What Rate My Professors ratings indicate about effective teaching in economics

Four questions pertaining to effective teaching are addressed through content analysis of student comments at the Rate My Professors website for economics instructors at two universities in Edmonton. First, do student comments capture effective teaching? Second, why are economics instructors rated lower than those in other social sciences? Third, do contract instructors lower teaching standards through easy classes and grade inflation? Finally, are quality instructors penalised for rigorous standards? The analysis suggests that student comments capture many attributes of effective teaching but not critical thinking. There exists some evidence on contract instructors offering easy as just as there exist individual cases of instructors being penalised for maintaining rigorous standards. These findings suggest that administration should focus on student comments instead of average numerical scores. Effective instructors should not be penalised when student comments emphasise easy grades as part of the corporate model of education instead of learning and critical thinking.