《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词4500》27 Evaluation by Students

　　Unit 27
Evaluation¹ by Students
It used to be that if what students had to say about their professors was unprintable, it remained that way. No longer. Formal evaluations² of teachers by students, something that would have been viewed as the height of disrespect a generation ago, have become accepted procedure on most campuses. The evaluations are used to improve teaching, to help students choose courses and assist faculty³ and administrators⁴ in promotion⁵ and tenure⁶ decisions.
People tend to think of teaching as just involving content. But teaching is about getting the knowledge into students' heads and it is harder to find anyone who is a better judge of whether they are learning something than the students themselves. At most universities, students get evaluation forms in the final 15 minutes of the last day of a course and are asked to fill them out anonymously⁷.
In addition to the institutionalized procedures for faculty evaluations, informal course guides are also published and sold by students at some universities. One of the oldest of these guides is the "Confidential⁸ Guide to Courses", or the "Confi Guide," put out by the editors the Harvard Crimson⁹. "The first purpose is to be humorous; the second purpose, if one can't be humorous, is to be interesting, and last, we're trying to be informative," said Jonathan Moses, managing editor of The Crimson. "We're not like the CUE Guide," he said, referring to the official university course guide, "They are looking for substance, not style -- a terrible thing."
Here is what the Confi Guide had to say about a course taught by a world-famous Harvard professor. "You will be going to the most expensive theater sow of your life -- a couple of hundred bucks¹⁰ to watch a famous guy stroke his ego¹¹ in front of 300 students." About another course, the guide says, "They shouldn't have bothered," and adds that in the class, taught by another eminent¹² professor, "Teacher's ability and faculty rank are inversely¹³ proportional."
At Stanford University, the official guide has been computerized. Students is able to use a terminal to find out all the courses taught on a certain day or the names of the course taught by a certain professor or what requirements a given course fulfills¹⁴. At the end of each course description is a student evaluation section, which asks questions like, "What are the best things about the class? How would you rate the course? What would you say to a student taking this course?" Besides, individual faculty members are encouraged to devise their own questionnaires for their students. These are used to help faculty members to improve their teaching and to make decisions about tenure. The reality of the situation is that the range of comments you get on the evaluation forms is so extreme that you wonder is all the students were taking the same curse.

1 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

2 evaluations   

估价( evaluation的名词复数 )； 赋值； 估计价值； [医学]诊断

参考例句：

• In fact, our moral evaluations are merely expressions of our desires. 事实上，我们的道德评价只是我们欲望的表达形式。 来自哲学部分
• Properly speaking, however, these evaluations and insights are not within the concept of official notice. 但准确地讲，这些评估和深远见识并未包括在官方通知概念里。

3 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

4 administrators   

n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 )；有管理（或行政）才能的人；（由遗嘱检验法庭指定的）遗产管理人；奉派暂管主教教区的牧师

参考例句：

• He had administrators under him but took the crucial decisions himself. 他手下有管理人员，但重要的决策仍由他自己来做。 来自辞典例句
• Administrators have their own methods of social intercourse. 办行政的人有他们的社交方式。 来自汉英文学 - 围城

5 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

6 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

7 anonymously   

ad.用匿名的方式

参考例句：

• The manuscripts were submitted anonymously. 原稿是匿名送交的。
• Methods A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey 536 teachers anonymously. 方法采用自编“中小学教师职业压力问卷”对536名中小学教师进行无记名调查。

8 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

9 crimson   

n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色

参考例句：

• She went crimson with embarrassment.她羞得满脸通红。
• Maple leaves have turned crimson.枫叶已经红了。

10 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 ego   

n.自我，自己，自尊

参考例句：

• He is absolute ego in all thing.在所有的事情上他都绝对自我。
• She has been on an ego trip since she sang on television.她上电视台唱过歌之后就一直自吹自擂。

12 eminent   

adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的

参考例句：

• We are expecting the arrival of an eminent scientist.我们正期待一位著名科学家的来访。
• He is an eminent citizen of China.他是一个杰出的中国公民。

13 inversely   

adj.相反的

参考例句：

• Pressure varies directly with temperature and inversely with volume. 压力随温度成正比例变化，与容积成反比例变化。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The amount of force needed is inversely proportional to the rigidity of the material. 需要的力度与材料的硬度成反比。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 fulfills   

v.履行（诺言等）( fulfill的第三人称单数 )；执行（命令等）；达到（目的）；使结束

参考例句：

• He always fulfills his promises. 他总是履行自己的诺言。 来自辞典例句
• His own work amply fulfills this robust claim. 他自己的作品在很大程度上实现了这一正确主张。 来自辞典例句