Presenter(s): Emily Wu − Economics, Mathematics And Computer Science
Faculty Mentor(s): Bill Harbaugh
Data Story Session 1CS
Research Area: Economics
This study explores the legitimacy of the use of Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) as a measure of teaching quality. To do so, we seek to answer two questions surrounding the creation and implications of SETs. Using data from the University of Oregon (UO) we first analyze the influence of a variety of factors commonly hypothesized to bias SET scores. Second,
we investigate the relationship between SET scores and future student achievement. We find that a many of these factors influence SET scores, and that SET scores for a class are not a useful measure for predicting how well students will do in future classes. These findings suggest that SET scores are not a valid measure of teaching quality at the UO.