Does Reporting Heterogeneity Invalidate Student Evaluations of Teaching?

Student Evaluations of Teaching (SET) are a subjective measure of student satisfaction that is often used to assess teaching quality. The validity of this measure is challenged if students are heterogeneous in their reporting style and sort across courses. Using administrative data that link all evaluations carried out by a student, it is possible to estimate student-specific reporting scales. The paper presented in this ZEW Research Seminar shows that reporting heterogeneity accounts for about one third of the within-course variation of SET and that student sorting can severely alter the ranking of courses within a major. The results question the use of SET to incentivise teachers.