Comparison of anonymous student ballots with student debriefing for faculty evaluations.
BACKGROUND
Yearly evaluation of academic faculty teaching is required by institutions for advancement purposes and continued employment. The method in which these evaluations are collected may influence the outcome of that evaluation. We compared the results of three different data collection methods of faculty ratings.


METHODS
Diagnostic radiology residents evaluated four behaviour categories of faculty in three different ways during the 1995-96 academic year. The individual anonymous ballot was compared to two student debriefing techniques.


RESULTS
Ratings in individual categories and rankings of several of the faculty changed considerably depending upon the data gathering method. Individual anonymous ballots produced a higher average rating in all four categories evaluated. The average ratings were lowest in the closed meeting group.


CONCLUSIONS
The method in which evaluation of faculty are collected influences both the numerical value of the rating as well as the ranking of the teachers within the group. Evaluation outcomes are highly dependent upon the method of data collection.
Pelsang
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The University of Iowa College of Medicine, Department of Radiology, 200 Hawkins Drive, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, USA.
Smith
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D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods*; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007484:Iowa; D011247:Pregnancy; D011871:Radiology / Q000193:education; D013663:Teaching / Q000592:standards*