Teacher Evaluation: A Comprehensive Guide to New Directions and Practices

Citation

Bowden, D. (2001), "Teacher Evaluation: A Comprehensive Guide to New Directions and Practices", Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 54-56. https://doi.org/10.1108/qae.2001.9.1.54.1

Teacher evaluation is an important part of the total quality process. It is therefore germane that a review of this book should appear in the Journal. The first impressions of the book are very good, and the content identifies key issues in a logical progression, including the role of the principal, the need to improve current practice, the use of student performance data and the development of portfolios. All these approaches embrace the social complexity of the teacher’s role, and are central themes to the book.

The many contextual parallels between the USA and the UK make it a useful book for educationalists in this country despite the organisational and cultural differences between the systems. The description of the political perspective that even with the research, evidences that there is much good practice in the education system even if it is under attack from the politicians. The pertinent quote that education in budget terms is “in competition with prisons and roads” will ring bells with readers here.

The rationale for teacher evaluation given in the preface confirms the impressions that this reviewer has gathered, that the recent years of teacher assessment have only tenuous links with improved classroom performance. Rather, the positive outcomes are in the areas of professional confidence, audience reassurance and a dissemination of good practice. The clear statement in the first paragraph (page 3) of the mis‐match between rhetoric and reality of teacher evaluation in the USA describes accurately the situation in this country. There is a clear message backed by the authority of the author as a teacher and researcher in the field that should be read by every politician and bureaucrat who deals in educational policy. For example, on page 3:

Instead of practices that are inaccurate, uninformative and not useful, teacher evaluation can be made to work.

The value of this book is measured by how effectively it justifies this statement. The author sets a scene and challenged himself by 12 “new directions” outlined on pages 4‐12 under the heading of “How should evaluation be changed?”

The argument developed is that evaluation should be based on documented multiple lines of evidence reflecting the contributions of individual teachers in the specific context of their schools. It questions “The usefulness, even fairness” of using standardised forms of evidence to evaluate all teachers.

After reviewing the need for, principles of and problems of teacher evaluation in part I, the author, in part II addresses practical methods and resource implications. He questions the type of thinking which underpins current UK practice based on “Systematic Observation and Administrator (Head) Reports”. The challenging tone is continued by the inclusion of both competency based and standards based evaluation under the heading “Methods to Avoid”.

In part III proposals are made for methods of improved teacher evaluation. It includes discussion of “portfolio assessment” giving plus and minus points relevant to the threshold process recently introduced here. In part IV there is critical review and suggestions for improvement of practice for evaluating new teachers, administrators, support personnel and efficient teachers.

Overall, the comprehensive nature in this book offers a thought‐provoking insight for people in this country’s system. It explores critically ideas and practices, many of which are part of our current, and, possibly, future experience if the spotlight remains on teacher and school performance assessment. The discussion is clear and well reasoned with argument supported by an extensive literature base. A drawback though is the limitation to the US experience. UK readers will have to develop their own links with Appraisal, OfSTED and Threshold Practice. It is also noticeable that the bulk of literature quoted is based from work in the 1970s and 1980s, although Internet sites for further information are listed.

The US focus means that the accumulated experience of teacher assessment and, increasingly, performance related pay in countries such as the UK and Australia is not explored. I feel that a significant source of reflection and critical analysis has not been tapped here. Perhaps the English equivalent is waiting to be written.

Until that appears this book does offer a wealth of information. The author meets the challenge he set by proposing a “better way”, but despite the sense of thoroughness, insight and moral integrity which drives the proposed multi‐evidence approach, the scale of resource implications makes adoption here, in the UK very unlikely.