Education Commons^™

Teacher Perspectives On The Use Of The Australian Professional Standards For Teachers As Part Of Their Evaluation Process, Damien Barry, Donna Pendergast, Katherine Main

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teacher effectiveness has a powerful impact on student performance and a teacher evaluation process that supports professional growth can be a key lever for improving teaching quality. The purpose of this study was to examine teacher perspectives on the use of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, when used as part of their evaluation process, and, to determine what other factors may need to be considered in the design and implementation of such a process. A single case study of a school in Victoria, Australia was conducted, using a pre and post interview approach with six teachers. Responses were analysed …

Assuring The Quality Of Future Victorian Teachers : Acer Response To Det Discussion Paper: Working Together To Shape Teacher Education In Victoria, Lawrence Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

ACER’s response to the August 2016 discussion paper on teacher education titled, 'Working Together To Shape Teacher Education in Victoria' released by James Merlino, the Minister for Education and Training in Victoria. This response addresses focus areas including: Raising the quality and status of teaching: a profession of choice Ensuring high quality pathways into the profession Improving course quality Developing Early Career Teachers

Assuring The Quality Of Future Victorian Teachers : Acer Response To Det Discussion Paper: Working Together To Shape Teacher Education In Victoria, Lawrence Ingvarson

Teaching standards and teacher evaluation

ACER’s response to the August 2016 discussion paper on teacher education titled, 'Working Together To Shape Teacher Education in Victoria' released by James Merlino, the Minister for Education and Training in Victoria. This response addresses focus areas including:

1. Raising the quality and status of teaching: a profession of choice
2. Ensuring high quality pathways into the profession
3. Improving course quality
4. Developing Early Career Teachers

Improving Student Outcomes? You Have To Be In It For The Long Haul, Lawrence C. Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

Measuring Teacher Conscientiousness And Its Impact On Students: Insight From The Measures Of Effective Teaching Longitudinal Database, Albert Cheng, Gema Zamarro

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

Although research has been unable to find strong links between observable teacher characteristics and a teacher’s ability to improve student achievement, it has generally not considered the role that teacher non-cognitive skills play in affecting student outcomes. In this article, we validate several novel performance-task measures of teacher conscientiousness based upon the effort that teachers exert completing a survey and use these measures to examine the role that teacher conscientiousness plays in affecting both student test scores and student non-cognitive skills. We conduct our analysis using the Measure of Effective Teaching Longitudinal Database where teachers were randomly assigned to their …

Using A Resiliency Perspective To Inform Bilingual Teachers’ Classroom Inquiry, Brooke Kandel-Cisco, Yolanda Padrón

Brooke Kandel-Cisco

Recent research has established the importance of teacher quality in the academic success or failure of students (Darling-Hammond, 2000; Sanders, Wright, & Horn, 2004) and policy initiatives, such as NCLB, have propelled the issue of teacher quality to the forefront of educational reform in the U.S. While No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has been successful in establishing minimum teacher quality standards for general educators, the act has failed to highlight the importance of quality for teachers of second language learners (Nieto. 2003). Teacher quality is especially impo1tant for second language learners. both because of the pedagogic and Iinguistic complexities inherent …

Comparisons Of Student Perceptions Of Teacher's Performance In The Classroom: Using Parametric Anchoring Vignette Methods For Improving Comparability, Hana Vonkova, Gema Zamarro, Vera Deberg, Collin Hitt

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

Self-reports are an indispensable source of information in education research but might be affected by reference group bias if the frame of reference (i.e. implicit standards), used to answer the questions, differs across students. The anchoring vignettes method was introduced, in other areas of social science, precisely to correct for this source of bias. However, studies that make use of this approach in education are rare and more research is needed to study its potential. This paper uses data from PISA 2012 to investigate the use of the parametric model of the anchoring vignettes method to correct for differential implicit …

Teacher Allocation Policies And The Unbalanced Distribution Of Novice And Senior Teachers Across Regions In Turkey, Murat Ozoglu

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Policies toward fostering a more balanced distribution of teacher quality have garnered considerable attention from researchers and policymakers around the world. This attention has been motivated largely by the widely acknowledged educational goal of providing quality education for all children. Equipped with similar policy concerns, this study examines the initial assignment of novice teachers and voluntary transfer of senior teachers to determine whether there is any kind of sorting pattern in the allocation of novice and experienced teachers to schools across regions, particularly across provinces, in Turkey. Using the entire initial teacher assignment and voluntary teacher transfer data in between …

Preparing For Changes In Teacher Preparation Program Accountability: Evaluating The Factors That Influence Job Placement Of Teacher Preparation Program Graduates, Amy F. Johnson Phd

All Student Scholarship

Teacher preparations programs are facing increased pressure to report on the outcomes of their graduates, including their job placement rates. Prior research on job placement for teachers establishes that a variety of factors are related to whether or not individuals apply for and receive jobs. This research study explored these factors through quantitative analysis of three cohorts of teacher preparation program completers within the University of Maine system, using logistic regression to identify the individual and contextual characteristics that are most predictive of job application and hiring.

A Desk Study Of The Education Policy Implications Of Using Data From Multiple Sources: Example Of Primary School Teacher Supply And Demand In Malawi, Moses Khombe

Theses and Dissertations

Malawi, as a country with very limited resources, needs to have educational policies in place to maximize effectiveness of the public education system. Policymakers depend on accurate data, but variations in data between sources leaves policymakers uncertain as they attempt to craft policies to address the growing educational crisis in Malawi. A desk study was performed to evaluate the policy implications of employing data from multiple sources using primary school teacher supply and demand in Malawi as an illustration. This study examined one national organization, Malawi's Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MoEST); three international aid and assistance organizations (IAAOs), …

Sustaining The Teaching Profession, Ronald Thorpe

New England Journal of Public Policy

Within the United States and across nations, there seems to be consensus that teacher quality is the most important school-based variable in determining how well a child learns. While such an observation hardly sounds like headline news, it is a milestone in the development of teaching as a profession. It suggests where investments should be made if people really are serious about student learning. It also explains why policymakers and the public should care about what it means to be an effective teacher and what it will take to create and sustain a teaching workforce defined by accomplished practice. Teachers, …

Teach For Australia Pathway: Evaluation Report Phase 3 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Dr Kate Reid

This report is the final of three reports of the evaluation of the Teach for Australia (TFA) Pathway, a pilot of an alternative approach to teacher education in Australia. The evaluation was undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) over the period 2010 to 2012. The basic design of the TFA Pathway is as follows: 1. High-achieving university graduates are recruited nationally. Applicants are subject to a rigorous recruitment process and are selected on the basis of qualities and skills suitable to the teaching profession, and the possession of a genuine desire to reduce educational disadvantage. 2. Selected …

Teach For Australia Pathway: Evaluation Report Phase 3 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

This report is the final of three reports of the evaluation of the Teach for Australia (TFA) Pathway, a pilot of an alternative approach to teacher education in Australia. The evaluation was undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) over the period 2010 to 2012. The basic design of the TFA Pathway is as follows: 1. High-achieving university graduates are recruited nationally. Applicants are subject to a rigorous recruitment process and are selected on the basis of qualities and skills suitable to the teaching profession, and the possession of a genuine desire to reduce educational disadvantage. 2. Selected …

Teach For Australia Pathway: Evaluation Report Phase 3 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Dr Paul Weldon

This report is the final of three reports of the evaluation of the Teach for Australia (TFA) Pathway, a pilot of an alternative approach to teacher education in Australia. The evaluation was undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) over the period 2010 to 2012. The basic design of the TFA Pathway is as follows: 1. High-achieving university graduates are recruited nationally. Applicants are subject to a rigorous recruitment process and are selected on the basis of qualities and skills suitable to the teaching profession, and the possession of a genuine desire to reduce educational disadvantage. 2. Selected …

Disentangling Disadvantage: Can We Distinguish Good Teaching From Classroom Composition?, Gema Zamarro, John Engberg, Juan Esteban Saavedra, Jennifer Steele

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

This paper focuses on the use of teacher value-added estimates to assess the distribution of effective teaching across students of varying socioeconomic disadvantage. We use simulation methods to examine the extent to which different commonly used teacher-value added estimators accurately capture both the rank correlation between true and estimated teacher effects and the distribution of effective teaching across student characteristics in the presence of classroom composition effects. Varying the amount of teacher sorting by student characteristics, the withinteacher variability in classroom composition, and the amount of student learning decay, we compare aggregated residuals, teacher random effects, and teacher fixed effects …

The Association Between Elementary Teacher Licensure Test Scores And Student Growth In Mathematics: An Analysis Of Massachusetts Mtel And Mcas Tests, Life Legeros

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

This quasi-experimental value-added study provided evidence for the predictive validity of the Massachusetts MTEL General Curriculum Mathematics Subtest by finding an association between the licensure test results of 130 teachers and the growth of their 2640 grade 4 and 5 students. The study took advantage of a natural experiment that arose due to a policy change made by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) in response to the initial administration of a new highly rigorous math-specific licensure subtest for elementary and special education teachers in March, 2008. The emergency amendment allowed test takers to conditionally pass the …

Enhancing The Quality Of Teaching And Learning In Australian Schools : Submission To The Senate Inquiry On Teaching And Learning (Maximising Our Investment In Australian Schools), Geoff N. Masters

Prof Geoff Masters AO

International research identifies several steps that governments can take to enhance the quality of teaching and learning, and thus levels of student achievement and wellbeing, in primary and secondary schools. The steps are: 1. Restrict and raise the quality of student intakes to teacher education 2. Set and confirm the achievement of minimum standards for registration 3. Recognise and reward the development of specialist knowledge and skill

Teach For Australia Pathway: Evaluation Report Phase 3 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Teacher education

This report is the final of three reports of the evaluation of the Teach for Australia (TFA) Pathway, a pilot of an alternative approach to teacher education in Australia. The evaluation was undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) over the period 2010 to 2012. The basic design of the TFA Pathway is as follows: 1. High-achieving university graduates are recruited nationally. Applicants are subject to a rigorous recruitment process and are selected on the basis of qualities and skills suitable to the teaching profession, and the possession of a genuine desire to reduce educational disadvantage. 2. Selected …

Enhancing The Quality Of Teaching And Learning In Australian Schools : Submission To The Senate Inquiry On Teaching And Learning (Maximising Our Investment In Australian Schools), Geoff N. Masters

School and system improvement

International research identifies several steps that governments can take to enhance the quality of teaching and learning, and thus levels of student achievement and wellbeing, in primary and secondary schools. The steps are:

1. Restrict and raise the quality of student intakes to teacher education

2. Set and confirm the achievement of minimum standards for registration

3. Recognise and reward the development of specialist knowledge and skill

Evaluating The Impact Of The Beginning Teacher Induction Program On The Retention Rate Of Beginning Teachers, Adriane Lenette Watkins Mingo

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation examined the Beginning Teacher Induction Program of a rural school system in North Carolina. The effects of mentoring, induction sessions, administrative support, ongoing staff development, and other support offered at the system level to beginning teachers were carefully analyzed.

The researcher used eight themes based on the objectives of the school system's Beginning Teacher Support Program: improving beginning teachers' skills and performance; supporting teacher morale; communications; collegiality; building a sense of professionalism and positive attitude; facilitating a smooth transition into the first and second years of teaching; putting theory into practice; preventing teacher isolation; building self-reflection; and retaining …

Professional Certification: Promoting, Recognising And Rewarding Accomplished Teaching, Lawrence C. Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

This paper focuses on the challenge of developing a national system for recognising and rewarding accomplished teachers. What might be involved and how might this be achieved? It draws on the experience of several countries that have sought to reform teacher career structures and pay systems so that there is a closer alignment between career progression and developing expertise as a teacher. I understand that Brazil has been moving in this direction and I hope this paper will make a useful contribution to the debate here.

Assessing Teachers For Professional Certification: Achieving National Consistency, Lawrence C. Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

Teacher Effectiveness In Urban High Schools, Richard Buddin, Gema Zamarro

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

This research examines whether teacher licensure test scores and other teacher qualifications affect high school student achievement. The results are based on longitudinal student-level data from Los Angeles. The achievement analysis uses a value-added approach that adjusts for both student and teacher fixed effects. The results show little relationship between traditional measures of teacher quality (e.g., experience and education level) and student achievement in English Language Arts (ELA) or math. Similarly, teacher aptitude and subject-matter knowledge, as measured on state licensure tests, have no significant effects on student achievement. Achievement outcomes differ substantially from teacher to teacher, however, and the …

Teacher Qualifications And Middle School Student Achievement, Richard Buddin, Gema Zamarro

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

This research examines whether teacher licensure test scores and other teacher qualifications affect middle school student achievement. The results are based on longitudinal student-level data from Los Angeles. The achievement analysis uses a value-added approach that adjusts for both student and teacher fixed effects. The results show little relationship between traditional measures of teacher quality (e.g., experience and education level) and student achievement in reading or math. Similarly, licensure test scores in general aptitude, subject-matter knowledge, and reading pedagogy had no significant effects on student achievement. Teachers with elementary school credentials had slightly better success in the classroom than did …

Standards For Advanced Teaching : A Review Of National And International Developments, Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

This report provides a review of national and international developments in relation to advanced standards and certification processes for teaching. It also considers the implications of current research on teaching for the development of advanced teaching standards and related improvements in teaching and learning.

How Can Professional Standards Improve The Quality Of Teaching And Learning Science?, Lawrence Ingvarson, Anne Semple

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

After extensive national consultation the recent Review of Teaching and Teacher Education announced an agenda for action in its report 'Australia's Teachers: Australia's Future. One of its central themes was a call to revitalise the teaching profession. In this vein, the purpose of this paper is to provide a brief review of preliminary work at ACER, conducted in collaboration with the Australian Science Teachers' Association, to develop a standards-guided professional learning system that would lead to professional certification for highly accomplished teachers of science. This paper describes ASTA 's progress towards developing a system of certification, beginning with the development …

Training Great Teachers, Lawrence Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

Teacher education is high on the political agenda in Australia, with several government inquiries on the topic currently underway. These inquiries reflect, in part, dissatisfaction among many school principals with the preparedness of graduates. Dr Lawrence Ingvarson asks how well new teachers feel they have been prepared for their vital role.

Evaluating Australian Teachers, Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

ACER researchers Lawrence Ingvarson and Elizabeth Kleinhenz have investigated current Australian policies and practices in teacher evaluation and their relation to the improvement of teaching and learning.

Strengthening The Profession? A Comparison Of Recent Reforms In The Uk And The Usa, Lawrence Ingvarson

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

Educational policy makers in many countries recognise the need to focus their policies more directly on factors affecting the quality of teachers. Common to these policies are attempts to reform teachers' pay systems and career paths to place greater value on teachers' work and give stronger incentives for professional development. Investing in effective modes of on going professional learning is regarded increasingly as one of the most effective means of improving student learning outcomes. This article examines two approaches to reforming the teaching profession, one from the UK, the other in the USA. In the case of the UK, the …

Conceptualising And Evaluating Teacher Quality: Substantive And Methodological Issues, Lawrence Ingvarson, Ken Rowe

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson (Consultant)

Whereas findings from recent research highlight the importance of teacher quality in improving students’ academic performances and experiences of schooling, substantive and methodological issues surrounding the conceptualisation and evaluation of teacher quality are not well- understood. Such deficiencies are particularly evident in claims for ‘findings’ derived from econometric research – especially from those studies that merely employ conceptualisations and proxy ‘measures’ of quality in terms of teachers’ qualifications, experience, and students’ academic outcomes. Moreover, the econometric models fitted to the available, mostly aggregated data, typically fail to conceptualise and ‘measure’ teacher quality in terms of what teachers should know (subject-matter …