The use of student ratings in multiinstructor courses.

In this study the authors examined the efficacy of using student ratings of teaching effectiveness in multiinstructor courses. Specific issues addressed included student ability to identify differences in faculty teaching effectiveness, the consistency of student rating obtained immediately following each lecture with those obtained at the conclusion of the course, and the relationship between individual faculty ratings and overall course ratings. A random sample of students rated each of 14 lectures in a psychopathology course using a 13-item rating scale immediately after each lecture and again at the end of the course. Results indicated that differences in faculty teaching effectiveness are measurable, ratings of individual faculty are relatively stable over over time, and rating of individual faculty are separable from those of the course as a whole. Implications of this research for use of student ratings are also discussed.