Setting Opportunity-to-Learn Standards for Effective Teaching

• In Event: 31.036 - Evaluation of Teaching: Possibilities and Challenges

Abstract

The goal of the study was to investigate the relative importance that teachers place on five opportunity-to-learn (OTL) indices when making judgments of OTL effectiveness. An iterative judgmental policy-capturing process (Jaeger, 1995a) was used to determine these weights. Specifically, panelists were asked to consider time on instruction, content coverage, engagement of higher-order cognitive processes, use of research-based instructional practices, and effective grouping formats when placing teachers into one of four performance categories (ineffective, partially effective, effective, highly effective). Results suggested that panelists consider instructional time and content coverage to be of much greater importance relative to the remaining three categories. These results provide guidance on the planning of effective teacher professional development for improving students’ opportunity-to-learn.

Authors

• Ray E. Reichenberg, Arizona State University

• Nedim Yel, Arizona State University

• Alexander Kurz, Arizona State University