Thesis advisor: Lauri Johnson / This qualitative case study examined the perceptions of teachers and leaders in one Massachusetts school district about the actions of school leaders that engaged teachers in the reflective process. Utilizing Lave and Wenger's (1991) "Communities of Practice" as a framework enabled the researcher to examine the extent to which a social process of learning existed and whether the district's current structures and conditions engaged teachers in the reflective process. The findings from this study drew upon interview, observation, and document data to explore teacher and leader views regarding specific leadership actions (or inactions) that supported and facilitated teacher engagement in the examination of their practice and whether teachers viewed those actions as impacting their ability to reflect. Results indicated that school leaders implemented anticipatory and ongoing actions to create necessary preconditions, which fostered teacher reflection. Data revealed a district belief that reflective dialogue in pairs (teacher to teacher or teacher to administrator) or in groups (faculty meetings, grade level or departmental meeting) was important to educator growth. Administrators' actions, which engaged teachers in a reflective process, were perceived to be those associated with being an instructional leader. Recommendations include helping district leaders understand the role and design of collaborative reflection as well as the role of the principal in order to plan and implement effective professional learning, which develops reflective practitioners. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

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Teacher evaluation is mandated by state law and practiced in every public school district. The evaluation of teachers is a vital part of the work of school administrators and the evidence that aligns teacher supervision and its direct or indirect impact on student achievement is scant (Ebmeier, 2003). The researcher examined perceptions of elementary teachers in a southeastern Virginia school division regarding the teacher evaluation process. The goal was to determine how the teacher evaluation process influences professional growth and instructional practices at the elementary school level. In addition to identifying the overall perception of the evaluative practices employed in the school division, the researcher gleaned additional understandings of teacher perceptions on how a particular evaluation tool's effectiveness, purposes, and reliability impact teacher behavior. Perceptions of teachers from 20 elementary schools in an urban school division in Virginia were researched using a quantitative methodology. There were a total of 446 teachers in grades PreK through 5 in the 20 schools. Data were collected through an online teacher questionnaire. The revised Teacher Evaluation Profile (TEP), created by Stiggins and Duke (1988), was used as the survey tool. The TEP was designed to elicit responses on a Likert scale using five attributes of a particular teacher evaluation experience. Data from the TEP indicate that teacher perceptions of the overall quality of the evaluation process vary. While there was a consistent perception of neutrality, less than 50% of the teachers perceived the evaluation as a meaningful process. Furthermore, teachers reported that the evaluation process had minimal impact on their professional growth and professional practice. The results of this study may impact the professional development opportunities linked to the evaluation process. / Ed. D.

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Improving mathematics instruction is an essential issue many school leaders are encountering as they feel increased pressure to ensure high-quality learning for all students. Key responsibilities of school leaders in leading mathematics improvement include observing instruction and providing teachers with feedback. If school leaders fulfill these responsibilities effectively and help teachers become better practitioners in the classroom, they can have a substantial impact on raising student achievement. As a result of minimal research and contradictory recommendations guiding school leaders towards mathematics leadership, many school leaders are not effectively fostering growth in mathematics instruction. The purpose of this study was to provide clarity to school leaders by pinpointing what elementary school leaders need to know in order to effectively observe mathematics instruction and provide teachers with feedback. More specifically, the study examined the necessity of a school leader's mathematics content knowledge, student pedagogical knowledge, and knowledge of how teachers learn to teach mathematics. The study was conducted using a three-round Delphi method completed by an expert panel composed of 15 stakeholders with diverse perspectives in the area of mathematics leadership. The study yielded guidelines regarding what school leaders need to know in order to effectively observe elementary mathematics instruction and provide informed feedback to teachers. The experts unanimously concluded that school leaders must understand elementary mathematics as a process of reasoning rather than merely rules, facts, and procedures. One-hundred percent of the panel also strongly agreed that mathematics instruction must occur in student-centered classrooms where teachers act as a facilitator of learning and use effective questioning to engage students in developing mathematical understandings and connections. The study concluded with 11 additional critical findings. / Ed. D.

Teacher evaluation has a history of challenges, from disagreement over its fundamental purpose to questions of its significance to teachers. Studies (Barnett & McCormick, 2004; Frase & Streshly, 1994; Machell, 1995; Milanowski, 2005; Milanowski & Heneman, 2001; Ovando & Harris, 1993; Stiggins & Duke, 1988) have consistently identified poor feedback, a lack of credibility, and an absence of trust as key issues that impact the effectiveness of an evaluator in the process. The purpose of teacher evaluation may be seen on a continuum from accountability, summarizing the progress of a teacher for the year, to improvement, motivating a teacher on to growth throughout the year and beyond. With the continually-expanding knowledge base on learning principles, a commitment to improvement and growth is essential to optimally meeting the needs of learners. There is a need to better understand the connection between principal practices in the evaluation process and teacher openness to professional growth. In this qualitative study, data from interviews and assorted artifacts were examined to ascertain what an elementary principal can do in the teacher evaluation process to promote the professional development of teachers. Elementary principals and teachers from a school division in Virginia were interviewed. The sources of data for this study were interview records, field observation notes, and archival data in the form of written observation summaries and professional growth goals, year-end evaluations, and the evaluation handbook and policies of the school division. The data in this study supported the conclusion that elementary principals do not use the evaluation process to promote professional growth. It was apparent in the interview data, however, that the belief that evaluation should foster growth was very strong in this school division. From the study emerged principles of practice that could indeed encourage a climate of growth in the elementary setting. / Ph. D.

Teachers working in urban schools in the United States are among those most at-risk for leaving the profession due to poor working conditions and lack of collegial relationships with school leaders and peers, among other factors. Use of professional development tools, such as the School Improvement Engine (SIE), may improve teacher retention and school organizational health; however, little research exists on the use of the SIE in charter schools. The purpose of this case study was to investigate New York City (NYC) school data on teacher retention and student achievement, how NYC charter school leaders participating in the program implemented the SIE, and how teachers and administrators perceived the impact of the implementation on their individual growth and desire to stay in their positions. Peter Senge's organizational learning theory was used to examine how SIE tools may promote a healthy organization in 5 areas (systems thinking, personal mastery, mental models, building shared vision, and team learning). Teacher retention and student achievement archived data for NYC schools were descriptively analyzed. Individual interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of 10 teachers and 4 school leaders from NYC charter schools implementing the SIE. Interview data were analyzed using open coding to identify key themes. Results indicated that SIE schools outperformed other NYC schools (charter and public) in English Language Arts (ELA), math, and teacher retention. Participants stated that tools like peer review helped them to become more effective in their teaching. Positive social change impacts include providing data that support the use of the SIE to improve teacher effectiveness, teacher retention, and the overall school organizational health.

Research reviews have shown that the use of formative assessment in classroom practice can substantially improve student achievement. However, a strong research base about how to support teachers’ implementation of such formative classroom practice is lacking. In this thesis, I investigate the effects of a comprehensive professional development programme (PDP) in formative assessment on teachers’ classroom practice and students’ achievement in mathematics. In addition, I identify reasons for the changes made in the teachers’ formative classroom practice. Fourteen randomly selected year - 7 mathematics teachers participated in the PDP. The teachers’ formative classroom practice before and after attending the programme was analysed and described, and reasons for their change in practice were explored. The effect of the changes in formative classroom practice on students’ mathematics achievement was examined using pre- and post-tests administered to both the intervention group and a control group. A mixed methods approach with classroom observations, teacher interviews, questionnaires and student achievement tests in mathematics was used in the studies included in the thesis. The results show that the teachers used aspects of formative assessment in their classroom practice before the PDP, but that there was plenty of room for development towards a more effective formative assessment practice. Several possibilities for developing the practice were identified. After the PDP the teachers believed in the idea of formative assessment and were motivated to make changes towards a more formative classroom practice. The teachers included new formative assessment activities in their classroom practice, but in different ways and to different degrees. The characteristics of these changes were identified, and also the characteristics of the PDP that the teachers found to be influential for their development of the formative classroom practice. Results also show that the teachers’ motivational beliefs held after the PDP was an explanatory factor for their changes in practice. However, the formative assessment practice the teachers implemented did not have a significant effect on their students’ achievement compared to the control group. In addition, there was no correlation between the number of formative assessment activities implemented by the teachers and their students’ achievement gains. Reasons for these non-effects on student achievement, and for the teachers’ degree and type of implementation of formative assessment in the classroom practice, are discussed in the thesis.

Biological evolution is part of the syllabi for Biology and Science in Swedish upper secondary school. In the syllabi, evolution is not only presented as a topic in Biology courses, but is also regarded as a unifying theme. The teacher has a fundamental role in deciding how the national curriculum is translated into the educational situation. This thesis investigates teachers’ accounts of their teaching of evolution in Swedish upper secondary school, describing their understandings of the purpose of teaching and learning evolution as part of biology education. The thesis is based on interviews of teachers teaching the course Biology A, which is compulsory as dictated by the Natural Science Program. The interviews were supplemented with questionnaires. The interviews were orientated towards questions about selection of course content and the reasons for choosing this content. The interviews were focused on teachers experiences based on their own practice. Two aspects of content were examined: (1) the scientific content taught in terms of themes and (2) the socializing value-laden aspects, such as priorities taken by the teachers and the teachers´ overarching aims.   The results showed that teachers described different teaching contents with regard to values, even when the core content of themes was similar. Four different selective traditions for choosing content were identified among teachers. The results are discussed in relation to the context and conditions that the teachers identify as influential on the content chosen. Teachers’ interactions with their students as well as their world views are important for their selection and adjustment of content. There are also indications that teachers’ personal views about purposes are important for selecting the teaching content.

Biological evolution is part of the syllabi for Biology and Science in Swedish upper secondary school. In the syllabi, evolution is not only presented as a topic in Biology courses, but is also regarded as a unifying theme. The teacher has a fundamental role in deciding how the national curriculum is translated into the educational situation. This thesis investigates teachers’ accounts of their teaching of evolution in Swedish upper secondary school, describing their understandings of the purpose of teaching and learning evolution as part of biology education. The thesis is based on interviews of teachers teaching the course Biology A, which is compulsory as dictated by the Natural Science Program. The interviews were supplemented with questionnaires. The interviews were orientated towards questions about selection of course content and the reasons for choosing this content. The interviews were focused on teachers experiences based on their own practice. Two aspects of content were examined: (1) the scientific content taught in terms of themes and (2) the socializing value-laden aspects, such as priorities taken by the teachers and the teachers´ overarching aims.   The results showed that teachers described different teaching contents with regard to values, even when the core content of themes was similar. Four different selective traditions for choosing content were identified among teachers. The results are discussed in relation to the context and conditions that the teachers identify as influential on the content chosen. Teachers’ interactions with their students as well as their world views are important for their selection and adjustment of content. There are also indications that teachers’ personal views about purposes are important for selecting the teaching content.