Very true, but there are certainly ways that schools can up the response rates if they are interested. Some schools authentication systems that store a student

Very true, but there are certainly ways that schools can up the response rates if they are interested. Some schools authentication systems that store a student's ID on one system when they complete the evaluation and the actual response anonymously on another system. You can then set policy to say, "Your final grades will not be released until you complete the course evaluation." I have also noticed that giving students 10 minutes at the beginning of the last class, with the professor leaving the room, helps the rate.