a CD with PDF forms containing

aggregate results for all units
aggregate results for the faculty
a list of users of the SET service in the Faculty.

The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) receives a CD containing aggregated results of all data.

The questionnaires

You may use either the standard template(s) or extend the standard questions to create a questionnaire to suit your particular teaching situation and developmental needs.

The evaluation process includes the construction of your questionnaire(s) in pdf format by either yourself or an administrative staff member.

As part of the automation of the Student Evaluation process, staff may download any of the forms (in pdf format) for:

Individual Teacher SET (Standard or Extended Standard Teacher SETe).
Topic SET (Standard or Extended Standard Topic SETo).
One to one Supervision SET (Standard or Extended Supervision SETs).

Each template contains both the Administration Form and the evaluation questionnaire.

If you are unsure which form you need, refer to SET forms.

Additional information

Please note that the existing practices for evaluating PBL within the School of Medicine remain unchanged.

The following components of the process are completed by staff at the Centre for Learning and Professional Development (CLPD), Adelaide University:

Processing of the student responses.
Summarising the student responses in an easily readable format.
Returning the results in pdf format as an attachment to email.

The Complete SET Manual is available for you to download and print. This contains the complete list of questions.

SET Manual (PDF)

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