المستخلص: |
The primary goal of higher education institutions is to enhance and maintain academic excellence. Without productive faculty members the institution cannot achieve this goal. Faculty members are therefore the most important resource for higher education institutions. One of the most important processes with which to promote improvement is a faculty evaluation program. The evaluation process appraises the quality, worth and effectiveness of faculty work. The quality of higher education, and the ability of colleges and universities to perform their missions, is inextricably linked to the quality and commitment of their faculty. This study was designed to investigate the actual practices of faculty evaluation at Saudi Universities, and to review the most prominent international experiences in order to propose a comprehensive faculty evaluation model. The results revealed that even though some efforts have been made to establish faculty evaluation system in some universities, this faculty evaluation is still not satisfactory, as there are no standards and performance indicators against which to evaluate faculty performance. The instruments and procedures used are insufficient for obtaining a clear picture of faculty performance. The main source of information is students’ evaluations of their teachers. No linkage exists between evaluation programmes and professional development programs. Faculty evaluation programs in Saudi Universities are in need of improvement, especially in terms of the evaluation process, the criteria used and the use of evaluation results. The present study provides a suggested comprehensive faculty evaluation model that employs multiple data sources to collect relevant information throughout the evaluation cycle. Also, action for improvement and further studies were suggested.
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