Self Assessment
Self-assessments allow instructors to reflect upon and describe their teaching and learning goals, challenges, and accomplishments. The format of self-assessments varies and can include reflective statements, activity reports, annual goal setting and tracking, or the use of a tool like the Wieman Teaching Practices Inventory. Teaching Center staff can offer individual instructors feedback on their self-assessments and recommendations for how to use results to improve teaching. The Teaching Center can also help schools and departments select, design, and teach instructors to use self-assessment tools.
Sample Self-Assessment Tools
- The Teaching Practices Inventory, a 72-item reflective, self-reporting tool developed by Carl Wieman and Sarah Gilbert, was created for instructors teaching undergraduate STEM courses. It helps instructors determine the extent to which they use research-based teaching practices.
- The Teaching Perspectives Inventory, a 45-item inventory that can be used to determine your teaching orientation. This inventory can be a helpful tool for reflection and improvement of teaching. It can also help you prepare to write or revise a statement of teaching philosophy.
- Instructor Self-Evaluation, created by the Measurement and Research Division of the Office of Instructional Resources at the University of Illinois Urbana
- The Inventory of Inclusive Teaching Strategies, created by the University of Michigan’s CRLT
- Faculty Teaching Self-Assessment form, created by Central Piedmont Community College
- Faculty Self-Evaluation of Teaching, created by the University of Dayton, contains self-evaluation rubrics, a narrative self-evaluation form, and several series of reflective questions.
Resources and Readings for Self-Assessment
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This book, aimed at individual instructions, contains chapters on models of teaching effectiveness that improve student learning, teaching self-assessment rubrics, and use cases for the rubrics. This comprehensive, easy-to-read text is ideal for faculty who want to begin the process of reflecting upon, critically evaluating and improving their teaching.
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Collins, J. B., & Pratt, D. D. (2011). The Teaching Perspectives Inventory at 10 Years and 100,000 respondents: Reliability and validity of a teacher self-report inventory. Adult Education Quarterly, 61(4), 358–375. (NOTE: To access this content, you must be logged in or log into the University Library System.)
This article describes the development and validation of the Teaching Perspectives Inventory, a free online inventory that can be used for reflection, improvement of teaching, or to develop a statement of teaching philosophy. The inventory assesses instructors’ views about teaching.
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Holmgren, R.A. (2004, March 26). Structuring self-evaluations. Allegheny College.
This short guide contains information about the benefits of instructor self-evaluation and sections of a self-evaluation of teaching, scholarship, and service.
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This article explains how 30 advertisement and marketing faculty used self-evaluation to improve teaching and learning.
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The Teaching Practices Inventory was created to help science and mathematics faculty characterize and assess their use of research-based teaching practices. This article describes its creation.