2022 EDSIG Proceedings: Abstract Presentation

Student achievement and perceived instructor effectiveness: Do the same factors explain the variance in both?

Michael Smith
Georgia Institute of Technology

In 1989, Kenneth Feldman published an extension of a meta-analysis performed by Peter Cohen, who studied the association between specific ratings of instruction made by students in college classes and students real achievement or learning in those classes. Among the 20 factors Feldman measured, he found that the instructor's preparation and organization, clarity and "understandableness", stimulation of interest, motivation of students to reach high standards, encouragement of discussion and openness to others' opinions, and elocutionary skills consistently explain at least 10% of the variance in student achievement. Using Feldman’s typical phrasings of measures of the 20 factors, this study will determine the degree to which each of them also explains the variance in student ratings of the overall effectiveness of the instructor. These findings will inform instructors who seek to improve their score on a key item of students evaluations, “overall effectiveness” while also engaging in practices that support student achievement.

Wednesday at 2:25 pm