Critical issues in the evaluation of instruction are reviewed. The purposes of evaluation (for reward and accountability, or improvement of instruction) and identity of the evaluations (students, reporters, peers, administrators, consultants) are discussed and a plea is made for tying evaluation to systematic training schemes. (Author/LBH)

Reviews educational reform literature advocating changes in the organization of teachers' work to foster teacher satisfaction and effectiveness by treating them as reasonable, capable, and autonomous persons. Focuses on participative decision making, learning for improved practice, and evaluation. Decries the lack of parallel arguments regarding…

Examines the major characteristics of nontraditional or alternative assessment in language learning, the uses of alternative assessment procedures, and different types of alternative assessment. An annotated bibliography discusses eight important works in the field. (75 references) (MDM)

The three standard-setting approaches described in this special issue are summarized and contrasted: (1) judgmental policy capturing; (2) the extended Angoff method; and (3) the dominant profile method. An integrative summary of findings is followed by recommendations for modifying the methods. (SLD)

Reviews techniques for evaluating teachers in Britain and other countries, as well as personnel evaluation in industry. Examines the linking of appraisal with pay, promotion, or dismissal. Argues against the accountability model of appraisal and makes a case for formative evaluation. (SK)

This review of the literature concerning professional judgments and empirical research on the actual incidence of incompetent public school teachers finds that both judgments and the limited number of studies published suggest that approximately 10% of public school teachers are incompetent. (SLD)

Examines the influence of student perceptions of faculty teaching skills on social integration, subsequent institutional commitment, and student departure decisions. Using path analysis to consider this link, the findings demonstrate a significant influence of faculty teaching skills on student persistence. Theoretical and practical implications…

Teacher compensation systems, particularly the merit pay plan, are discussed in this paper. The introduction offers a historical overview of incentive compensation programs and presents the policy issue--whether or not merit pay plans contribute to school effectiveness. The single salary system is described in the next section, followed by a…

This book analyzes the consequences of 260 case decisions in New York State in which tenured teachers have been charged with misconduct or incompetence. Four sections explain the standards used in making these determinations for the purpose of establishing the meaning and measurement of good teaching, the conception of teachers as role models, and…

A review of the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) has focused on the Commons Examinations component. The Commons, now named the National Teacher Examinations Core Battery, tests general knowledge, communication skills, and professional knowledge in three separate tests. Users may select portions of the tests that best suit their needs at various…

This book proposes treating teacher evaluation as a set of processes aimed primarily at helping teachers develop professionally. The book opens with a review of current practices and problems in evaluation, then outlines basic theoretical concepts and describes some operational models. The Developmental Teacher Evaluation Kit (DeTEK) is introduced…

A study of six selected school districts that had been using merit pay plans successfully for at least 6 years provided insight into administrative strategies associated with merit pay program success. The researchers visited the districts, interviewed teachers and administrators, and studied local documents. Each district used a unique…

"The purpose of this article is to report a review of the developing empirical literature to explain "expert" teacher behavior, by analogy, from the cognitive psychology expertise literature. Emphasized is a review of the expert-novice cognitive psychology literature, encompassing the research on: chess, and other games; physics,…

Prepared as part of a program to develop both a system to assess information needs of teacher education decision makers and impact strategies to increase the probability that teacher educators will make appropriate use of research and development findings and products, this document reports on the literature review that led to the initial…

This paper takes as its starting point the well-known and extensively used process of clinical supervision and shows how what started over 30 years ago as a collaborative process has been harnessed into a sophisticated mechanism of teacher inspection and surveillance. It shows how this co-option has occurred historically through the progressive…