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Faculty appraisal to be private
A MAJOR DOCUMENT OF OUR TIMES
by MARSHA BANGERT
Staff Writer
Open hearings are slated
Wednesday afternoon on
proposals by a Teaching
Council committee that would
place the key to student
evaluation of teachers into the
hands of individual instructors.
Under a plan proposed by
the Faculty Evaluation
release, or keep confidential
Tuesday, March 2nd
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tho data compiled from
student (evaluation
questionnaires.
The co.nmittee of two
students, six faculty was
established in February 1970
by the Teaching Council in
response to a Faculty Senate
resolution more than a year
ago.
"The major goal of student
evaluation is to provide
information to an instructor
regarding items that affect and
influence his teaching
effectiveness," the committee
report states. "As such, this
information should be
considered confidential and
privileged."
Some professors told
committee members that they
would not participate in
faculty evaluation if the data
would be published according
to committee member Vernon
G. Williams, associate professor
of educational psychology and
Teaching Council member.
He added that the
committee felt many faculty
members would support the
right of professors not to
release data although they
themselves would allow
evaluation results to be
published.
But some committee
members felt that the most
effective way to achieve the
major aim of improving "an
individual instructor's
classroom teaching" was to
show student evaluation data
onlv to departmental
chairmen, Williams said.
"Significant individual
opinions were expressed during
our committee's discussions,"
he said. "Our report is a
compromise."
Members of the University
will have an opportunity to
give their opinions on the
report at the open hearing at 4
p.m. Wednesday in the
Nebraska Union.
The hearing will give anyone
in the academic community a
chance to "influence" the
report and its
recommendations prior to its
submission to the Faculty
Senate March 9, Williams said.
The report and its
recommendations have already
been endorsed by the Teaching
Council.
According to the report, the
committee believes that
teaching evaluations inform
faculty members of "student
perceptions of their teaching
effectiveness."
Evaluations also provide
"more objective information
on teaching effectiveness" for
use by administrators and
students, according to the
report. These opinions were
based on a study of evaluation
systems at other institutions.
The report proposes
"systematic procedures for
carrying out periodic course
and instructional assessment"
at the departmental level. Each
department chairman would be
required to make an annual
report on evaluation.
The report urges that any
program developed be
periodically reviewed, the first
review to be within two years.
But recognizing that no
one evaluation will provide "all
the information every
department or individual needs
or desires," the report urges
departments to develop
questionnaires "especially
meaningful and relevant" to
their situation.
Also recommendeA is a
course description and
instructor's statements to
provide more explicit
information about class intent.
The course description
would include information
about prerequisites, required
reading material, required
assignments and examinations.
Instructor's statements would
cover particular aspects of the
course.
Finally the report
recommends that any faculty
evaluation program established
be viewed "as tentative and
experimental."
I states, "In matters as
complex as this, it is difficult
to foretell with great
confidence specific outcomes
or values."
Legislature passes
voting amendment
The Unicameral Monday
gave overwhelming first round
approval to a proposed
constitutional amendment
giving 18 and 19 year-olds the
right to vote in state and local
elections.
Acceptance of the
amendment and approval by
the state's voters would bring
Nebraska's local standards in
line with last summer's Federal
Voting Rights act that lowered
the voting age from 2 1 to 1 8 in
federal elections.
The amendment was
approved on a 38-2 vote. It is
co-sponsored by 16 senators.
According to Sen. William
Swanson of Lincoln, one of the
amendment's chief advocates,
adoption of the amendment
would eliminate the dual
system of ballots and voting
procedures that would
otherwise be necessary.
Only Sen. Sam Klaver of
Omaha and Sen. Herb Nore of
Genoa voted against the bill.
Klaver said that Nebraska
voters in 1968 voted against
lowering the voting age to 19.
He also argued that if
18-year-olds can vote they
should also be held liable for
contracts.
The legislature approved an
amendment by Sen. Terry
Carpenter of Scottsbluff to
expediate approval of the bill.
Swanson followed with an
amendment to provide that the
question be put on the primary
ballot next year rather than the
general election ballot as
originally provided for in the
bill.
ETV Building. . . .
The Unicameral Monday, on a
motion by Sen. Terry
Carpenter of Scottsbluff,
instructed one of its select
committees to study the
possible use of the new
Nebraska Educational
Television Building as a state
office building.
Carpenter said senators
should have the opportunity to
take a last look at the whole
field of educational TV before
the building on the University
East campus is equipped and
occupied.
Explaining his motion
before the 29-5 vote. Carpenter
said the Legislature ought to
decide "how far we want to
expand ETV." He added that
Nebraska public schools are
"unwilling to make
contributions" for educational
broadcasts.
The legislative committee is
to report with 30 days whether
the ETV building could be
used as "a substitute" for the
proposed 1 5th St. state office
building.
PAGE 2
THE DAILY NEBRASKAN
TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 1971
