Reform measures have had little effect on increasing high school students' academic performance. Instructional quality is largely determined by the attitude, competence, and talent of teachers and principals responsible for delivering classroom instruction. Contracts should be revised to increase teachers' starting salaries, enforce accountability…

Evaluators using a naturalistic orientation observe a teacher's performance within the context of other lessons and interactions, view teacher observation and evaluation as processes rather than outcomes, and see events from the teacher's perspective. Principals can increase objectivity by recognizing the effects of their attitudes and experiences…

A study investigated the actual practices of 84 law schools in evaluating their faculty and compared them to studies by educators and psychologists about the assessment process. Certain dangers are found to be inherent in current evaluation methods, and suggestions for improving instructional evaluation are offered. (MSE)

Rather than mandating more preservice coursework or raising standardized test score requirements, states should pursue performance-based teacher licensing by designing a test of literacy and writing skills, alternative training programs, and assessments of teaching performance for novice teachers seeking long-term certification. RAND and ETS…

Describes events surrounding grievances filed against a curriculum coordinator in a New Jersey school district from 1987 to 1989. Although most grievances were found in the supervisor's favor, teachers succeeded in questioning some practices and limiting others. Disentangling the supervision-evaluation knot is impossible; because supervision is…

Canada's Ministries of Education have recently developed provincially mandated teacher evaluation policies to ensure provision of effective classroom instruction and teachers' continuing professional development. Based on indepth study of Alberta teacher evaluation practices, this article concludes that policy fails to meet these objectives. The…

This article reviews the law of teacher evaluation using recent cases. The purpose is to assist administrators in separating professional lore from legal requirements. Case analysis, with citations, is provided in several topic areas, including procedural default, remediation plans, statutory discrimination, and grievance arbitrability. (Author)

Considers four key decision points in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards' assessment-development process: development of content standards; development of tasks guiding candidates in providing evidence about their teaching; development of scoring rubrics and benchmarks; and determination of the performance standard that…

An issue in the lower teacher certification rates of African-American teacher candidates has been the disparate impact of assessments. Five broad categories of the sources of disparate impact are discussed, and evidence collected by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is discussed. (SLD)

The reflections of an assistant principal portray the dilemmas of the supervisory role and the shift from a bureaucratic to a collegial culture. A basic conflict between the necessity to evaluate and the desire to be of genuine help to teachers is outlined. (SLD)

Competency-based pay provides an incentive for employees to enhance their capacity for performing their jobs. Salary increases are not linked to past performance, but to future professional growth to meet increasingly higher expectations. Discussions to identify key teaching competencies must precede implementation. (MLH)

Examines 16 myths regarding student rating of instructors and instruction from the perspective of research that has been conducted over 74 years. Concludes that the myths actually are, on the whole, myths. Suggests ways to improve and document instructional effectiveness. (Contains 153 references.) (Author/SLD)

The National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers are bringing peer-review and assistance resolutions to the bargaining table. Both unions seek a new unionism with a strong role in ensuring teacher quality. Some critics are skeptical about putting teachers in charge of improving their profession. (MLH)

After we gave 2 classes of introductory psychology students the syllabus, the first class (the experimental group) generated rules for classroom behavior. The instructor presented the second class (the comparison group) with the list of rules and said they were instructor generated. Students rated the rules, several aspects of the course, and the…

The study examines aspects of centralized and school-based supervision (SBS) as carried out at a private secondary school. Data were gathered from administrators, teachers and students through interviews, critical incidents and pertinent documentation. The study points out that a combination of the two supervision systems offers benefits that a…