Gerald M. Gillmore

The Graduation Efficiency Index: Validity and Use as an Accountability and Research Measure

Legislatures and coordinating boards are looking for efficiency measures as greater numbers of students wish access to higher education. We propose the Graduation Efficiency Index (GEI) as an efficiency measure that is more valid and useful than elapsed time from matriculation to degree (time to degree). The index is computed by subtracting the number of transfer credits from the minimum credits required for the degree, then dividing the remainder by the sum of the enrollment census day credits in which the given student has enrolled while in college. Research is reported in which this index is applied to data from 1993–94 University of Washington bachelor-degree recipients. Among the results, nontransfers were found to graduate with more efficiency than transfers and B.A.-degree recipients with more efficiency that B.S. recipients. The GEI correlated only modestly with time to degree and part-time vs. full-time enrollment status, and correlations with admissions data were quite small.

How Large Is the Course Effect? A Note on Romney's Course Effect vs. Teacher Effect on Students' Ratings of Teacher Competence.

Romney (1977) presented data from which he concluded that within student ratings of college instruction, the course that an instructor teaches is as important a determiner of resulting ratings as the instructor himself. Reanalysis of his data indicates that the course effect is actually quite small, a result that is consistent with earlier studies.

National WEPAN Pilot Climate Survey exploring the environment for undergraduate engineering students

The primary purpose of the WEPAN (Women in Engineering Programs and Advocates Network) Pilot Climate Survey was to develop a method to assess engineering student perceptions of the educational climate at colleges and universities in the USA. More than 8000 male and female undergraduate engineering students from 29 institutions responded to the survey. Participating institutions used their individual reports to gain insight into specific aspects of the environment on their campuses that require attention for all students. Aggregate data yielded interesting findings regarding gender differences in areas related to student self-confidence and self-esteem that require further study.

Postlecture and postcourse student ratings of faculty in multi‐instructor courses

This study examined ratings of faculty by medical students in six large multi‐instructor courses, each of which directly involved four or more faculty in instruction. Throughout each of the courses, faculty were first rated immediately following their individual lectures by samples of randomly selected students. They were rated again at the end of the courses by nonoverlapping samples of randomly selected students. The immediate (postlecture) ratings and the end‐of‐course (postcourse) ratings produced very similar rank orderings of faculty within courses. The average postcourse ratings, however, were consistently almost one third of a point lower than their more immediate postlecture counterparts. Findings are contrasted with results from previous studies, and implications for gathering, reporting, interpreting, and using faculty ratings from multi‐instructor courses are discussed.

The Dependability of Student Evaluations of Teaching Effectiveness: Matching the Conclusions to the Design

Carbno (1981) used generalizability theory as a conceptual framework for analyzing student ratings data from two courses taught by a single instructor. This article argues that unwarranted conclusions were reached in the study because its design included an improper operationalization of the object of measurement, given the problems addressed, and because the sample sizes employed were too small.

The Course Effect Is Small: A Reply to Romney.

In the research originally reported in this journal of Romney (1976), the design under which student instructional ratings data were collected was students nested within teachers, and students and teachers nested within courses. The critical issues in the dispute between Romneys interpretation of his results and my interpretation of these same results continue to be whether the teachers factor should be treated as fixed or random in the analysis of variance model and, what conclusions can be drawn from the results of the study. I shall deal with each of these issues in turn. FIXED VS. RANDOM EFFECTS

A study of the educational benefits of proficiency testing for students

While granting college credit by examination seems to be increasing in popularity, few educational researchers seem to be assessing its effect on student educational variables. For this purpose, the transcripts of 349 students who had graduated from the University of Illinois were examined.Among the more important findings were that students who gained proficiency credit tended to graduate with more total credit hours and more credit hours in upper division courses. Both of these results were interpreted as a positive benefit of proficiency testing. Students with proficiency credit also tended to graduate sooner and with higher grade point averages.

LEGALISM, ANTINOMIANISM, SITUATIONISM: THREE MORAL DECISION-MAKING ORIENTATIONS

Three contemporary adult, moral decision-making orientations were operationalized. Legalism appeals first to laws and principles given by a supra-personal authority. Antinomianism attempts to make moral decisions consistent with internal values and personal growth. Situationism, while treating the rules and values of society seriously, violates these rules if human welfare is best served by so doing. One hundred ten volunteer Introductory Psychology students evaluated choices described in a series of stories and responded to three scales of Likert-type attitude-belief items and a religiosity scale. Results were consistent with the initial theory of Legalism. This was largely true of Antinomianism as well, but not true for Situationism which was ultimately rejected in favor of what is essentially the subordination of external authority and the self to the primary moral value of others.