Evaluating and Rewarding Effective Teaching: Issues Statement No. 5.

This article focuses on Issues Statement No. 5 of the Accounting Education Change Commission which cited the need for training in instructional methods, recognizing and rewarding contributions to teaching and curriculum design, and measurement and evaluation systems that encourage continuous improvement of instructional methods and materials. Moreover, progress is needed in mechanisms for sharing ideas and techniques and in the culture and organizational climate that establishes and maintains the scholarly status of teaching within the professoriate. The characteristics of effective teaching must be identified if their presence is to be measured and improvements envisioned. Understanding the characteristics of effective teaching is essential for faculty (so they know what is expected) and administrators (so they can assess performance). Faculty and administrators have a joint responsibility to develop incentive systems that produce the best educational outcomes for students. No one reward system or set of reward criteria can serve all institutions, but all should create adequate incentives for effective teaching. The incentive systems should reward effective teaching in deed as well as in word.