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Purpose - This paper proposes a benefit of the doubt (BoD) approach to construct and analyse teacher effectiveness scores (i.e. [students' evaluations of teaching] SET scores). Design/methodology/approach - The BoD approach is related to data envelopment analysis (DEA), a linear programming tool for evaluating the relative efficiency performance of a set of similar units (e.g. firms, departments, individuals, etc.) who use (possibly multiple) inputs to produce (possibly multiple) outputs in operation environments typically characterised by no reliable information on the prices of inputs and/or no (exact) knowledge about the 'functional form' of the production or cost function. Findings - A major appeal of BoD is the flexibility in the construction of the SET scores. In particular, BoD puts teacher performances into a relative perspective to be evaluated optimally, thereby accounting for different values and interpretations that teachers attach to 'good teaching'. Furthermore, if available, stakeholder opinion can be easily incorporated into the evaluation. The swift identification of teachers' relative strengths and weaknesses is another advantage. The advantages show in the application. Originality/value - Several issues specific to the construction and analysis of SET scores have remained largely untouched, and hence unresolved, in the literature. One particular blank area is the weighting and aggregation of SETs into teacher performance scores. This paper contributes to the literature in that it presents a methodology that addresses this issue. To illustrate the usefulness of BoD for teacher evaluations with summative intentions and/or formative purposes, the methodology is applied to SET data collected at a university college in Brussels (Belgium).

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Despite the increased attention to students leaving secondary education without a diploma numerous students still dropout yearly. This paper makes a distinction between the 'individual perspective' and the 'institutional perspective' of dropping out. The former is explored by multinominal logit models. We observe that particularly motivation of the student and interest in schooling of his/her parents are crucial predictors of the individual dropout decision. The institutional perspective is examined by ordered logit models. In particular, we discuss the influence of the first year of secondary education by analyzing the large differences in the number of dropouts in Dutch first year classes. We observe that, more than motivation, the first year of secondary education is crucial in shaping the dropping out decision.

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