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theses

Background:On August 6, 2012, the TEACH NJ Act (Teacher Effectiveness and Accountability for the Children of New Jersey) was signed into law, defining requirements for more rigorous evaluation systems (http://www.nj.gov/education/AchieveNJ/). With these changes to the evaluation process, Finnegan (2013) questioned whether teachers’ perceptions of their efficacy had changed significantly and how evaluations build or deflate teacher self-efficacy. A major attribute of effective teaching is a teacher’s sense of self-efficacy, which is a teacher’s belief in their abilities to organize and execute courses of action necessary to bring about desired results (Tschannen-Moran, Woolfolk-Hoy & Hoy, 1998). To increase teaching self-efficacy, the focus should be on enhancing teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs. The evaluation system could provide a vehicle for improved and more closely aligned staff development that could enhance teacher self-efficacy (Finnegan, 2013). Further, increased efficacy may lead to a stronger sense of teacher effectiveness.

Research Question:The purpose of this phenomenological comparative case study was to examine how teachers perceive their sense of efficacy and how it relates to their effectiveness, based on their experience with their mandated evaluation process.
Guiding questions:
1.What do teachers believe to be the relationship between the evaluation process, their sense of teacher efficacy and their teacher effectiveness?
Sub-Questions:
•How do teachers define teacher efficacy?
•How do teachers define effectiveness?
•How do teachers perceive their personal efficacy and their teacher effectiveness based on the evaluation process?

Methods:Using a qualitative comparative phenomenological case study approach (Creswell, 2007), this study explored how teachers perceived their own efficacy in relation to the evaluation process. Two school districts using identical evaluation models were engaged.
Participants were selected in consultation with school principals from each site. Data collection methods included semi-structured interviews, with questions relative to the evaluation model, school culture, district culture and students’ socioeconomic status. In keeping with the qualitative method of case study, in which analysis consists of making a detailed description of the case and its setting (Creswell, 2007), a robust description of the settings of the study was provided.
Findings:This study was noteworthy because the results indicate that teacher efficacy is not affected by the current evaluation process. All teachers had a strong sense of teacher efficacy and teacher effectiveness. While the current evaluation process is more rigorous, and teachers mostly had a negative perception of the current evaluation process, teachers did not feel less efficacious or less effective. Further, negative school and district cultures did not affect teacher efficacy, but low socioeconomic status of students did have some impact on teacher efficacy. Finally, feedback and self-reflection were important aspects of the evaluation process that may positively impact teacher efficacy.

Significance:Using various measures to investigate the purpose of evaluation, the evaluation process and efficacy; discovering what teachers deem important aspects of the process, and if their sense of efficacy is affected by the process, should be revealed. Further, the participating school districts, as well as other school districts, may consider innovative ways to improve the evaluation process, and communicating with teachers, who may question their effectiveness.

ETD_9198

Ed.D.

Includes bibliographical references

by Keri C. Orange

doi:10.7282/T3B27ZWS

ETD doctoral

The author owns the copyright to this work.