The University of Toronto Course Evaluation Interpretation Guidelines for Academic Administrators, produced by the Centre for Teaching Support & Innovation (CTSI) under the academic leadership of the Office of the Vice-Provost, Academic Programs and Office of the Vice-Provost, Innovations in Undergraduate Education, outlines best practices in the use of the University’s Centralized Course Evaluation Framework for interpreting course evaluation reports.

This document provides guidance and recommended additional resources to support the review and analysis of course evaluation information as one source in the assessment of teaching effectiveness. The recommendations are derived from best practices from the literature and analysis of University of Toronto course evaluation information. The guidelines include the appropriate role, strengths and limitations, and key principles of interpretation of course evaluation information (e.g., a careful consideration of overall trends and context). This document should be used in conjunction with primary course evaluation reports, relevant University of Toronto policies, and divisional guidelines for the evaluation of teaching effectiveness.

This guide is a companion document with the University of Toronto’s Cascaded Course Evaluation Framework: Validation Study of the Institutional Composite Mean (ICM); both are available on the CTSI website.

Questions or comments on the Interpretation Guidelines can be directed to:

Gregory Hum
Assistant Director, Teaching Assessment
Centre for Teaching Support & Evaluation
gregory.hum@utoronto.ca