In the quest to achieve better academic outcomes for all students, the focus in education has shifted to a model of accountability. The most recent trend in the accountability movement is a focus on the effect of teachers in promoting student achievement. Research has found that teachers have the most significant school level impact on student achievement, and increases in teacher effectiveness could have major implications for the learning outcomes of students across the nation. Much of the current focus in teacher evaluation reform centers on methods through which teachers can be more accurately evaluated based on their contributions to student learning. In the push towards greater accountability for teachers, the development of measures that are both fair for teachers and lead to stronger outcomes for students are critical to seeing long-term improvements in the education system. This report explores variability and stability of value-added measures over time by looking in depth at the methods, assumptions, limitations, and implementation of the most commonly used value-added models across the country and the research about the correlations of these measures over time. This research is followed by a case study of a de-identified large urban school district implementing a teacher evaluation system that uses both a commercially produced value-added measure and an alternative student-growth measure to make high stakes decisions about teacher effectiveness. The findings from this case study show correlations that do not differ significantly from the prior research on the year-to-year variability in teacher value-added measures, but urge for continued evaluation of these measures over time, especially in high-stakes decisions. Ultimately, value-added measures are only as useful as their effectiveness in influencing the core outcomes of teaching and learning, and therefore these measures must be carefully integrated into and validated against holistic assessments of teacher effectiveness in order to truly impact student outcomes. / text

While teacher quality is recognized as a critical component in school reform, and the pursuit of new teacher evaluation systems has gained national attention, the question of whether proposed teacher assessment models meet the needs of special education teachers has gone largely unnoticed. Current efforts to design teacher evaluation processes that accurately distinguish between effective and ineffective teachers must take into account the difficulties of using new, innovative evaluation systems to appraise teachers who serve students with disabilities. Important differences in the roles, expertise, and circumstances in which special education teachers carry out their responsibilities result in challenges related to the use of observation protocols in evaluating instructional practices, obtaining valid measures of student progress, and understanding the relevance of teacher credentials (i.e., degrees earned and certification) in the special education setting. Through this qualitative research dissertation, the researcher sought to gain insight into the perceptions and experiences of special education teachers and administrators to better understand (a) the relationship between teacher evaluation and teacher effectiveness; (b) the ways in which educators approach the challenges of applying teacher evaluation systems for special education teachers; and (c) the ways in which teacher evaluation processes support the professional growth and development of special education teachers. / text

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International mathematics assessments have established students in East Asia as among the best in the world and their U.S. counterparts as mediocre. What is not clear is why this “achievement gap” exists. The last major study to address this question, Stevenson and Stigler’s (1992) The Learning Gap, was published prior to empirical and methodological advances in international comparative research on education. Prevailing wisdom points to unverified differences in cultural beliefs, which often leads to defeatist conclusions. This dissertation offers a fresh perspective by applying sociological theory and methods to the issue. Specifically, I rely on underutilized data from the 2003 and 2007 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) of fourth graders to compare educational systems across three major factors that influence math achievement: curriculum, teachers and parents. My main empirical findings are that there is greater uniformity of math instruction across classrooms in the participating East Asian nations of Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan than in the U.S. and that, among all participating educational systems, average achievement tends to be higher in those with greater uniformity of instruction. The implication is that the institutional arrangements that allow for less uniformity of instruction across classrooms in the U.S. might be partially responsible for the gap. Cross-regional differences in teacher effectiveness might also account for part of the gap, as three-level, hierarchical linear models of achievement in each nation indicate that U.S. math teachers are less effective than their East Asian counterparts—even after the quantity of instruction provided is taken into account. The main theoretical contribution is an alternative explanation for the apparent cross-regional disparity in the proportion of involved parents, which highlights how schools can make a difference in whether or not parents become involved. Such an approach promises a way out of the dead-end reached by previous theorists. However, this dissertation also draws attention to the limitations of the existing data. At present, there is not enough information available to substantiate the policy recommendations made in previous studies. As such, a central aim of this dissertation is to put research onto sounder methodological footing. / Sociology

Hierarchical Linear Models were used to analyze data from one Texas school and identify effective and ineffective mathematics teachers using their students’ scores on two consecutive years of the state test (TAKS) over a three-year period. A model was developed which attempted to control for student grade level, as well as whether a class was an honors course. Special attention was paid to requiring statistically significant results. Results were minimal and may lack validity. The barriers to getting better results include missing data, the small sample size of students for an individual teacher, the non-random assignment of teachers to courses, and the extent of variability in the data. Most of these are beyond the control of educators. A better way of measuring student growth could reduce variability and improve the prospects of using a data driven approach to evaluate teachers. / text

This dissertation uses a Zen koan as a foundation for discussing teacher training and development. It suggests that teacher training attends to issues of theory, pedagogy, and technology, and it contends that teacher training and development does not adequately attend to the intrapersonal aspect of teaching. In spite of the use of reflective techniques in teacher education, teachers are not trained in a significant way to navigate, negotiate, or manage the issues of identity, the issues of self-belief, the patterns of thought, and/or the emotional patterns, which affect their teaching and their classrooms. This work looks at research regarding the importance of the intrapersonal aspect of teaching in relation to teacher effectiveness and classroom climate; it considers current practices in pre-service and in-service teacher training; and it reviews research related to the efficacy of mindfulness and contemplative practices, such as meditation. It argues that the intrapersonal aspect of teaching is relevant to teacher effectiveness and classroom climate; that contemplative and mindfulness practices may offer systems that support and sustain teachers as they navigate, negotiate, and manage the intrapersonal aspect of teaching; and that pre-service and in-service professional development may provide vehicles to deliver this training.

This mini-dissertation reports on a case study of teachers' perceptions of the performance appraisal system used at an independent school in the greater Durban area in Kwa-Zulu Natal. As the system was implemented at a time when appraisal was only mandatory in government schools and not in / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

The re-structuring and re-conceptualization of the South African Education System after 1994, necessitated a transformation of the evaluation process. The emphasis was now on enhanced performance at school level. This is clearly stipulated and documented in the South African Schools Act 84 of 1996. Thus, it was with such policy initiatives that the Developmental Appraisal System of South Africa (DAS), was designed, developed and implemented at school level. The rationale focussed on improving the quality of teaching and learning and organizational growth and development. This research explores how the Developmental Appraisal System has moved from being entrenched with inflexible characteristics to a more educator-friendly approach of evaluation. The appraisee is the principle role player in the whole process. The purpose of this research is to undertake a case study to evaluate the implementation of the Developmental Appraisal System (DAS) at a single secondary school in the North Durban Region. The main finding was that due to multi-faceted reasons, this school has not been able to complete the implementation of the DAS. A small percentage of educators have been appraised. However, this is not sufficient to improve organizational growth and ensure that teacher development is taking place. The research makes recommendations based on the findings which if implemented could change the educator's perception of DAS. The emphasis is on developmental rather than criticism. In this way the culture of teaching and learning can improve. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

This research project investigates the influence of, and interplay between, contextual and biographical factors on an educator's ability to respond to the work context. In particular, this study explores what factors a small number of educators believe were important, before, during and after their participation on one or other specific professional development programme in enabling them to develop (design and/or adapt) and implement a course curriculum in their work environments. Within the context of this research, the professional development programmes of interest are designed with/for environmental educators from the Southern African region. Although past educational research has often focused on the importance that programme participants give to the interactions between themselves and tutors , the materials used, the assignments tackled, etc. this research project did not set out to draw the research subjects' attention to programme-related factors. Rather, it was designed to broaden the focus to include factors before and after a programme as well. Within this enquiry, three research subjects were engaged in numerous, open-ended conversations throughout the course of the year during which the study unfolded. The above participants were also involved in semi-structured interviews where, again, relatively open-ended questions were asked. A small number of documents, such as the materials of the above professional development programmes, were also analysed. This research has provided a number of insights into the wide range of factors that might enable educators to respond effectively to their work environments. Specifically, it has indicated the importance of four broad families of factors perceived by the subjects of this research to have enabled them to develop and implement a meaningful course curriculum. The personal variables are highlighted in particular. Importantly, this study raises questions and challenges both for those involved in similar research as well as for those involved in the design and implementation of professional development programmes, particularly for educators. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002.

During this explorative journey, I investigated what keeps teachers motivated to learn and develop in their professional practice. I employed Bell and Gilbert’s (1994) model which encapsulates and examines the personal, professional and social aspects of teachers’ development. Within this interpretive paradigm, I offered an understanding of what the impetus for change entailed - from their personal and professional self on their practice and what sustains teachers to continue to negotiate the changes in their daily work. Employing participatory methodology as my methodological research approach, I portray and interpret data that was generated from the teachers’ stories. The methods used to produce the data included life story interviews, photographs and drawings. By composing and reconstructing my participants’ stories, I show how the personal and professional aspects of teacher learning are interactive and interdependent. By retelling stories we can foreground crucial processes in teachers’ development and show what motivates them to learn and develop in their professional practice. Through the reconstructed stories, these particular teachers in this study were able to, through particular social relations and practice, create new meanings and definitions to their professional identity and responsibilities as teachers in a changing schooling context. The findings of the study indicate that within their school context there were many challenges with which teachers were confronted. However, the teachers in this study chose to uplift, inspire and motivate themselves. Although they followed prescribed policies and curriculum, they engaged in certain relationships and enacted certain practices that went beyond their teaching responsibility. The teachers’ initial frustration and restlessness had led to a personal change in their attitudes, values and beliefs. There was an inner desire to bring about change in the personal meanings and definitions of teacher self. Through particular practices and relationships, new thinking, new ideas, new interests and new meanings about the teacher self were invoked. It was through the creative use of these social spaces that teachers cultivated new ideas and new meanings of the kind of teacher they wanted to be for a South African classroom. The teachers engaged in innovative ways in terms of their professional development to bring about change. The teachers indicated that their identity as a teacher was linked to being a learner iii and a researcher. In addition, the relationships of love and care towards learners brought new meaning to their teacher self. It translated into what they were doing in their relationships with learners and the subject/s they taught - this, became a deeply rewarding engagement between the teacher and their work. In response to my main research question, what keeps teachers motivated? These particular teachers were not blind to complexities they faced on a regular basis but against all odds worked within the complexity. Imbued with renewed vigour, hope and love they forge ahead. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.