Simplifying digital recommendations for students: Opinion

Digital recommendation letters have become increasingly time consuming and tedious for instructors to complete, despite expectations that they would make the process simpler, write Jane S Halonen and Dana S Dunn. Halonen and Dunn discuss how digital systems often require instructors to answer a variety of survey questions and ratings for each student in addition to a reference letter. Additionally, institutions use a variety of systems and reporting formulas, making it difficult to transfer recommendation information from one system to another. Halonen and Dunn recommend that institutions allow instructors to simplify their ratings, clarify what is required in recommendation letters, and allow instructors to opt out of digital ratings systems. The authors also suggest that faculty consider refusing to fill out ratings for their students. Chronicle of Higher Ed (Subscription) Note: Archived stories may contain dead links or be missing source links.