Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Previous research on the effect of class size on student ratings of instruction has primarily investigated the effect of class size on the favorableness of these ratings rather than its effect on their reliability (dependability). A few studies have used “generalizability theory” to demonstrate the relative effect of class size on the dependability of student ratings of instruction. The purpose of the present study was to test the validity of the findings of these studies in a different cultural setting using a different student ratings questionnaire. Using a random-effect analysis of variance to estimate the variance components for a design in which students were nested within classes and crossed with items, it was found that the variance component for class size was appreciably larger than that for items. At least 20 students were needed to obtain a generalizability coefficient for relative decisions of .70 or more. Increasing the number of students has a greater effect on generalizability coefficients than increasing the number of items.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Aleamoni

, & Hexner

P. Z.

(1980) A review of the research on student evaluation and a report on the effect of different sets of instructions on student course and instructor evaluation. Instructional Science, 9, 67–84.

Brennan

R. L.

(1992) Elements of generalizability theory. Iowa City, IA: The American College Testing Program.

Brennan

R. L.

(2001) Generalizability theory. New York: Springer-Verlag.

Cronbach

L. J.

Gleser

G. C.

Nanda

, & Rajaratnam

(1972) The dependability of behavioral measurements. New York: Wiley.

Danielsen

A. L.

, & White

R. A.

(1976) Some evidence on the variables associated with student evaluations of teachers. Journal of Economic Education, 7, 117–119.

Feldman

(1984) Class size and college students' evaluations of teachers and courses: a closer look. Research in Higher Education, 21, 45–115.

Fernandez

Mateo

M. A.

, & Muniz

(1998) Is there a relationship between class size and student ratings of teaching quality? Educational and Psychological Measurement, 58, 596–604.

Gilmore

G. M.

Kane

M. T.

, & Naccarato

R. W.

(1978) The generalizability of student ratings of instruction: estimation of the teacher and course components. Journal of Educational Measurement, 15, 1–13.

Husbands

C. T.

(1997) Variations in students' evaluations of teachers' lecturing in different courses on which they lecture: a study at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Higher Education, 3, 51–70.

10.

Marsh

H. W.

(1984) Students' evaluations of university teaching: dimensionality, reliability, validity, potential biases and utility. Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 707–754.

11.

Marsh

H. W.

Overall

J. U.

, & Kesler

S. P.

(1979) Class size, students' evaluations, and instructional effectiveness. American Educational Research Journal, 56, 771–778.

12.

Mateo

M. A.

, & Fernandez

(1996) Incidence of class size on the evaluation of university teaching quality. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 56, 771–778.

13.

McKeachie

W.J.

(1990) Research on college teaching: the historical background. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 189–200.

14.

Pohlmann

J. T.

(1975) A multivariate analysis of selected class characteristics and student ratings of instruction. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 10, 81–91.

15.

Slavin

R. E.

(1989) Class size and student achievement: small effects of small classes. Educational Psychologist, 24, 99–110.

Using Generalizability Theory to Estimate the Relative Effect of Class Size and Number of Items on the Dependability of Student Ratings of Instruction

Abstract

Get full access to this article

References