Radical Change in Faculty and Student Evaluation: A Justifiable Heresy?.

Abstract

This article addresses the connection between two continuing trends in higher education: semester evaluation of faculty by students (SE’s) and grade inflation. The two phenomena are explored historically; then a two-part plan is proposed to enhance the evaluation of both students and faculty. This solution does not replace current evaluation practices; it merely adds information on each student’s relative performance. Although subject to criticism as radical reform, the plan is offered as a feasible check on grade inflation and diminished student responsibility—one that is consistent with long held higher education values, as well as recent calls for increased educational accountability. The author concludes that such efforts offer hope in reversing a set of disturbing trends in student achievement. Keywords: college grading, grade inflation, instructor evaluation, student achievement