Organized Chaos: A Qualitative Case Study of the Initiative to Measure Teacher Effectiveness in Tennessee

• In Event: Experiences in Teacher Evaluation Systems

Abstract

This paper is a qualitative case study exploring the perceptions of state legislators and school district superintendents regarding the implications of accountability measures developed from Tennessee’s Race to the Top grant. Research is based on an in-depth analysis of data collected during one-on-one oral interviews in 2012 with four school district superintendents and four state legislators about their roles in the development and implementation phases of the First to the Top initiative, specifically the teacher evaluation measures. Through the lens of policy feedback, this paper seeks to understand the simultaneous development and implementation of teacher effectiveness measures on subsequent educational reforms through the eyes of the legislators and school district superintendents.

Author

• Abigail Braddock, The University of Memphis