Policy

UW Oshkosh Student Opinion of Instruction Data Collection Policy (FAC 6.6)

University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
Policy # 1.7247

PURPOSE

This document describes UW-Oshkosh policy and procedures for a Student Opinion Survey pursuant to Regent Policy Document 20-2, Student Evaluation of Instruction.

RESPONSIBLE OFFICER

Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

SCOPE

This policy describes the UW-Oshkosh procedures and expectations for ongoing Improvement of Instruction (IOI) activity by ranked faculty, Instructional Academic Staff, and other employees whose duties include teaching UW-Oshkosh courses. These employees are collectively referred to as “faculty” hereafter in this policy.

BACKGROUND

UW-Oshkosh provides students the opportunity to complete an online Student Opinion Survey (SOS) instrument for all sections of instruction. The data from the SOS instrument then become part of a larger set of Student Evaluation of Instruction (SEI) information. SEI data are used for two purposes.

The UW-Oshkosh Improvement of Instruction Policy discusses the use of Student Evaluation of Instruction (SEI) data for faculty continuous improvement activity. Student Evaluation of Instruction data are an important source of information about educational experiences. While student opinion data collected by the UWO Student Opinion Survey can inform activity intended to improve the effectiveness of instruction, additional data collection may be needed for a faculty member to obtain information specific enough to permit improvement of instructional methods.

The UW-Oshkosh Faculty Teaching Evaluation Policy discusses the use of student evaluation of instruction data for the evaluation of faculty teaching. In combination with other information, the larger set of SEI data, including data from the SOS instrument, can be a meaningful component of informed evaluations of faculty teaching. Informed evaluations of faculty teaching are then meaningful components of decisions related to renewal, promotion, and tenure, as well as merit-based compensation awards.

DEFINITIONS

  • UW-Oshkosh Student Opinion Survey (SOS): An instrument that consists of a common core of questions administered online to students.
  • Student Evaluation of Instruction (SEI) data: Data that are collected from students using the university-wide SOS instrument as well as other surveys or questionnaires about students’ experience of instruction.

POLICY STATEMENT

  1. UW-Oshkosh uses a university-wide Student Opinion Survey (SOS) instrument for all sections of all courses that consists of a common set of question prompts.
  2. The Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs assigns responsibility for administering the SOS data collection process (hereafter, the “responsible center”). The Provost will notify the Faculty Senate Executive Committee if the responsible center changes.
  3. The university-wide SOS instrument:
    1. Is distributed online by the responsible center;
    2. Provides students an opportunity to give anonymous feedback on instruction;
    3. Is tailored to the mode of instruction (e.g., question prompts may be phrased differently for an in-person course than an online course);
    4. Is distributed in every section in every course;
    5. Is distributed any time after 85% of course contact time has occurred and becomes unavailable to students at the end of the last day of classes;
    6. Is distributed following best practices to maximize student participation.
  4. The responsible center processes SOS data according to the following guidelines:
    1. Each faculty member has access to their data through an individualized dashboard;
    2. Faculty are to be notified when results are available on their dashboard for each reporting period; results may not be released prior to the registrar’s final deadline for grade submission for the teaching period;
    3. Instructor-level results per section available for all quantitative (Likert-scale based) question prompts include distributions for each item, number of responses, and response rates for each of the items in the survey;
    4. Results that could lead to a loss of student anonymity (n below 6) would only be revealed when it is possible to aggregate with other sections in the same semester or over time;
    5. Responses to qualitative prompts are available;
    6. Course and section attributes such as class size, course level, program (graduate/undergraduate, general education, etc.), and mode of instruction, are available to the extent possible;
    7. Aggregate data (i.e., by discipline, school, college, and university) is available to all relevant users (faculty, area coordinators, program directors, schools, deans, the Associate Vice Chancellor for Faculty and Academic Staff Affairs, the Provost, and the Chancellor).
  5. Individual faculty have primary responsibility for the Student Evaluation of Instruction data (of all types, including SOS data) related to courses they teach. Faculty are responsible for communicating their data clearly in accordance with school and university policies and procedures.
  6. Faculty-specific data may not be reproduced or communicated without the faculty member’s consent. The Improvement of Instruction Committee of the Faculty Senate is responsible for oversight of the SOS instrument. This responsibility includes:
    1. Working with the responsible center to conduct a periodic review of the SOS instrument to ensure all question prompts are serving their intended purpose and that the data do not exhibit bias; this review of the SOS instrument should occur in concert with the regular review of this policy (see the Oversight, Roles, and Responsibilities section);
    2. Working with Schools or Disciplines to add a small number of instruction-related prompts to the common core that address dimensions specific to the School, Discipline, or course delivery method (e.g., lab). Any approved additional question prompts must be used for all sections of the identified relevant courses;
    3. The IOI recommends changes to the common core question prompts to the Faculty Senate and works with Schools or Disciplines if changes are recommended to their added question prompts.
  7. Each school must state in its bylaws that it collects and uses SOS data in accordance with Regent, Universities of Wisconsin, and UW-Oshkosh policies. The bylaws must contain or refer to written policies and procedures that address the collection and use of SOS data (and other information) for improvement of instruction and faculty teaching evaluation. Written policies and procedures should:
    1. be adopted and revised in accordance with existing school bylaws and policies;
    2. be consonant with relevant policies of the school, University, Universities of Wisconsin, and Board of Regents;
    3. be formatted using the common UW-Oshkosh policy format, including stating a review period and responsible party;
    4. specify the collection process or method for additional data (beyond the common core question prompts of the university-wide SOS instrument), including requirements concerning frequency of collection, reporting format to faculty, communication from faculty to others, and similar administrative requirements; these requirements must be consistent for all faculty for a given course;
    5. specify the expected use of the additional data. Schools are responsible for assuring their own members are aware of their policies and procedures.
  8. Any public record request for SOS data must be reviewed by the Provost’s Office to ensure the response complies with public records laws, including Wis Stat. 19.36(10)(d), which prohibits release of employee evaluations in response to a public records request. The Universities of Wisconsin Administration’s Office of Compliance and Integrity shall provide consultation regarding the release of SOS data in response to public records requests.

7. OVERSIGHT, ROLES, AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Faculty Senate is responsible for the content and revision of this policy, consistent with Article II of the faculty constitution.

The Improvement of Instruction Committee of the Faculty Senate shall conduct a review of this policy at least once every five years. It may do so more frequently if governing policies change, at the request of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, or at the request of 25% of sitting Senators. If the Improvement of Instruction Committee deems any changes to be necessary, it shall recommend those changes to the Faculty Senate.

The Faculty Senate approves recommended changes (or acknowledges the recommendation for no changes) to this policy by majority vote. Following any Faculty Senate vote that ratifies revisions, any changes to this policy are finalized upon approval by Chancellor and the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents. The five-year review clock resets upon the Faculty Senate’s action.

RELATED DOCUMENTS

POLICY HISTORY

Formerly (in part) FAC 6.6. University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Policy and Procedures

  • Amended by Faculty Senate: February 17, 2015
  • Revisions approved by Faculty Senate: March 11, 2020
  • Revisions approved by Faculty Senate: May 5, 2025
  • Approval by Board of Regents: July 10, 2025
  • Last Revision Date: May 5, 2025
  • Technical revisions to align with WCAG 2.1 AA digital accessibility standards: January 23, 2026

SCHEDULED REVIEW

Spring 2030