Student evaluation of modules: does the timing Matter?

Abstract

The common practice in many higher education institutions in Ghana and Africa is for module evaluation to be carried out at the end of teaching and learning activities. It is usually done before the final semester examination. This timing is believed to be more of a conventional wisdom than a systematic research informed practice. This study sought to find out students’ most preferred timing for module evaluation. The study used a mixed methods design with a simple random technique to select four hundred and fifty (450) students from a public university and a private university college. The findings revealed mixed views among participants with regards to the timing of module evaluation even though majority (57%) prefer module evaluation to occur after the last class meeting with the teaching staff, or after the final assessment of the module. The findings also established that there is no significant difference between the views of students from a public university and those from a private university college with regards to the most preferred timing of module evaluation. This implies that the timing of module evaluation matters to students, which requires their involvement in the decision-making process of when to evaluate a module. However, this study recommends that further research with larger sample size will be required in order to establish a more conclusive outcome on students’ most preferred timing of module evaluation.