The Online Evaluation of Courses: Impact on Participation Rates and Evaluation Scores

Jovan F Groen
, Yves Herry

Abstract

At one of Ontario’s largest universities, the University of Ottawa, course evaluations involve about 6,000 course sections and over 43,000 students every year. This paper-based format requires over 1,000,000 sheets of paper, 20,000 envelopes, and the support of dozens of administrative staff members. To examine the impact of a shift to an online system for the evaluation of courses, the following study sought to compare participation rates and evaluation scores of an online and paper-based course evaluation system. Results from a pilot group of 10,417 students registered in 318 courses suggest an average decrease in participation rate of 12–15% when using an online system. No significant differences in evaluation scores were observed. Instructors and students alike shared positive reviews about the online system; however, they suggested that an in-class period be maintained for the electronic completion of course evaluations.

 

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Published

2017-08-27



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Articles



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How to Cite

Groen, J. F., & Herry, Y. (2017). The Online Evaluation of Courses: Impact on Participation Rates and Evaluation Scores. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 47(2), 106–120. https://doi.org/10.47678/cjhe.v47i2.186704