Teachers concerned about online ratings

Teachers fear a new website asking students and parents to rate their effectiveness could be exploited by disgruntled students.

The site, launched in New Zealand last week, provides a list of schools along with a comments forum, The Press newspaper reported today.

Students can post a message, rating a teacher on a one-to-five scale on categories such as how easy it is to get a good grade without too much work, helpfulness, clarity and overall quality.

Canterbury Secondary School Principals' Association president Linda Tame said she had already asked Telecom to ensure the site could not be accessed by school computers.

Although the site was concerning, little could be done to stop students accessing it and education about appropriate use of it was important, she told The Press.

"Our view is that if students put such things into the public arena, they need to know they must be accountable for them.

"There is no doubt the site will encourage negative responses, especially if someone has had a bad day with a teacher."

Other teachers said students could be anonymous on the site and it was likely to attract negative criticism.

One had already had such feedback, attracting a mark of 1.5 out of five.

- NZPA