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Course Evaluation Process

"Evaluation of instruction at Calvin Theological Seminary should serve to improve the quality of that instruction."

The vice president for academic affairs is responsible for supervising the evaluation process that follows for all core courses taught at the seminary and for all courses taught by part-time instructors (including adjuncts and emeriti):

1. Toward the end of the first quarter of the academic year, the vice president for academic affairs will call a meeting with student class presidents and senators. The vice president will invite their participation in the evaluation process, will orient the students to the procedure and will assign evaluation responsibilities for that quarter. Subsequent assignment of responsibility will be made by the vice president to the student class presidents and senators by way of memo.
2. When final class lists are ready, the vice president for academic affairs will arrange for preparation of sets of evaluation forms equal to the final class count for each course.
3. Packets of evaluation forms and pencils will be distributed to teachers of courses to be evaluated.
4. The teacher will briefly and succinctly orient the class to the evaluation procedures, will lead the class in prayer, and will then distribute forms and pencils. Signing of the evaluation forms shall be actively encouraged but not required. All forms, signed or unsigned, will be collected after fifteen minutes. They will be returned immediately to the administrative assistant to the vice president for academic affairs. The teacher is free to invite a student, preferably a class officer, to accomplish these tasks.
5. The administrative assistant to the vice president for academic affairs will arrange for the forms to be analyzed, ordinarily by computer.
6. When the summaries and forms have been returned, the vice president for academic affairs will do the following:
   1. After course grades have been submitted, he or she will distribute to each faculty member both the numerical summary of that faculty member's work and a copy of the all-seminary average for that academic quarter. The faculty member may keep these computer summaries for his or her own file.
   2. He or she will notify the class presidents, inviting them to pick up the student evaluation forms and a duplicate copy of the faculty member's computer summary. Within two weeks the student class officers shall formulate in writing an interpretation and analysis of the responses provided on the evaluation forms, noting strengths, weaknesses, and suggestions for improvement. They shall do this for every core course for which they have been assigned responsibility. In this process they shall be accountable to maintain the strictest of confidentiality.
7. After the panel of class president and senator have reviewed the evaluation materials of the courses assigned to them, they will meet with the teacher to discuss their summary report. At that meeting, the student class officers will leave with the teacher all materials that--to this point--they have had in hand: the numerical summary, the evaluation forms, and their own report. The student panel will also file a copy of their report with the vice president for academic affairs. It is recognized that it may not be possible for a student officer to meet face-to-face with some part-time teachers.
8. Within two weeks of the visit with the students, the teacher will return to the vice president for academic affairs all of the evaluation forms, including one copy of the computer summary, which will remain in the file of the vice president for academic affairs.
9. The same procedure shall occur at the end of the spring quarter except that normally the student class officers' evaluation and visit will not occur. Instead, the vice president for academic affairs will give to faculty members the computer summaries and the evaluation forms after course grades have been submitted. Within a month, the faculty member shall return the student evaluation forms to the vice president for academic affairs.
10. If student officers choose not to accept the invitation to participate in the evaluation process or do not contact the vice president for academic affairs within the time specified, the vice president will be free to provide the evaluations forms to teachers.