Empowering Teaching Through Contextualized Student Feedback
Fostering Faculty Agency, Student Belonging, and Evolving Evaluation Practices
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22432038 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Nira Rahman (0000-0001-7261-8465, The University of Melbourne), Jill McSweeney (Elon University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 14 |
| Pages | 1-9 |
| Publication date | 2026-04-24 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Teaching & Learning Inquiry: The ISSOTL Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2167-4779 • E-ISSN: 2167-4787 |
| Publisher | International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.20343/teachlearninqu.14.22 |
| OpenAlex | W7155538533 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 15 |
Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) are a ubiquitous institutional tool for capturing student feedback, yet they often function as tokenistic, end-of-course mechanisms that fail to support meaningful pedagogical development. This paper shares a critical reflection of the traditional SET model and proposes a new approach to a time-old tradition. Grounded in the Students as Partners (SaP) framework, we propose a reimagining of SETs centered on four interdependent principles: respect, reciprocity, responsibility, and reflection. This proposed model also positions feedback as an ongoing, dialogic process that enhances learning for students, educators, and institutions. This model, the Continual Feedback Loop (CFL), is a cyclical framework that embeds feedback before, during, and after a course, ensuring responsiveness to context, learner-centered engagement, and capacity-building for all. The CFL transforms SETs from static, summative evaluations into dynamic tools for co-created learning environments, supporting educator autonomy while amplifying student voices. This approach also addresses systemic barriers in SET practices, including power imbalances, metric limitations, and the marginalization of educators. By shifting the purpose and structure of SETs, our model has the potential to cultivate an inclusive, intentional feedback culture that fosters mutual accountability, empowers both students and educators, and aligns with institutional goals for teaching effectiveness. We conclude with actionable strategies for implementing the CFL at both the educator and institutional levels, demonstrating its practical relevance and potential to transform SETs from a compliance-driven exercise into a powerful instrument of reflective, collaborative educational change.
Autonomy · Dialogic · Formative assessment · Interdependence · Summative assessment · Evaluation of Teaching Practices · Higher Education Practises and Engagement · Student Assessment and Feedback
Developing a teacher identity in the university context
Students as co‐creators of teaching approaches, course design, and curricula
Addressing potential challenges in co-creating learning and teaching
Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET)
Meta-analysis of faculty's teaching effectiveness
Student motivations, perceptions and opinions of participating in student evaluation of teaching surveys
Rethinking models of feedback for learning
Feedback loops and the longer-term
Evaluating Student Evaluations of Teaching
The development of student feedback literacy
Formative assessment and self-regulated learning
| Highly cited | No |
|---|