Profiling instructional effectiveness to reveal its relationship to learning

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is to define instructional profiles and investigate the relationship between these profiles and learning indicators such as end-of-semester grades and self-reported amount of learning. Instructional profiles were obtained using a segmentation method. Student ratings were used as indicators of instructional effectiveness. Results revealed that instructors who receive higher scores from students seem to be effective instructors in learning. However, instructors with high ratings from students did not receive high scores for all measures of instructional effectiveness. Effective instructors seem to have varying scores due to the imperfect relationship between instructional effectiveness and learning. It can be concluded that the definition of an effective instructor can vary across subgroups. For an instructor to be defined as effective, it is not necessary for them to receive higher scores for all measures. Low-rated aspects of effectiveness can be compensated for by showing high performance in other areas. Based on the results of the present study, instructional profiles or any other related traits should be investigated under subgroups that show differences.