Differences in Student Evaluations of Principles and Non-principles Economics Courses and the Allocation of Faculty across these Courses

James F. Ragan and Bhavneet Walia*

October, 2007 Preliminary, comments welcomed

Abstract We analyze 19 semesters of student evaluations at Kansas State University. Faculty fixed effects are sizable and indicate that the best principles teachers also tend to be the best non-principles teachers. OLS estimates are biased because principles teachers are drawn from the top of the distribution and because unmeasured faculty characteristics are correlated with such variables as the response rate and student effort. Student ratings are lowest for new faculty but quickly stabilize. Expected GPA of the class is not an important determinant of student rating, but equitable grading is. The lower ratings in principles classes are fully accounted for by greater class size.

JEL code: A22

____________ * Professor of economics and doctoral student in economics, Kansas State University. Contact Ragan at [email protected] or at Waters Hall, KSU, Manhattan, KS 66506-4001. The authors thank Susan Koch, Kristi Smith, and Shannon Hulsing for help in compiling the data.