Viewpoint: Student Evaluation of Instruction Available to Purchase

It is suggested that student evaluation of instruction may not be a very valid way of measuring teaching effectiveness. Rather, it seems to be a measure of student satisfaction or instructor popularity, each of which it is felt has only a tangible relationship with student performance and the quality of the learning experience. To support this point of view, a number of examples which contribute to the quality of student learning but are likely to detract from student evaluation of instruction are addressed, as well as some that are likely to raise student evaluation of instruction scores although they may also contribute to student dependency and the desire for“spoon‐feeding”. This issue seems to have important implications both for promotion, tenure and merit pay decisions of faculty as well as excellence of education for students.