Argues that increased student self-assessment accuracy might result in better academic performance by allowing students to modify their exam preparation more realistically. Uses an experiment with practice examinations to demonstrate the causal link between more accurate self-assessment and performance. Notes implications for the construction of…

An analysis of two studies shows the methods and results of college students' evaluation of 28 social psychology texts at Queens College, N.Y. (JR)

Evaluation results provided strong evidence for the efficacy of university-level self-modification courses. Students demonstrated improvement in their target behaviors and reported significant positive changes in dysfunctional attitudes, fear of negative evaluation, and general self-control skills. (RM)

To assess its undergraduate psychology curriculum, a small midwestern liberal arts college administered the Advanced Graduate Record Exam in psychology to psychology majors in their senior year. (RM)

Most students have some experience with purported measures of psychological constructs before entering college. Critical analysis of such measures requires familiarity with test development strategies. The activities outlined in this article allowed students to complete the steps involved in scale construction and empirical analysis in a…

Internal and external validity are key concepts in understanding the scientific method and fostering critical thinking. This article describes a class demonstration of a "botched" experiment to teach validity to undergraduates. Psychology students (N = 75) completed assessments at the beginning of the semester, prior to and immediately following…

Determines the effects of strict and lenient grading practices on the test performance of students with low, moderate and high SAT scores. Concludes that variations in grading scales affects how much students learn. Suggests that the effects of teacher and course evaluations by students be mediated by considering students' performance. (KO)

Proposes use of prepublication student evaluations of textbooks. Feedback from students helps to improve comprehensibility and interest and is most useful when done on a chapter-by-chapter basis using a systematic evaluation procedure. (Author/KC)

Description of the method and results of a study that evaluated introductory psychology textbooks according to their human interest and readability. It updates a previous study. (ND)

Anonymous criticism of a reading consultant's readability analysis of the authors' introductory psychology textbook. (ND)

Maintains that more valid student evaluations of teacher performance on the college level will result if evaluation questionnaires reflect specific teaching situations and student cohorts. The Echo technique (which is based on reflecting evaluative comments in the student's own words) is suggested as a means of producing more valid evaluations.…

As universities increase expectations for evidence of student learning, journals like "Teaching of Psychology (ToP)" have come to expect outcome data from authors describing teaching techniques. Our comparison of ToP articles published in 1996 and 2006 showed a significant decrease in reliance on student opinion and an increase in the use of more…

A comparison between student and peer ratings of faculty is reviewed. Teaching effectiveness is seen as a combination of amount learned by students, student opinion, and faculty opinion. (DE)

Evidence supported the use of one type of peer evaluation in small group activities, particularly when the instructor is unable to make sufficient observations for assigning grades. However, students should be provided with few evaluative categories and explicit directions for applying the categories. (RM)

This article discusses a study undertaken to investigate validity and reliability of student evaluations of teachers. In the study, teaching assistants' evaluations of teacher performance were compared to student evaluations. Findings indicated a high correlation between student and teaching assistant ratings of teachers. (DB)