Research Blog #7: Book Review #1

Rachel Hensley, et al. "Rate My Expectations: How Online Evaluations Of Professors Impact Students’ Perceived Control." Computers In Human Behavior 27.5 (2011): 1862-1867. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Feb. 2012.


-This particular scholarly article touches on the impact one website, Ratemyprofessor.com, has on a student's projected outcome of said class.  It is a study regarding the responses to teachers based on their "rating" as a professor.  


-Rachel Hensley:  affiliated with the Department of Psychology at both the University of Houston and Alabama.  


-Ratemyprofessor.com:  A website used to essentially "rate" professors based on prior students experiences
-Student Evaluation:  All evaluations are opinion based, cannot speak for every students experience 


"Ratemyprofessors.com can have an impact on students’ impressions of professors and directly affect student perceptions of control over the course outcome and their attitudes toward taking the course”-(Abstract)
-Supports the concept of my paper explaining how impressions of a professor may be unfairly represented as students feeling ill prepared simply do not cooperate with the professors teaching habits. 
"Results revealed that the RMP reviews influenced the audience members’ attitudes toward learning the material and views of the speaker’s credibility, particularly when the RMP information was positive"-(1.4)
-The student feels control of their projected grade is based on the rating of the professor.  Some may feel that gaining an A in a class taught by a poor rated professor is impossible, when it truly remains up to the individual and their work ethic. 
 "When participants were given negative feedback, the female authority (but not the male authority) was perceived as incompetent. These findings strongly suggest that future research should take gender of the professor into account to examine the possibility that women who are professors may have a greater preponderance of more negative comments on their profiles – some of which are based on negative stereotypes about women rather than reflecting genuine professor characteristics– than do comparable male professors."-(4.3.2)
-Further investigates the rating effect on a students predicted grade.  Some ratings may be unfair based on ignorance.  


-This particular study helps me explore my research question as it pertains to student’s feelings ill prepared simply because they are ignoring these attempts of teaching.  It helps answer my question of whether or not professors are providing a legitimate foundation for success among the student body?  If not, how then do professors go about preparing individuals to successfully retain knowledge? 


-This new reading connects with previous readings done in the coarse as it demands one to develop questions.  Like the issues of privatization, one may argue for or against.  Due to this study, my topic can be debated whether or not professors are preparing students in an efficient manner, providing tools for them to successfully retain knowledge.