Student evaluation of teaching: reactions of Australian academics to anonymous non-constructive student commentary

Within Australian higher education, student evaluation of teaching (SET) is regularly conducted and data are utilised for quality control and staff appraisal. Within current methodologies, students can anonymously provide further feedback as written commentary. There is now growing evidence that, on...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAssessment and evaluation in higher education Vol. 49; no. 2; pp. 154 - 164
Main Authors Hutchinson, Marie, Coutts, Rosanne, Massey, Debbie, Nasrawi, Dima, Fielden, Jann, Lee, Megan, Lakeman, Richard
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Routledge 17.02.2024
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
academia
Feedback
Higher education
Mental health
Student Evaluation of Teacher Performance
student evaluation of teaching (SET)
Student feedback
teacher evaluation
Teaching
Universities
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Summary:Within Australian higher education, student evaluation of teaching (SET) is regularly conducted and data are utilised for quality control and staff appraisal. Within current methodologies, students can anonymously provide further feedback as written commentary. There is now growing evidence that, once this narrative becomes derogatory or abusive, it may have the potential to create harm. To investigate staff reactions to receiving anonymous non-constructive commentary, a one group point in time design was constructed, and a survey conducted. Participants (N = 741) from a broad cross-section of Australian universities responded to Likert questions asking about their reactions. A significant impact was revealed according to age for mental health, stress and professional confidence, with younger and tenured academics indicating the most vulnerability. There were no differences across gender. Non-health disciplines with teaching loads greater than 50% reported an impact of anonymous SET on mental health and professional confidence. Being casually or seasonally employed or from an ethnic background was shown to have a significant effect on professional confidence. Findings suggest that the potential for higher education academics to be harmed via this process is a continued risk and highlights the need for review and reform of SET systems and protocols.
ISSN:0260-2938
1469-297X
DOI:10.1080/02602938.2023.2195598