Assessing Teaching Effectiveness in a Basic Food Laboratory Setting: Pilot Testing the Instrument

Abstract

This is the fourth phase of a research project to develop a student evaluation tool (SET) to evaluate teaching effectiveness in a basic food laboratory. This phase tested the instrument among students enrolled in basic food laboratories at 4-year universities. Students were asked to evaluate the effectiveness of their instructor using the SET that had been developed in the three previous phases of this research project. The goal was to ensure the SET was valid and reliable. A factor analysis was completed to determine the major areas of the SET. The factor analysis yielded three factors comparable to those identified by the Delphi Panel (from Phase 1). Results also indicate the SET was preferred by the students over the one currently used by their universities.