The Behaviors that College Students Classify as Political Bias: Preliminary Findings and Implications

The Consequences of Teaching Critical Sociology on Course Evaluations

“…Despite the fact that Professor Prew provides the WTO perspective and the critical sociological critique, some students may look past the different perspectives offered and perceive bias anyway. Again, it must be stressed that, as with prior research (Tollini, 2009), only a minority of students perceived bias or commented negatively on the perspective. The majority of students did not comment on the perspective in any form, but the small proportion of students who did had a discernable effect on the evaluations.…”

“…In one study of bias, Tollini (2009) attempts to differentiate what behaviors students would classify as political bias. Tollini's study identified a number of behaviors that the majority of students considered bias.…”

“…In addition, Tollini's (2009) research tends to suggest that the mere mention of a politicized issue will inflame a minority of students to decry the content as biased. If professors are to honestly incorporate general education goals, or by extension critical sociology, into their classroom, they will inevitably offend this minority of students.…”

“…Most prior research of bias in the classroom (Dixon & McCabe, 2006; Tollini, 2009) tends to focus on bias related to professors providing balance and alternative viewpoints, but at least one study (Kelly-Woessner & Woessner, 2006) investigates how professors’ and students’ perspectives affect evaluation outcomes. In one study of bias, Tollini (2009) attempts to differentiate what behaviors students would classify as political bias. Tollini’s study identified a number of behaviors that the majority of students considered bias.…”

“…We critically evaluate the literature on students’ perception of bias and balance in the classroom. While there tends to be some support for the idea that the perspective of the professor does have an effect on professors’ evaluations (Dixon & McCabe, 2006; Kelly-Woessner & Woessner, 2006; Tollini, 2009), we focus more specifically on critical sociology. We describe the concept “critical sociology” (Buechler, 2008b) and tie it to the approach Professor Prew takes in the classroom.…”