APPLICATION TO DIFFERENT FORMS
Although each of you is using a different rating form with different numbers of items and scores, those differences do not matter in score interpretation. Whether you’re using a commercial package, such as IDEA, SIR II, PICES, or CIEQ DU SOLEIL, or a “homegrown scale,” there are only so many score reporting possibilities for any form in Likert-type format. So my suggestions are generic and should be applicable to your form. I encourage you to consult the guidelines or manual for your reporting system for more specific information.
FIVE BASIC CATEGORIES OF RESULTS
There are 5 possible categories of results reported for most student rating forms:
1. anchor distribution of percentages
2. item statistics (mean and/or median)
3. subscale statistics (mean and/or median)
4. total scale statistics (mean and/or median)
5. summary of comments to open-ended questions
Your report form may not provide all of the above, but it should certainly give you at least 2 and 4.
WHAT DO FACULTY NEED?
That's a lot of information. You could use all of those results, however, 1 and 2, in particular, provide the most valuable diagnostic info to revise teaching or course materials that will benefit your next course-load of students. These are called formative decisions about teaching. Category 5 can explain the reasons for the ratings to 1 and 2.
WHAT DO ADMINISTRATORS NEED?
Summative decisions about annual contract renewal, merit pay, or promotion and tenure review by department chairs, associate deans, etc. can be based on 3 and 4 and possibly the global item scores.
This blog series will focus primarily on the faculty needs. My next blog will examine the 1st level of interpretation: ANCHOR-WORLD!
COPYRIGHT © 2010 Ronald A. Berk, LLC
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