Factors Affecting Students' Evaluation of Teachers: Comparing Viewpoints of Teachers and Students

Introduction: Teacher evaluation is carried out through several ways among which the most used method in our country is teacher evaluation by students which is so controversial. This study was performed to compare the viewpoints of teachers and students about factors affecting teacher evaluation by students. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed in second semester of 2007-2008 academic years, in school of nursing and midwifery of Tehran Medical University. Using convenient sampling method based on time, 95 teachers and 379 students of this school were selected as study samples. Their viewpoints were collected by two separate questionnaires each comprising 5 sections. These questionnaires were distributed among students as group administered and among teachers as self-administered. Data was analyzed by SPSS software using frequency distribution and t-test. Results: There was no significant difference between the mean score of students' and teachers' viewpoints considering factors related to teachers’ personal features, teacher's educational activities, educational conditions, and factors associated with students. But a significant difference was observed between their mean score regarding factors related to practical course. Students considered factors unrelated to teacher's quality of education such as easy taking, easy examination questions, level of interest in discipline, and level of interest in teacher, very important. Conclusion: According to teachers' and students' viewpoints, many factors affect teacher evaluation that discounting factors related to practical course, all other factors are adhered by both groups. Therefore, evaluation by students serves as a valuable criterion for teachers' performance. It is necessary to pay attention to the factors unrelated to teacher's quality of education in teacher evaluation by students