ESCI Scores and Teaching Evaluations

March 13, 2020

To:         Faculty and Instructors
 
From:    David Marshall, Executive Vice Chancellor
               Alison Butler, Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Personnel
               Henning Bohn, Chair, Academic Senate
               Dana Mastro, Chair, Committee on Academic Personnel
 
Re:         ESCI Scores and Teaching Evaluations
 
Some instructors have raised concerns about obtaining teaching evaluations during the adjustments made in teaching and exams in the final weeks of the Winter Quarter due to the measures taken to reduce the risk of COVID-19. It is understood that in these very unusual circumstances, not all instructors will be able to have students fill out and submit teaching evaluations. We dealt with a similar situation during the Thomas Fire and subsequent road closures.
 
Please be assured that reviewing agencies will understand if teaching evaluations are missing or incomplete for this quarter. Instructional Development will generate a placeholder ESCI report for all instructors and TA’s in departments that are still distributing paper ESCI’s if a report is not available due to disruptions from the campus response to COVID-19. We may need to make similar arrangements in the Spring Quarter.
  
The Report of the Senate Undergraduate ESCI Ad Hoc Committee issued in December, which will be reviewed by the campus during Spring Quarter, expressed serious reservations about ESCI scores and urged the campus to develop alternative forms of evaluation. As that discussion begins, this would be a good time to recall that APM 210 indicates that faculty can submit a variety of materials to help assess teaching excellence.

Thank you for your flexibility and understanding as we make special arrangements during these extraordinary circumstances.