In an age when the Internet is used for everything from purchasing movie tickets to ordering pizza, it is now becoming commonplace to use websites to let other students know how you feel about your professors.
One such website, ProfessorPerformance.com, has received mixed reviews from Tufts faculty and students.
The site, formerly known as MyProfessorSucks.com, serves as a forum where students can anonymously grade their professors using a scale from A+ to F in the categories of "coolness," "ease," and "worth."
Though students have rated close to 11,000 professors from institutions across the country, only 16 have been from Tufts. Most of the professors listed have received only one or two evaluations, though some have received as many as eight.
According to the website's founder and president, Kasey Kerber, ProfessorPerformance.com "allows students to... find the best professors in the nation." But some on campus wonder why such information needs to be available to the public beyond the Tufts community.
"I think it's an okay site, [but] I'm not sure what the purpose [is] of announcing to the world outside the University whether a professor is good or bad," political science professor Shinju Fujihira said. The University-based course evaluations, which contain structured questions, a space for written comments, and a statistical measure of professor performance, "work well," according to Fujihira.
University-specific evaluation systems sponsored by Tufts are also more reliable, according to assistant professor of philosophy Nancy Bauer. "It seems to me that students are likely to get a more accurate sense of a professor's talents by looking at statistics from a whole class," Bauer said.
Students should try to "sit in on a class or two," suggested Bauer, "to see what he or she thinks of the teacher. Some professors' styles work better for certain students than others' styles."
Other professors more readily support the idea of evaluations being made public in an easily-accessible forum. "When I write a book, it is reviewed publicly," history professor Martin Sherwin said. Though he acknowledges that his classes are not open to the public, Sherwin does not object to his students sharing their views of his teaching.
If a professor believes that an evaluation on ProfessorPerformance.com is libelous or misleading, the site allows for a measure of recourse. "Any person who feels that a posted evaluation is objectionable is encouraged to contact ProfessorPerformance.com immediately by e-mail," the site's legal disclaimer states. "We will investigate all claims and remove content that violates the above terms."
Students' opinions of the site are as varied as professors'. "It seems okay in theory, assuming there is some method behind it for guaranteeing some form of accuracy," freshman Mark Robinton said.
Others are more skeptical. "If people actually took it seriously and didn't use it merely to insult their professors, I think it could be a good resource," freshman Erin Miller said.
Such a website merely duplicates the services provided by the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate Course Guide, according to sophomore Jonathan Silver. The guide is published every semester, and is compiled from end-of-semester course evaluations filled out by all students.
"They can [evaluate courses and professors] online already," he said. "Why would I want to rate my professor, or want to read anyone else's rating [on another website]?"
In addition to the TCU guide, several other on-campus groups, including ThePrimary Source and the Daily, offer course evaluations.
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