Student perceptions of teaching excellence: A comparison of a public and private university

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine student perceptions of teaching excellence at different types of higher education institutions. The pressure to publish, larger class sizes, globalization, technological innovation greater accountability for learning, and justification of a college degree’s worth make teaching excellence more difficult to attain. A byproduct of this pressure is an increased emphasis on student evaluations. Using two conjoint studies from a large public and a medium-size private university, assignments, exams, and grading were identified as the most important components for students in assessing teaching excellence. The least important was the faculty-student interaction, which may be caused by grade inflation. The dimensions were taken from a previously validated scale.