www.ratemyteachers.ie

honru

Was discussed in this thread.

For anyone who doesn't know about this site, it's an American outfit opening their Irish equivilent where you get to RATE YOUR TEACHERS! Unsurprisingly, it's getting uproar from the teacher's association.

Personally I thought that this site would fail to take off and eventually get shut down, but my school has seen an update of about eight teachers since the last time I checked (two days ago). Looks like some people are using it. Perhaps it may provide a viable resource for students in need of good teaching?

honru

http://www.enn.ie/frontpage/news-9592916.html

The ratemyteachers.ie website invites pupils to anonymously appraise teachers on a scale of one to five, and awards marks based on teachers' helpfulness, clarity in teaching and popularity in the school. It also features a "hall of fame" and a "wall of shame." The site is an off-shoot of ratemyteachers.com, a California-based website.

The site lists most secondary schools in Ireland and includes postings on teachers from schools such as Ashbourne Community School, Co Meath; Catholic University School, Dublin; St Mary's secondary school, Edenderry, Co Offaly; Manor House School, Dublin, and Muire na Dea Comhairle, Headfort, Co Galway.

A spokesperson for the TUI said that although the union hasn't examined the postings in detail, it noted that some of the postings about individual teachers are very negative. The spokesperson said that the union had a problem with the lack of accountability on the site.

"The postings are anonymous, that really speaks for itself," the spokesperson commented.

The TUI points out that teachers are already accountable through existing evaluation systems and said that their performance is monitored through whole school evaluations, subject evaluations and random classroom evaluations.

The US version of the website claims to have received more than five million ratings since its inception five years ago, rating 38,000 middle schools and high schools in the US and Canada.

Two years ago the US site added student moderators to improve the integrity of the information on the website. The 3,500 moderators handle their own school's information on the site and review ratings for other schools to improve the quality of the ratings.

honru

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-1522783,00.html

Teachers, it seems, never learn. Notoriously quick to erupt in fury at the slightest perceived affront to their diligence or expertise, the profession’s representatives are invariably surprised when their indignation then becomes the story, and once again parents are left wondering whether all classroom mentors are, in fact, hopeless drama queens.

The latest example of the profession’s tendency to turn every squall into a cyclone involves Ratemyteachers.ie, a website that invites pupils anonymously to evaluate their teachers on a scale of one to five, awarding marks on the basis of helpfulness, clarity, popularity and overall quality.

This deft twist on the traditional school report is originally an American service, established in California five years ago, which has spread throughout the world and been available to students here since December. Already, the Irish site lists the majority of second- level schools in the republic and a sizeable number of primary schools.

As of Friday, 1,701 teachers from 275 Irish schools had been assigned ratings. Surprisingly perhaps, the bulk of the feedback from contributing pupils was positive, with most teachers scoring in the “good but could do better” mid-table range.

This is no mean achievement.

De La Salle College, Waterford is currently the website’s most highly rated school, with almost 30 of its 67 teachers notching up an impressive average of between four and five star points.

Inevitably, though, not every teacher or every school achieves such lofty honours. The website features more than a sprinkling of low grades and negative comments, and has a wall of shame as well as a wall of fame.

As the ratings are anonymous, of course, the evaluations are worthless in practical terms. Despite a disclaimer which insists that contributions to the site are monitored and that libellous comments will not be published, the website is clearly open to abuse by mischievous or vindictive adolescents.

To a large extent, therefore, the site is no more than a clever jape, offering students an opportunity either to blow off steam about their teachers or, if they feel so inclined, to blow them an admiring kiss.

Even the rudest remarks posted thus far — and there aren’t as many as you might expect — are no more damaging to professional reputations than what one can already read on innumerable existing web chatrooms where kids discuss their classroom woes.

Nevertheless, teachers’ groups have reacted to the website with shock and horror, generating publicity for the venture.

Jim Dorney, the general secretary of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland, has led the offensive, ludicrously calling on the Department of Education to take action and, even more ludicrously, demanding that principals be ordered to block access to the site from school computers.

“Teachers have enough professional pressure without the added stress of such unwarranted ratings,” said Dorney.

In reality, most teachers seem to regard ratings of any kind as unwarranted. The final irony of this row is that, having consistently resisted all attempts to introduce regulated and serious appraisal of teachers’ work performance, the profession itself has encouraged demand for unregulated and less-than-serious appraisal. There’s a lesson in there somewhere.

D-Generate

I go to Christians Brothers College Cork which has shot up to the number 2 most rated school in the past day or two. The comments seem pretty fair and it seems to give a general feel of what the teachers are like. The crap teachers are given low marks and good ones are praised highly, very highly infact. Yet again though the teachers are afraid of anyone judging their work. They claimed during the teacher strikes that they are the most fundemental part in the future of our country, if they think that their job is that important then shouldn't they be judged more often to aid our fine nation?

*Angel*

The comments for my school seem fair aswell, I just hope it stays that way. I think that the good teachers deserve to know they're good and the not so good ones can maybe approach their classes differently by learning from their students comments.

Dave Larkin

The site can only serve to help the teachers, in a way. Plus, it's a bit of fun for us students, you have to admit.

the smiley one

Personally I think the whole thing is a bit perverted, it's just a chance for the students to get a dig in. And it won't benefit teachers in the least - first of all none of them will bother looking at it and second of all they are hardly going to change their ways forever just because a few students don't like the way they teach!
The ratings are far from fair for some teachers because in my school for example, only a few people have voted, and absolutely class teachers have bad ratings just because a few people who probably have never been taught by that teacher decide that they are not nice. Thats hardly just or accurate!
Nope, def not for me

Gone West

This site is very good. I didnt bother rating the crap teachers, because they allready know they are crap and dont care. No need to rub it in.

But I did post some good reviews of the good teachers that I have. They do deserve to know that they are good at their job and that we appreciate them.

Sully

FuzzyLogic wrote:

This site is very good.

But I did post some good reviews of the good teachers that I have. They do deserve to know that they are good at their job and that we appreciate them.

Indeed and it is also (fairly) strict so your ratings are not based on hatred kinda.

Seems a good idea, just people may abuse it if not watched closley.

- Sully

GuanYin

I logged on expecting hot young female teachers.

How disappointed was I.

breadmonkey

check it out, someone spammed the crap out of the site! (a disgruntled teacher no doubt)

click here

EDIT: They've deleted te spam, sorry folks

Agent Smith

i dont think what i'd like to say about my old teachers would be allowd there.....

upmeath

as long as students are rational in their ratings it's a good thing. no point in giving all 1s just because you don't get along witha teacher. some of the teachers in my school are getting dog's abuse and i could nearly guess who's giving them those ratings. it's stupid really. you'll notice that the same people don't have any positive contribution to make, just undercutting the teachers they dont like. it'll be a huge success here because we're a nation of begrudgers

RMTronan

a year later... still look at the site anyone?

Rockerette

i got bored the week after i looked at it first..


got fed up of 1st & 2nd years who cant spell properly and refuse to use vowels, giving out about perfectly fair teachers, for stupid reasons...

whassupp2

nope because nobody updates it anymore and it's become infested with 1st/2nd years goinon and putting in they're classmates as teachers and thinkin they're cool.

Rozabeez

My insane Home Ec teacher has got the worst reviews I have ever seen,