Human values determine which teaching is excellent, not algorithms, writes THE contributor

“Great teaching has to be seen, heard, felt and experienced in order to achieve validation as ‘great,’” writes Claire Taylor for Times Higher Education, which is why it is dangerous to think that algorithms and big data analytics can assess a teacher’s value. Taylor admits that data can provide key evidence when making decisions, but cautions against relying too much on data when it comes to assessing something like “excellence,” which is ultimately a subjective, human value. “In other words,” Taylor adds, “what one individual experiences as great or excellent may be another’s worst nightmare.” Times Higher Education