Teacher Understandings and Perceptions of the Teacher Evaluation Process in Virginia

dc.contributor.authorGilpin, Elizabeth Jeanen
dc.contributor.committeechairBarksdale, Mary Aliceen
dc.contributor.committeememberMagliaro, Susan G.en
dc.contributor.committeememberUlrich, Catherine L.en
dc.contributor.committeememberWildman, Terry M.en
dc.contributor.departmentTeaching and Learningen
dc.date.accessioned2018-05-12T06:00:16Zen
dc.date.available2018-05-12T06:00:16Zen
dc.date.issued2016-11-17en
dc.description.abstractThe purpose of this study was to determine the understandings and perceptions that teachers in one elementary school in Virginia had about the teacher evaluation system. Participants were recruited from one elementary school in Virginia. All of the teachers and specialists were asked to participate and 12 participants volunteered. General education teachers made up 25% of the participants while specialists who taught in areas such as Music, Art, Physical Education, or Special Education made up 75% of the participants. Participants were interviewed individually and were asked the same questions about the teacher evaluation process. Interviews were transcribed and primary codes were developed from the data. Interview questions asked participants to describe both their understandings of the evaluation system under which they worked and the perceptions they had about their experiences with evaluation. Even though there were no questions dealing with emotions and feelings, emotional language was prevalent throughout the data. The overall findings from this study indicated that teachers had a limited knowledge about a problematic evaluation system. The fact that elementary teachers have unique responsibilities means that they may need multiple ways to TEACHER UNDERSTANDINGS AND PERCEPTIONS OF EVALUATION iii show their effectiveness. Other findings suggested that inconsistent evaluation practices in this school caused teachers to see no benefit from the process. Finally, findings also suggested that there was a misalignment between the evaluation instrument and the jobs of teachers, particularly those of specialist teachers. Implications for future research include studies which focus on teacher learning over time in order to support teachers at any level of experience. Future research also needs to be conducted with elementary classroom teachers and specialist teachers to discover ways that may create a more aligned and fair process. Further research would also include studying the perceptions of evaluators and how they carry out the evaluation process and make decisions about its use.en
dc.description.abstractgeneralThe purpose of this study was to determine the understandings and perceptions that teachers in one elementary school in Virginia had about the teacher evaluation system. Participants were recruited from one elementary school where all of the teachers and specialists were asked to participate. Three of the participants were general classroom teachers and nine were teachers in specialty areas such as Music, Art, Physical Education, and Special Education. Participants were interviewed individually and were asked the same questions about the teacher evaluation process. Interviews were transcribed and primary codes were developed from the data that answered the research questions. The questions asked about their understandings of the system under which they worked and the perceptions they had about their experiences with evaluation. Even though there were no questions dealing with emotions and feelings, emotional language was prevalent throughout the data. The overall findings from this study indicated that teachers had a limited knowledge about a problematic evaluation system. The fact that elementary teachers have unique responsibilities means that they may need multiple ways to show their effectiveness. Other findings suggested that inconsistent evaluation practices in this school caused teachers to see no benefit from the process. Finally, findings also suggested that there was a misalignment between the evaluation instrument and the jobs of teachers, particularly those of specialist teachers. Implications for future research include studies which focus on teacher learning over time in order to support teachers at any level of experience. Future research also needs to be conducted with elementary classroom teachers and specialist teachers to discover ways that may create a more aligned and fair process. Further research would also include studying the perceptions of evaluators and how they carry out the evaluation process and make decisions about its use.en
dc.description.degreePh. D.en
dc.format.mediumETDen
dc.identifier.othervt_gsexam:9130en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/83225en
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectbeliefsen
dc.subjectemotionsen
dc.subjectevaluationen
dc.subjectevaluatorsen
dc.subjectguidelinesen
dc.subjectperceptionsen
dc.subjectPerformanceen
dc.subjectphenomenologyen
dc.subjectprocessen
dc.subjectstandardsen
dc.subjectsystemen
dc.subjectteachersen
dc.subjectunderstandingsen
dc.titleTeacher Understandings and Perceptions of the Teacher Evaluation Process in Virginiaen
dc.typeDissertationen
thesis.degree.disciplineCurriculum and Instructionen
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.leveldoctoralen
thesis.degree.namePh. D.en

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