What is often necessary to make evaluations more reliable?

Standardized procedures are essential for making evaluations more reliable because they provide a consistent framework for assessing performance or outcomes. When evaluations follow the same steps, criteria, and methods, it minimizes variation that could arise from personal biases, subjective interpretations, or differences in how evaluators assess the same information. This uniformity helps ensure that everyone is evaluated on the same basis, leading to fair and objective results.

Standardized procedures also facilitate accurate comparisons between different evaluations and among different evaluators, as they rely on a common set of standards. Furthermore, they support the implementation of best practices in evaluation, which can enhance the overall quality and credibility of the outcomes.

In contrast, options such as multiple evaluators, while beneficial, can introduce inconsistencies if there are no standardized procedures guiding their evaluations. Flexible scheduling, although potentially accommodating to various needs, does not directly impact the reliability of evaluations. Student feedback may provide useful insights, but it does not inherently enhance the reliability of the evaluation process itself.