DEd (Educational Management) / Department of Educational Management / There has been greater demand for more accountability, results-based culture and enhanced effectiveness of programmes and services globally. The education sector has not been spared by this wave either and hence teacher effectiveness and instructional quality have risen to the top of the educational policy agenda. It is important therefore that effective teaching must be assured and teacher evaluation is a key means of providing that assurance. To date, most studies on the teacher appraisal system in Zimbabwe have focused on the perceptions and attitudes of the teachers towards the evaluation process, and at the same time the implementation challenges. Little has so far been done to determine the effectiveness of the teacher performance evaluation system in Zimbabwe. This study consequently sought to evaluate the effectiveness of the teacher performance evaluation system in Kwekwe district of Zimbabwe. The study was premised on the pragmatic philosophical worldview and hence the mixed method approach was adopted. The convergent parallel mixed method design was used. Data was collected using individual face to face semi structured interviews and a 5 point Likert scale questionnaire. Documentary review was done prior to the development of the research instruments as a way of ensuring relevance of the data collection instruments. The study was underpinned by the self-developed RADPS conceptual framework on performance evaluation system effectiveness. Stratified purposive sampling technique was used to select ten secondary schools for the quantitative strand and four for the qualitative strand. The quantitative sample was composed of 292 teachers and the qualitative sample was composed of 12 participants constituting of 4 teachers, 4 heads of departments and 4 schools heads. Quantitative data was analysed using the SPSS version 25 while the qualitative data was analysed using ATLAS ti. 8. The key findings of the study were that: the performance evaluation system was imposed and accordingly there was no buy in; there was inadequate budgetary support thereby rendering the introduction of the system mistimed; teachers as key stakeholders were excluded from the design process and hence there was no ownership; and ultimately, relevance of the system was questioned. It was also revealed that the evaluation process is merely a compliance exercise with erratic and discontinuous monitoring and supervision through the evaluation cycle. The findings from the study imply the following: policy formulation should be participatory and inclusive; readiness assessment should be conducted before introducing a new programme; a programme should be pilot tested; evaluation process should be monitored by external officials; the process should be consequential and the system should be continuously monitored and reviewed for relevance and validity. / NRF

Emotional Intelligence (EI) has been positively associated with success in the educational and corporate world, and has recently been linked with effective teaching. However, while it has been shown to be a learnable skill, studies of EI development in teachers are relatively rare. The present study explores the impact of a two-year, group-based EI coaching programme upon EI competencies and personal and professional effectiveness in teachers, the processes and experiences induced by the programme, and the elements which contributed to its success. The study was conducted in a single secondary school in Israel, and employed an interpretive, qualitative framework and a mixed-methods approach. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with twenty of the twenty-one training-programme participants were conducted at the end of the training and comprised the main research tool. Additionally, data from pre-post training Bar-On EQ-i assessments served to prompt discussions during the interviews, validate interview findings, and further illuminate the EI development process. The findings confirm links between EI and teachers’ effectiveness and indicate that EI competencies in teachers can be developed through group-based EI coaching. Stages in the EI development process and elements that supported it have been identified. It is suggested that dedicated EI development training programmes have the potential to improve personal and professional effectiveness in teachers and may lead to organisational, school-wide EI implementation. Accordingly, development of personal EI competencies in teachers within school-based CPD programmes should be favourably considered.

Over the years there has been significant discussion of the connection between principal's leadership qualities and teacher efficacy. Students come to the classroom from stable, traditional, supportive home environments as well as from unstable, broken, and homeless situations. Teachers are asked to teach a classroom full of students with a wide range of learning abilities as well as a varied range of learning disabilities. The confidence to do this for the measure of a teacher's career takes a strong sense of efficacy. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teachers' sense of efficacy and teachers' perceptions of their principals' leadership qualities that enhance and/or diminish the teachers' sense of efficacy. This study utilized both quantitative and qualitative research methods to study the effects of leadership qualities on teacher efficacy. Quantitative data was acquired utilizing the teacher sense of efficacy scale and the principal leadership questionnaire. Qualitative data was gathered through a focus group meeting of teachers with measurably strong efficacy to identify principal practices that affect teachers' efficacy. The study's outcomes reported that total respondent data indicates a generally positive relationship between these two variables. Subgroup analysis revealed varying results with diminishing relationships measured from elementary to secondary teachers. Qualitative information gathered from teachers with strong efficacy reported strategies that foster teacher efficacy, make teachers feel good about teaching and inhibit the development of teacher efficacy. The study recommends that principals and school administrators be especially knowledgeable of the six components of transformational leadership as well as the three aspects of teacher efficacy examined in this study. Being mindful of how daily leadership decisions not only fit within the transformational leadership constructs, but more importantly, how they affect good classroom teaching practices, should help principals plan and initiate strategies and programs that create a campus atmosphere more conducive to comprehensive learning.

There are three purposes of this study: (1) to determine the degree of interaction between pupils and student teachers and teaching effectiveness as rated by pupils; (2) to determine the significance of difference of pupil ratings between those who express "more" and those who express "less interest" in the course taught by the student teacher whom they were asked to rate; and (3) to study other variables such as sex, age, and achievement in order to show how they relate to pupil and student teacher interaction.

The problem with which this investigation was concerned was the relationship between selected facilitative characteristics of human interaction and other factors associated with the secondary teacher. These factors included job satisfaction and courses completed beyond the bachelor's degree.

Following Barr and Tagg's formalization of the concept of learner-centered educational practice at the postsecondary level as described in their seminal article in Change in 1995, survey instruments have been developed to assess teachers' beliefs about their own learner-centeredness.. The research reported in this dissertation examined the connection between college students' perceptions of teacher effectiveness on each of four dimensions appearing as questions on the IDEA Survey of student reaction to instruction and courses (developed at the IDEA Center, Kansas State University, in the early 1970s) and the Assessment of Learner-Centered Practices (ALCP): Beliefs Portion of the Postsecondary Level Instructor Survey, College Level (developed in early 1999 by B. L. McCombs, University of Denver Research Institute; alpha reliabilities reported). Using scoring rubrics accompanying the ALCP instrument, instructors were identified as learner-centered or non-learner-centered based on their responses. Independent t-tests were performed to determine whether learner-centered instructors were perceived differently by students in terms of teaching effectiveness than non-learner-centered instructors on each of four dimensions: overall excellence of course, overall excellence of instructor, effectiveness of instructor in helping students achieve relevant objectives in the course, and effectiveness of course and instructor in improving students' attitude toward the field of study. Students rated learner-centered instructors higher in all dimensions, but results were not statistically significant. Instructors were also identified as possessing learner- or non-learner-centered beliefs to a greater degree than that necessary for an overall designation. Independent t-tests were performed to determine any differences in student perceptions of effectiveness between these two groups. Again, students rated learner-centered instructors higher in all dimensions, but results were not statistically significant. Recommendations for further research with the ALCP instrument are made, including research to determine whether specific factors and/or questions prove to be statistically significant in predicting student evaluations of effectiveness. Also recommended are replications of the study to investigate moderating variables influencing accurate faculty self-identification of beliefs about teaching and learning.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of teachers on student achievement using a longitudinal analysis. The analysis was based on the value-added assessment system implemented in Tennessee. In order to conduct this study, data were collected for two sets of students in one school district. The first set of students began Kindergarten in Spring 2000-Spring 2001 and continued to third grade in the Spring 2003-Spring 2004. The second set began Kindergarten in Spring 2001-Spring 2002 and went through second grade in the Spring 2003-Spring 2004 school year. Using mixed model ANOVAs modeled after Sanders' work, data were examined in thirteen separate analyses using nine independent variables. Year-to-year language arts differences, math differences, and reading differences on the ITBS were the dependent variables. In all of the year-to-year models, teachers were found to have a profound impact on student achievement. Prior achievement level was found to be another important factor in student achievement, with higher achieving students making consistently higher year-to-year gains than lower-achieving students.

This mixed methods study investigated the self-reported frequency of professional development experiences mentors have had with their mentees and with other mentors and identified the self-reported beliefs they hold about mentoring. Quantitative data were collected through an online survey of teachers from one school district that had mentored at least one time within the past 2 years. Specifically, mentors were asked to report how often they engaged in specific activities with their mentees and with other mentors. Mentors were also asked to report the degree to which they believed given statements were true about mentoring (a) as a professional development experience for the mentors themselves; (b) as a way to improve mentors' own classroom teaching practice; and (c) as an avenue for leadership roles in schools. Qualitative data were collected through face-to-face interviews with mentors to better understand the quality of their experiences and to identify those experiences that were more powerful in terms of shaping their beliefs. In addition, data were analyzed to determine the relationship between the frequency of mentors' experiences and their beliefs. The results show that the frequency of experiences mentors have had with their mentees and with other mentors was positively and significantly related to their beliefs in 5 out of 6 cases. Mentors reported strong beliefs about mentoring as professional development for themselves, as a way to improve their own classroom teaching practice, and as a vehicle for leadership in schools. This study sought to put mentors in the forefront by exploring their experiences and their beliefs about mentoring. This focus on the mentor teacher and not just the mentee places this research at the core of improving teaching practice and viewing mentoring as an educative experience for veteran and novice alike. / by Tammy L. Bresnahan. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Thesis (MEd)--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / Continuing Professional Teacher Development (CPTD) policy is an initiative intended to up-skill teachers, and in so doing improve schooling and learner achievement. CPTD involves the participation of teachers in various developmental activities for which they earn CPTD points. The professional development of teachers in South Africa has been erratic and, as a consequence, there has been a decline in the quality of teachers. Despite there being formal structures in place, policy implementation continues to be a problem. The purpose of this study was to identify constraints and opportunities regarding CPTD policy implementation in the Western Cape. The research tradition of interpretivism was chosen, allowing for a qualitative case study design to be employed. The non-probability sampling method was used to select a purposive sample of three WCED officials and four school principals. Convenience sampling was applied in identifying 24 teachers. Other data were drawn from policy documents. The study was conducted in an urban and rural district within the Western Cape. This study is significant in that it informs policy makers and implementers, and other stakeholders about the constraints and opportunities with regard to CPTD implementation and in so doing, paves the way for more effective implementation. Findings revealed that constraints outweighed opportunities. In spite of time constraints, principals and teachers reported that they are in support of professional development, but are not in support of the CPTD management system implemented by SACE. They do not agree with the one-size-fits-all approach to implementation, nor the focus of development being the collection of CPTD points. It is thus deemed that a review of the CPTD policy is necessary in order to clear the misconception that accumulation of PD points is the primary focus of CPTD. Granted, teachers would still need to collect points to monitor their growth. A recommendation is made in this study to improve the system and ensure that it is functional and accessible to all teachers at all times, including those in rural districts.

This thesis examines how college professors can improve their communication skills inside the classroom by testing pedagogical issues identified in previous scholarship against current teaching practices. This thesis addresses four main areas related to classroom communication skills that reflect how to build a classroom into a community of equality, open dialogue, and deep learning. The importance of classroom communities and of professors developing engaging deliveries to create compelling oral performances is described as well as issues of active listening and various models and techniques to help facilitate communication better in the classroom. A qualitative study analyzing written interviews completed by 19 college professors in Florida is conducted. Interview responses are then compared to pedagogical issues identified in previous literature to determine if there are similarities or gaps in current research. The interview determined that an interactive classroom with a professor who is consciously aware of their communication skills can help foster deeper learning with students. This research can help to develop best teaching practices for college professors. / by James Van Allan. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.