As the end of the semester approaches, students may find themselves filling out teacher evaluations. Soon, students may be able to evaluate their instructors online.

Currently, teacher evaluations are given in two forms: either a detailed form that utilizes a Scantron or a sheet asking for a few short comments on the teacher’s performance. Online teacher evaluations would allow students to evaluate without wasting any paper and on their own time rather than class time.

Paul Stoddard, Faculty Senate president and associate geology professor, said the concept still needs to be approved by the Academic Policies Committee and the University Council.

“It came out of the University Council Personnel Committee partially to save time in class,” Stoddard said. “The system we have [now] with the faculty member leaving and the students taking it in class seems a little awkward, and if there is a better way to do it, it seems like a good time to consider it.”

There haven’t been many details about the procedure for doing them considered yet. The earliest it would be implemented would be either next semester or next year, Stoddard said.

Some students feel the current teacher evaluations would be more effective than taking the evaluations online.

“I think [the online teacher evaluations] would be worse because I wouldn’t really care to do it unless I really liked the teacher or really hated them,” said Izabela Zeglen, a junior anthropology and sociology major. “If they want them done I think they should make [students] do it in class, otherwise I don’t think they’ll get done - unless there is some incentive."

Isaiah Hunley, a senior meteorology major, feels doing them online could be more complicated than doing them in class. He also feels filling out the evaluation online produces a higher risk.

“[In-class evaluations are] guaranteed to get to the teacher,” Hunley said. “If you do it online, it may get lost in the system. There could be a glitch."

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