Validating Student Evaluations of Teaching in Teacher Education Programs at the University of Sargodha

Abstract

Teaching quality is an important part of learning and engagement in higher education and a major factor in the success or failure of individual students. Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) have become a common measure to gauge teaching effectiveness and guide instruction. This study confirmed the SETs at University of Sargodha and compared the students' perception based on gender, program level and semester. The method used was a quantitative cross-sectional design. A questionnaire adapted from the SET instrument which included questions on planning and teaching didactics, and assessment and feedback was administered to 170 BS, MPhil and PhD students at the end of the semester. The instrument was validated using reliability, confirmatory factor analysis, independent-samples t test, ANOVA, correlation and regression analyses and patterns of perception were explored. The instrument has high reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .92) and construct validity. Pupils' overall views of the quality of teaching were positive. Female students gave higher ratings than male students in the categories of planning, didactics and assessment. There were differences between the perceptions of academic stages with BS 4th semester students showing higher satisfaction on planning than those of BS 8th semester students, while PhD students' perceptions were higher on assessment and feedback than MPhil students' perceptions. There was a high level of support between planning and teaching didactics and assessment and feedback (R² = .681). SETs were found to be a reliable instrument for instructional improvement, and demographic and academic differences were used to help determine the appropriate strategies.