Once in a while we get what we deserve. Thank you to all the students who took the time to fill in the NSSE surveys; to the faculty who help create the engagement; and to the staff who support the whole enterprise. Bravo. The following is from Ken Steele's Academica Top Ten which was posted today.
Trent surpasses provincial average in NSSE: Trent University reports that it has surpassed Ontario results in all 5 survey categories in this year's National Survey of Student Engagement. The university also exceeded the North American average for Level of Academic Challenge and Supportive Campus Environment. 88% of first-year students and 87% of senior-year students surveyed rated their education experience at Trent as either "excellent" or "good," compared to 82% and 77%, respectively, in Ontario and 86% and 85% in North America. 87% of first-year Trent students said they would attend the institution if they could start over again, compared to an average of 85% across Ontario and North America. 82% of senior-year students at Trent affirmed their choice as well, compared to 76% in Ontario and 82% in North America. Trent News Release | Add/Read Comments
Hats off to everyone. Good news is always welcome, especially on the cusp of such an important bargaining year. Bravo!
ReplyDeleteTo the extent that we believe we are in the business of providing a commodity called a 'university experience', these numbers tell us that we're doing OK. The consumers rate the product as comparable, perhaps even slightly favorable, to the products of our competitors.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, this might be a useful way to think about what we do. My sense is that governmental policy-makers who hold our purse-strings see some value in these kinds of measurements.
But if we stop thinking in terms of a commodity, then these numbers raise more questions than they provide answers.
Let's start with student ratings of their educational experience. To what extent does a negative rating reflect a failure on the part of the University? Should our goal be to have 100% positive ratings? Or is some level of negativity an inevitable result of students discovering that they don't have the skills, motivation, or maturity to succeed in this environment at this point in their lives?
Likewise, what is reflected in the percentage of students who think they made the right choice in Trent? Does this mean that we met their expectations, and if so, what did they expect? Does a negative rating reflect a weak program, or a student who picked a University that wasn't compatible with their interests, goals, etc? Does a higher rating mean that Trent is doing a better job of engaging students? Of educating them? Or simply that we are accommodating them? Are all of these equally good?
Why do students assign negative ratings to these things? We need to keep in mind that the reasons students give for negative ratings are not the whole story (which is not to say that they aren't an important part of it). What are the circumstances under which, if Trent does what it should, we ought to expect negative ratings?
I realize that this might sound as though I am blaming students for their own bad experiences. This isn't my main point--the institution and the student both contribute to the experience, and beyond that the assignation of blame is complex.
My point is that these numbers encourage us to think in simple terms, and suggest that we are in competition with other schools for top scores. And that this simplistic thinking leads us to overlook the many good reasons why it might be desirable for some percentage of our students to walk away dissatisfied. It might be strategic, at times, to talk about a Trent education as a product. But let's not forget that such a frame has immense limitations, and is in many ways fundamentally incompatible with what we are all about.
Stephen is bang on.
ReplyDeleteConsumerama + Stats = "Accountability" (= Funding)
Can we hold our noses and build stats to unlock purse strings.... remembering that these numbers and everything they represent have little to do with teaching and learning?
Render unto McGuinty something or another, but keep what is of value?
It's a toughie. Education, by definition, stretches a person... and it's not always easy. Consumption is effortless.