University of Virginia Library

Plans Course Evaluation

The officers of the Council,
Tom Mason, president,
Caroline Metter,
vice-president, and Mary Lee
Vance, secretary-treasurer, are
interested in involving graduate
students from as many
departments of the University
as possible.

One of the major projects
the Council is undertaking is
that of graduate course
evaluation. Evaluations will be
made in strict confidence and
will stress objective,
constructive criticism. The
results will be published in the
undergraduate course
evaluation booklet.

According to Mrs. Metter,
much skepticism surrounds the
issue of evaluation as some
professors feel it is
unnecessary. "Hopefully, all
fears will be alleviated by the
constructivism of the booklet,"
she said. "Knife-turning is not
the purpose. No one is to feel
the pain or glory of being
singled-out."

The Council hopes that the
evaluations will be beneficial to
both the students and
professors. "In a seminar, the
professor and students do the
teaching with the professor as
an experienced, enlightened
moderator," said Mrs. Metter.
The criticisms would,
therefore, "evaluate not only
the professors but the students
as well. Offering suggestions is
part of the academic process."