An update on the SIRS summer pilot study and a follow-up on a proposal for the merger of language departments was discussed by the Executive Committee of Academic Council, or ECAC, on Tuesday.
Gillian Bice, University Committee on Academic Policy, or UCAP, chairperson, and Jim Smith, a UCAP member, discussed MSU’s implementation of SIRS evaluation forms many students complete at the end of each semester.
SIRS is the university’s student instructional rating system for faculty.
During an online summer 2010 pilot program with about 20 courses, students who did not complete the SIRS form were not permitted to access their grades on the MSU StuInfo website.
Students then were asked to fill out an online form to see their grades immediately or wait a week, Smith said.
With the stipulation in effect, there was an uptick in student participation and feedback regarding instructors’ effectiveness in the classroom, Smith said.
“The overall percent response from 2009 was 31 percent and the overall percent response from 2010 was 87 percent — it was definitely a dramatic increase,” he said.
Smith said additional courses have the new SIRS rules in effect for the fall 2010 semester, including all IAH and ISS courses.
The merger of the Department of French, Classics and Italian with the Department of Spanish and Portuguese brought no concerns to the assembly, said ECAC Chairman John Powell.
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