All but two of the states are in the process of implementing some form of mandatory teacher testing, if they have not already done so. However, the limitations of state procedures, i.e., different standards, approaches, and requirements, combined with significant improvement in evaluation techniques, have led to the call for a system of national…

Literature on evaluating the communication skills of teachers is briefly reviewed in this paper. Topics under consideration include how different states evaluate communication, how communication should be evaluated, whether or not state assessments reflect current research on teacher assessment, and how useful is the attempt to assess…

Although Total Quality Management (TQM) has been adopted at a number of community colleges in the areas of financial aid, admissions and registration, and staff performance, its use is almost non-existent in the evaluation of classroom teaching. Barriers to its application to the classroom include faculty resistance to the idea of students as…

Classroom observation and evaluation of teachers by supervisors or principals is a delicate process. Most teachers would welcome feedback from their supervisors about improving teaching, but they rarely receive it. Many times the role of the principal is unclear in the observation process. Standardized observation formats sometimes fail to…

Characteristics of effective teacher evaluations are reviewed, and some common teacher concerns are discussed. A teacher evaluation system should give teachers useful feedback on classroom needs, the opportunity to learn new teaching techniques, and counsel from principals and other teachers on how to make changes in their classrooms. Standards…

The public views teacher evaluation as a major problem in the school system today. State legislatures, aware of the concern, want to mandate more effective evaluation. Common methods for evaluating teachers have been ineffective, such as measurement tests of teacher characteristics, student achievement test scores, and rating of teachers'…

The project described in this digest was designed with the belief that teacher professional growth can best be fostered through sustained collaborative inquiry between teachers and researchers. It set out to incorporate what is known about quality professional development with the special features necessary for meeting the needs of English…

Principals and teachers are becoming frustrated with conventional evaluation practices typically used to determine teacher effectiveness and, thus, tenure and promotion. This Digest explains that as new performance standards are being developed, there are reconfigured assessment designs requiring an array of reflective, analytic skills. Creation…

One method for assessing teacher performance is the teacher portfolio. This is a collection of work produced by a teacher to highlight and demonstrate his or her knowledge and skills in teaching. A portfolio also provides a means for reflection and an opportunity to critique one's own work and evaluate one's own effectiveness as a teacher. Rather…

This digest summarizes a longer document with the same title that discusses the problem of using, training, and assessing international teaching assistants (ITAs) in undergraduate education. Legislative mandates have appeared to assess and improve language and pedagogical skills of ITAs, and academies have likewise responded with workshops and…