The graduate preparation of the college professor of psychology: A survey.

Reports results of a questionnaire mailed to psychology department chairmen in 4-yr colleges. General agreement was found in the responses of 95 Ss from a random sample and 37 Ss from highly selective colleges. The majority indicated that graduates of conventional PhD programs were not well prepared to assume faculty positions in the 4-yr college. Ss favored a balanced doctoral program which would emphasize (a) broad subject-matter competence to enable the professor to teach a variety of undergraduate courses, (b) supervised teaching experience in a variety of situations, (c) training of the doctoral student as an active scholar in his area of special research interest and as a supervisor of student research, (d) development of counseling-advising skills, and (e) orientation of the student to the multifaceted roles of the professor as a general faculty member in his college. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Students' evaluations of university teaching: Dimensionality, reliability, validity, potential baises, and utility.

Reviews findings and research designs used to study students' evaluations of teaching effectiveness. The focus of the investigation is on the author's own research that has led to the development of a students' evaluations of educational quality measure, but it also incorporates a wide range of other research. Based on this overview, class-average student ratings are (a) multidimensional; (b) reliable and stable; (c) primarily a function of the instructor who teaches a course rather than the course that is taught; (d) relatively valid against a variety of indicators of effective teaching; (e) relatively unaffected by a variety of variables hypothesized as potential biases; and (f) seen to be useful by faculty as feedback about their teaching, by students for use in course selection, and by administrators for use in personnel decisions. It is suggested that in future research a construct validation approach should be used in which it is recognized that effective teaching and students' evaluations designed to reflect it are multifaceted, that there is no single criterion of effective teaching, and that tentative interpretations of relations with validity criteria and with potential biases must be scrutinized in different context and examine multiple criteria of effective teaching. (136 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of perceived race and gender in the evaluation of college teaching on RateMyProfessors.Com.

The present study examined whether student evaluations of college teaching (SETs) reflected a bias predicated on the perceived race and gender of the instructor. Using anonymous, peer-generated evaluations of teaching obtained from RateMyProfessors.com, the present study examined SETs from 3,079 White; 142 Black; 238 Asian; 130 Latino; and 128 Other race faculty at the 25 highest ranked liberal arts colleges. Results showed that racial minority faculty, particularly Blacks and Asians, were evaluated more negatively than White faculty in terms of overall quality, helpfulness, and clarity, but were rated higher on easiness. A two-stage cluster analysis demonstrated that the very best instructors were likely to be White, whereas the very worst were more likely to be Black or Asian. Few effects of gender were observed, but several interactions emerged showing that Black male faculty were rated more negatively than other faculty. The results of the present study are consistent with the negative racial stereotypes of racial minorities and have implications for the tenure and promotion of racial minority faculty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Initial experience with a multi-station objective structured teaching skills evaluation

PURPOSE: To explore the applicability of using an objective structured evaluation to assess community preceptors' teaching performances. METHOD: The authors developed and, in 1996, administered an objective structured teaching evaluation (OSTE) at the University of California, Irvine, College of Medicine. They compared assessments of teaching skills made by faculty observers and standardized students, and examined instrument reliability, realism, and utility. RESULTS: Reliabilities of the OSTE varied with individual stations but, in several instances, approached acceptable standards. Faculty observers' and standardized students' evaluations of preceptors' performances were similar. Participants' feedback indicated that the greatest OSTE-related benefit was derived by the faculty observers. CONCLUSIONS: An OSTE that reflects realistic teaching situations can be successfully developed. Objective structured evaluation can be successfully applied to assessing faculty teaching performance. However, it may be no more discriminating than are student evaluations. An OSTE's utility may be greatest in guiding faculty development initiatives.     

Support levels of psychology departments offering graduate programs in 1969-1970.

Conducted a 2nd annual survey of psychology departments having graduate programs, with 152 departments responding. Comparative data were obtained on 28 variables related to budgetary and personnel support characteristics of the departments (faculty salary, departmental budgets, support personnel, student/faculty ratios, etc.). Data were analyzed in terms of geographic regions, type of institution (private vs. Public), size of university, and type of graduate degree programs offered (master's degree only vs. Doctoral degree). Data show both discriminable differences among universities on some variables and wide variability. The survey results may provide (a) a comparative base for departmental chairmen, students examining graduate programs, candidates interviewing for academic positions, and accrediting agencies; and (b) a base line for further annual studies to reflect changes in support of higher education. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A group assessment procedure as a predictor of on-the-job performance of teachers.

The predictive power of a streamlined group assessment (GA) procedure (derived from assessment center methodology) for evaluating candidates for a teacher education program was investigated. Results were compared with principals' evaluations of on-the-job teaching success and with college faculty evaluations. The study population included 231 graduates of a teacher's college, who had been assessed by the procedure at time of admission. Ss were reevaluated by college faculty 3 yrs later at graduation and again by principals 2–5 yrs after graduation. Of the original Ss, 122 were traced after graduation; 78 were employed. Results indicate that the GA procedure was significantly predictive of success on the job, as well as in the training program. The study demonstrated the meaningful, long-term predictive validity of the GA procedure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sustaining curricular change at Sherbrooke through external, formative program evaluations

In this case study, the authors discuss external, formative program evaluation as a means to monitor and sustain ongoing curricular change and to prepare for periodic accreditation reviews. The Faculty of Medicine at Sherbrooke (in Quebec, Canada), following a major curricular reform begun in the mid-1980s, held three external, formative program evaluations in 1988, 1991, and 1994, using expert judgment and "connoisseur" models of evaluation. The authors present the goals of the evaluations (e.g., to evaluate the implementation of intended curricular changes) and the 17-step process used (e.g., "involve as many faculty and students as possible before and during the visit"), and describe the preparation for the evaluations, the selection of the external evaluators (e.g., a chief medical officer from the World Health Organization, a high-profile basic sciences teacher, the chairman of the previous accreditation team, and others), and on-site activities and reporting. Recommendations from the evaluators and the subsequent actions taken (and in a few cases, not taken) by the school are presented and discussed in terms of program planning, curricular content, basic sciences, problem-based learning and tutors' training, assessment of students, resource constraints, clerkships, community orientation, students' self-directedness, and medical humanism. The three evaluations helped guide and support the major curricular undertakings and encouraged continued changed and refinements. They also had a significant effect on the curriculum itself, on the faculty, and on the socioeducational climate of the school.     

Sex differences in academic advancement. Results of a national study of pediatricians

BACKGROUND: Although the numbers of women in training and in entry-level academic positions in medicine have increased substantially in recent years, the proportion of women in senior faculty positions has not changed. We conducted a study to determine the contributions of background and training, academic productivity, distribution of work time, institutional support, career attitudes, and family responsibilities to sex differences in academic rank and salary among faculty members of academic pediatric departments. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of all salaried physicians in 126 academic departments of pediatrics in the United States in January 1992. Of the 6441 questionnaires distributed, 4285 (67 percent) were returned. The sample was representative of U.S. pediatric faculty members. Multivariate models were used to relate academic rank and salary to 16 independent variables. RESULTS: Significantly fewer women than men achieved the rank of associate professor or higher. For both men and women, higher salaries and ranks were related to greater academic productivity (more publications and grants), more hours worked, more institutional support of research, greater overall career satisfaction, and fewer career problems. Less time spent in teaching and patient care was related to greater academic productivity for both sexes. Women in the low ranks were less academically productive and spent significantly more time in teaching and patient care than men in those ranks. Adjustment for all independent variables eliminated sex differences in academic rank but not in salary. CONCLUSIONS: Lower rates of academic productivity, more time spent in teaching and patient care and less time spent in research, less institutional support for research, and lower rates of specialization in highly paid subspecialties contributed to the lower ranks and salaries of female faculty members.     

Robert Strongman Daniel (1914-2004).

Obiturary for psychology educator Robert Strongman Daniel (1914-2004). Among other things the obituary mentions that Daniel received numerous awards, citations, and prestigious appointments from the University of Missouri, the American Psychological Association (APA), and other organizations. Although Bob retired in 1984, he continued to publish and conduct research as an emeritus professor. He presented a departmental colloquium in the late 1980s on the issue of student course evaluations. He and Nola endowed a junior faculty teaching award and a fund for named teaching assistantships at Missouri. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Case 6--1998. Perioperative anesthetic management of a patient presenting for resection of a tracheal mass

PURPOSE: Relatively little research has focused on faculty development methods that assist basic science teachers to improve their instructional skills. This study was designed to assess the effectiveness for basic science faculty of a faculty development seminar series that had been previously shown useful for clinical teachers. METHOD: The Stanford Faculty Development Program's seminars on clinical teaching were adapted for basic science instruction. Eight pathology faculty participated in a series of nine small-group seminars designed to provide teachers with knowledge of a framework for analyzing teaching and identifying areas for improvement, and skill-based training in specific teaching behaviors. Each seminar included (1) brief lectures, (2) review of videotaped reenactments of teaching interactions, (3) role-play exercises with videotape review, and (4) formulation of personal and departmental teaching goals. RESULTS: Program evaluation included multiple measures: participant self-assessment, student ratings of the participants, and blinded ratings of pre- and post-seminar videotapes of participants' classroom teaching. All measures indicated a positive effect of the intervention. CONCLUSION: Faculty development programs have significant potential to enhance basic science instructors' teaching effectiveness.     

Student perceptions of and expectations for male and female instructors: Evidence relating to the question of gender bias in teaching evaluation.

253 undergraduates completed a course evaluation questionnaire that included formal teaching performance ratings, perceptual orientation scales, and indicators of degree and context of student–instructor contact. Ss represented 11 female-instructed courses and 28 male-instructed courses. Male and female instructors were found to be placed within a unitary perceptual frame of reference. Female instructors were perceived as warmer and more potent individuals, but were required by the Ss to offer greater interpersonal support and were judged more closely than male instructors in providing it. Results suggest that although direct gender bias may not be observed in formal student evaluations of their instructors, female faculty members are nonetheless subject to culturally conditioned gender stereotypes. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity and generalizability of student ratings from between-classes and within-class data.

Examined the generalizability and validity of student (N?=?485) ratings by studying within-class and between-classes correlations of ratings with other variables for regular faculty teaching lecture courses as well as for graduate assistants teaching recitation sections. Results indicate that most ratings were highly generalizable but only some were related to learning and that certain aspects of both generalizability and validity varied with instructor's role and with level of data. The implications of these findings for the evaluation of teaching are discussed with reference to 2 alternative paradigms: construct validity and criterion development. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Manager-employee "understanding" in the retail grocery and meat market.

Employees and managers in each of eleven retail food stores provided measures of "understanding" of each other by predicting the other's responses on two questionnaires. From these data, four measures of "understanding" were derived. These were correlated with rankings of the stores based on (1) employee ratings by the manager, (2) manager evaluations by the employees, (3) job satisfaction scores of the employees, and (4) judged efficiency of the retail unit. The first two ratings were not related to any of the measures of "understanding," but the latter two variables were significantly correlated with certain of the measures of "understanding." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Support levels of undergraduate psychology departments in four-year colleges and universities.

Presents data on the budgetary and personnel support characteristics of undergraduate psychology departments, based on the questionnaire responses of 256 department chairmen. Items include staff-student ratio; dollar support per student; faculty salary budget; faculty-classroom contract hours per week; supply, equipment, and travel budgets; and percent of salary increase for 1972. The data establish a normative base for undergraduate departments which may be used to compare the adequacy of support levels of individual programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal Characteristics and Teaching Effectiveness of College Faculty.

This study determined the degree of relationship between observed faculty personal characteristics and judged teaching effectiveness. Students in a coeducational liberal arts college rated faculty on two typical teaching evaluation instruments and on a semantic differential form. Data came from 1,500 student judgments on 108 men and women faculty (86%). Factor analysis, analysis of variance, and multiple regression analyses showed that (a) personality and teaching effectiveness wore highly correlated (.77), (b) factors derived from the semantic differential predicted a multiple R=.88 for teaching effectiveness, and (c) dynamic, pragmatic, amicable, and highly intellectually competent faculty received statistically significant higher teaching competence ratings than did professors tending toward the opposites of these traits. The findings suggest that improvement of teaching effectiveness may depend more on changes related to personality factors than on those involving classroom procedures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived hierarchy of help-giving sources for two categories of student problems.

168 undergraduates ranked 12 help sources in terms of perceived potential for help with 2 categories of problems-emotional and educational-vocational. Problem type, sex of Ss, and counseling experience after high school did not significantly discriminate between the rankings given help-givers. However, high school counseling experience of Ss did significantly discriminate between the rankings. For emotional concerns, Ss ranked student friend 1st, an older friend 2nd, and parents 3rd. For educational-vocational problems, Ss ranked faculty advisor 1st, faculty member 2nd, and student friend 3rd. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trends in the selection of psychology department heads: 1946-1970.

Discusses the characteristics of department chairmen and postwar conflicts between experimental, clinical, and emerging applied psychologists. Data obtained from the American Psychologist and the American Psychological Association (APA) indicate that experimentalists have retained their power in the academic setting, while clinicians, the most numerous group, are underrepresented. Present trends include the selection of younger chairmen and less holders of APA Fellow status. A distribution of the APA division affiliations of new chairmen and the universities where they were trained are presented. It is concluded that the selection of a moderate in psychological politics would help alleviate the fragmentation between research and applied psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability of performance: An interactionist perspective.

The stability of performance and the reliability of its measurement have long been sources of discussion and research in personnel psychology. In the present study, the long-term stability of performance was assessed within an interactionist framework. This framework indicates that an interaction between the person and the situation determines performance and, subsequently, its stability. Specifically, the stability of student ratings of faculty teaching were examined over a 6.5 yr (13 semester) interval. Results indicated that, consistent with the interactionist perspective, teaching ratings were most stable for faculty members teaching a particular course (i.e., more stable than ratings of faculty or ratings of courses). In additional analyses, the pattern of stability over time was explored; the results suggest that an asymptote is reached rapidly. Implications for criterion data collection in personnel studies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)