May, 1993 University of Wisconsin Department of Sociology Guidelines for Faculty Review of Teaching 1.  During each semester of the first two years of an assistant professor's appointment, he or she will receive formative reviews of teaching.  The purpose of these reviews is to provide guidance and feedback oriented toward improving teaching.  The review will be conducted by a tenured faculty member appointed by the department chair, in consultation with the assistant professor, and the latter's mentor.  The reviewer should be appointed no later than the beginning of the assistant professor's first semester in residence.  The class to be observed will be chosen from among several meeting times offered by the assistant professor.  The assistant professor will provide the reviewer, in advance, with information about his or her goals for the class meeting to be visited, a copy of the syllabus and, optionally, other written materials from the course such as exams. Following the in-class observation and examination of the syllabus and other materials, the reviewer will complete the “Evaluation of Teaching” Form.   The reviewer will meet with the assistant professor, provide him or her with a copy of the evaluation, and discuss the feedback. The class meeting to be observed should be selected recognizing that the assistant professor may be teaching two very different courses.  At the assistant professor's request, visits may be made to additional meetings, or by other members of the faculty. 2.  Because evaluations for the first four semesters are intended to be formative, the resulting evaluations will not be placed in the assistant professor's personnel folder. 3.  If scheduling permits, the same reviewer will observe the assistant professor for the first two semesters.  If feasible, a new reviewer will be appointed each year thereafter so that, by the time the assistant professor is considered for tenure, five tenured faculty have observed his or her teaching. 4.  Beginning in the first semester of the third year, peer reviews of teaching will be summative, i.e., evaluative.  The format for the review will be as outlined in 1 above.  These reviews will become part of the assistant professor's personnel records. 5.  In the third, fourth, and fifth years of the probationary period, summative peer reviews will be conducted a minimum of once per year, but they may be conducted twice per year if requested by the assistant professor or if encouraged by the Assistant Professor Review Committee. 6. Peer reviews of teaching are not intended to replace evaluation by students, but rather to be used in conjunction with them and with other information, such as a statement of teaching philosophy by the assistant professor, in evaluating teaching performance. 7.  A copy of these guidelines will be placed in the assistant professor's folder and will be forwarded to the Divisional Committee with other tenure materials. 8.  These guidelines will be implemented in September of 1999.  Assistant professors in their first or second year at that time will be given formative reviews.  Assistant professors who are beyond the second year shall have the option of formative or summative reviews for the year 1999-2000.   Adopted by the Department of Sociology Faculty April 7, 1999. Based on Guidelines established by the Department of Psychology.