EFFECTIVENESS OF STUDENT-RATING FEEDBACK FOR IMPROVING COLLEGE INSTRUCTION: A Meta-Analysis of Findings

This article applied meta-analytic methodology to integrate findings from 22 comparisons of the effectiveness of student-rating feedback at the college level. On the average, feedback had a modest but significant effect on improving instruction. Instructors receiving mid-semester feedback averaged.16 of a rating point higher on end-of-semester overall ratings than did instructors receiving no mid-semester feedback. This corresponded to a gain of over one-third of a standard-deviation unit, or a percentile gain of 15 points. The effects of student-rating feedback were accentuated when augmentation or consultation accompanied the ratings. Other study features, such as the length of time available to implement changes and the use of normative data, did not produce different effect sizes.