Examining Multiple Perspectives on What Counts in Preservice and In-Service Teacher Observation

• In Event: Roundtable Session 18
  In Roundtable Session: Designing and Using Assessment Tools for Preservice Teacher Education

Abstract

A plethora of frameworks for observing teaching has emerged in preservice and inservice contexts with several becoming part of high-stakes teacher evaluation systems. Yet we know little about how these frameworks compare to each other or which practices they promote. In this collaborative research project among eight teacher preparation programs, we explored two statewide instructional frameworks to determine (a) if there were common indicators of effective teaching, and (b) to what degree these essential practices were emphasized during evaluation. Our findings suggested that alignment between frameworks needs to be more systematically scrutinized and that frameworks chosen for consequential evaluation purposes may emphasize the easiest practices to observe rather than the practices that are most important.

Authors

• Debra K. Meyer, Elmhurst College

• Lisa Burke, Elmhurst College

• Jan C. Fitzsimmons, North Central College