This research investigated the relation of course, instructor, and student characteristics to student ratings of teaching effectiveness, both overall and within the dimensions of pedagogical skill, rapport with students, difficulty appropriateness, and course value/learning. Interest in the course content, expected grades, satisfaction with the time of day, and instructor sex were related significantly to all dimensions of teaching performance. Year in school and reason for taking a course were related to value ratings, and student sex and year in school were related to rapport ratings. Relations of background characteristics to teaching evaluations varied somewhat by dimension. Background characteristics were related most strongly to course value ratings and the overall evaluation, and least strongly to the pedagogical skill ratings. (Contains 1 table.)