Several models of curriculum and staff development are described to provide guidance toward the goal of harmoniously blending a humanized curriculum and humanized instruction. The author compares the "explosive" and "implosive" designs for program development and instruction and argues that the implosive design should be adopted and that…

This document is a collection of working papers written to meet the specific needs of teachers who are starting to think about and write performance objectives. It emphasizes qualitative objectives as opposed to quantitative classroom goals. The author describes quality objectives as marked by their clarity, accessibility, accountability, and…

Reports on a project in the tri-county metropolitan Portland, Oregon area designed to help educators answer the questions: "What is to be learned?""How is it to be learned?" and "Has it actually been learned?" Educational goals were produced for use in management and planning, and coded for retrieval from a computer…

Performance evaluation involves at least 50 percent self-evaluation. Therefore, the success of an evaluation plan, if it is honestly aimed at performance improvement, depends more on self-involvement and self-evaluation than on any other factor. This book describes in detail methods of self-evaluation in the setting of performance objectives, the…

This paper treats the theoretical underpinnings of accountability, particularly as they relate to specifying competencies that are used to evaluate an individual teacher's effectiveness. Contingencies and factors that influence the selection of competencies are discussed. Stressed is the virtual impossibility of adequately preparing teachers to…

Describes the growing public demand for holding teachers accountable for student performance. Asserts that this position assumes that effectiveness can be measured, whereas the incluence teachers have on student achievement is complex and variable, and may be less than that of family and peers. Describes various State-effort accountability plans.…

An effective system of evaluation is advocated as a means to improvement of the teaching/learning process. Colleague evaluation and academic freedom need not be adversaries but may contribute to educational accountability. (LBH)

Teacher Growth and Assessment (TGA) is a comprehensive teacher evaluation system that includes structures for both accountability and professional growth, taking teacher evaluation to a new level. TGA provides the opportunity to use teacher evaluation data to plan professional development, involve teachers in self-assessment, and structure…

This paper discusses issues of assessment, accountability, and preservice teacher preparation using electronic portfolios (e-portfolios). It discusses criteria for portfolio design and trends in e-portfolio use to collect evidence of the competencies of preservice teachers that are related to teaching standards. The paper also discusses the…

This paper is designed to initiate discussion about new educational accountability systems and the implications of these systems for educator preparation. Accountability systems are often developed with little regard to a clear definition of accountability, but once the systems are in place, and states are showing (realistic or political)…

This book discusses four approaches to incorporating student achievement in teacher evaluation. Seven chapters discuss: (1) "Teacher Evaluation and Student Achievement: An Introduction to the Issues"; (2) "What is the Relationship between Teaching and Learning?" (e.g., whether teachers are responsible for student learning and…

When student ratings of instruction are used by instructors as a source of feedback on their teaching, some changes are made by the instructor; better interpretation of the results would probably improve this; thus a well-designed student ratings program can benefit more than harm the academic community. (Author/JM)

In Kalamazoo, Michigan, teachers are evaluated on how well they and their students perform. Kalamazoo schools have probably one of the most comprehensive computerized systems of personnel evaluation and accountability yet devised. (Author/WM)

Author feels that if the system first provides the in-service training essential for familiarizing each teacher with the new program, and provides time for pilot programs, performance-based teaching may prove to be one of the big advancements of education in this century. (GB)

Argues that, if progress is to be made, educators must develop processes by which they redefine their own professional goals, identify their objectives, proceed toward them, and put into operation an evaluation system that is strongly formative in its effect. (Author/JN)