Quality Assurance
Guidelines on Course and Teaching Evaluation
1. As a means to enhance the quality of teaching in the University, Course and Teaching Evaluation (CTE) is conducted online as a compulsory exercise every semester. CTE results are used as one element of input for academic staff appraisal.
2. CTE should be conducted by Schools/programmes for all undergraduate and postgraduate courses except for classes with five or fewer students when the anonymity of responses becomes a concern.
3. The CTE questionnaire comprises two parts: Part A is common across the University while individual Schools/programmes may tag on a programme-specific Part B of either forced-choice or open-ended questions.
4. Each School/programme of the University is responsible for the implementation of CTE evaluation, including the possible design of Part B of the questionnaire, the launch of CTE and administration of the exercise and analysis of the results.
5. The CTE questionnaire responses are processed and stored by Schools/programmes. The framework of Course and Teaching Evaluation by CUHK has been deployed for processing CTE results and generating reports for individual teachers.
6. The Schools/programmes and ITSO must exercise due care in the collection of CTE data from students and in the handling of such data and the results of the CTE, in compliance with the requirements of relevant policies on Protection of Personal Data and Privacy of the University, including but not limited to the precaution that CTE results must not be displayed publicly in any manner whereby it is possible to identify the individual teachers concerned, and that security measures must be taken diligently by the Schools/programmes/ITSO to prevent public access to CTE results.
7. CTE is normally conducted in the last three weeks of the teaching, depending on the teaching arrangements. For a joint teaching subject, it should be done in the last week of each teacher with prior notification to the CTE office of the School/programme. For courses taught by invited lecturers, the School/programme shall decide the launch time.
8. Teachers, teaching assistants, or graduate assistants who participate in the teaching of the course shall not be present while students are completing the CTE questionnaires.
9. To ensure a satisfactory return rate, CTE can be conducted during class after receiving the notification from CLEAR and the School/programme. Disinterested third parties, e.g. clerks, technicians, and teaching assistants who have not participated in the teaching of the course concerned, shall be designated to supervise students for CTE. Students can also complete CTE online in their spare time.
10. Evaluation of lab classes and tutorials, if any, of a course could also be included in the CTE exercise.
11. The content of the questionnaire used for CTE and the implementation of the exercise itself should be discussed from time to time at the School Board as the case may be.
12. With a view to deliberating on the general directions for course/programme improvements, the results of CTE should be discussed in general terms at the School Board as the case may be, on the proviso that no discussion should be held on the CTE performance of individual teachers or students in these particular meetings.