On the “Evaluation of the Undergraduate Teaching Level” in Chinese universities Xie Surong The Institute of Education Xiamen University

Part I: About the “ Evaluation of the undergraduate teaching level ” in Chinese universities Part II : Thinking on the Evaluation introspectively

The “ Evaluation of the undergraduate teaching level ” in Chinese universities １ About the evaluation work

Since 1999, in the course of the development of higher education massification in China, the teaching quality of higher education becomes the focus of society along with the problem of over-recruitment in universities. It requires the construction of teaching quality assurance system which involves intensifying evaluation of higher education.

In 1993, the evaluation of undergraduate teaching work in universities organized by the original National Education Council can be divided into 7 major categories of conduct. Each group designed their own evaluation indicators system. From 1994, we began to carry on the qualified evaluation of undergraduate teaching in universities, initiated in 1996 to assess outstanding undergraduate teaching work, beginning in 1998 engaged in a random evaluation of undergraduate teaching level in universities.

Later, the Ministry of Education has decided to unify the three kinds of evaluation ways for evaluation of undergraduate teaching level in universities. The evaluation program was researched approximately two years. In 2002, the government used the program to evaluate 21 universities as experiment. In order to guarantee the quality of teaching, started from 2003, the government is putting efforts on the “ Evaluation of undergraduate teaching level ” throughout universities in China. The first turn of the evaluation work finished in 2008.

The evaluation work is divided into three stages: self-assessment, the expert group inspecting the school and the rectification period of one year. The inspection of the expert group in the school are not more than one week, so what the experts inspect is the result of the school self- evaluation, that is to say the result of school self-evaluation is in fact the conclusions of the expert group. The purpose of assessment is to further promote the school directors more concerned with the quality of teaching.

The effect of the evaluation work is displayed in two major aspects: One is satisfaction of the evaluation work, includes school satisfaction, teacher satisfaction, student satisfaction, management satisfaction. The other is validity of the evaluation work, through the evaluation, to improve all aspects of the undergraduate teaching work.

The evaluation program has 7 indicators of first-level (and a feature item: If the university wants to be the first-rate in the evaluation, it needs the item to show its own features), 19 indicators of second-level and 45 assess factors. The indicators system has A-class and C-class standards, between the ranges of A and C are the B-class, not up to C- class standard are D-class, and in fact D-class is not qualified.

2.the evaluation indicators system Construction of Teachers’ team Teaching Development and teaching reform Basic teaching facilities The Guidelines of the school Teaching management Academic Atmosphere And styles

The Guidelines of the school School positioningThe ideas of the school Educational ideasteaching oriented School positioning School programming

Construction of Teachers’ team Structure of teachers’ team Ratio Between Teachers And student Instructors Giving Lessons By Prof. And Vice Prof. Teaching level The Overall Structure And develop- ment trend The Proportion Of Young Teachers With Post Graduate degree Qualifi cation

Utilization of teaching conditions basic teaching facilities Conditions of School Buildings; Lab. And Practice Facilities ; Condition of Teaching Resources etc. Teaching funding The proportion Of the Teaching funding In the tuition The Increase Of the teaching Funding

Development and reform of teachingreform Specialties Including Specialties structure And the Cultivating program Curriculum Teaching content; Teaching Material; Teaching Art; Bilingual teaching Practical Teaching And training; Practical teaching Material; Experiment Utilization of lab Practical Teaching

Teaching management management team Structure And quality Quality control Con- Struction And Conduct Of Teaching systerm Quality Standard Of main Teaching procedures Research and Practical Results of Teaching Management And reform teaching Quality control

Academic styles Teachers’ style Moral characters Learning style Manage- Ment Of student Campus atmosphere Professional spirits Social Practice And other Educational Activities After school

Teaching effect The basic Theory and Basic skills 学习 60 岁以上 0岁0岁 The thesis Or graduation project Ideological and Moral Cultivation Physical education The Reputation of the school

Feature indicator: If the university wants to be the first-rate in the evaluation, the feature indicator must be considered It can be manifested in the following aspects: the overall strategy, the idea of the university; educational characteristics; teaching characteristics, such as curriculum system, teaching methods; teaching management features, such as a set of scientific teaching management system, a good operational mechanism and so on.

In 2003, the Ministry of Education organized the evaluation of 42 universities, including Shanghai University, Capital Normal University, and the excellent rate was near 50%. The results of the evaluation evoked a strong response.

Thinking on the Evaluation introspectively: Positve effects: 1. increasing the input of undergraduate teaching 2. setting up teaching-oriented incentive mechanism 3. promoting the reform of undergraduate teachingpromoting the reform of undergraduate teaching 4, exploring and forming the assurance mechanism of teaching quality

the specific problems and wrongdoings in the practice: （ 1 ） misunderstandings of the evaluation cause some wrongdoings. Utilitarian sense; mistakenly believed that the evaluation is costly （ 2 ） some colleges haven’t set up a set of long-term assurance system.

The negative influential factors of the evaluation : 1, the unscientific evaluation methods affect the improvement of teaching quality 2,the principal role of government in the evaluation affects the order of teaching management 3, the results of the evaluation lack measurement of the process, existing formalism 4, the constitute of evaluation experts is simplified, lack of social evaluation

Thank you for your attention!