ERIC ED370092: Improving Administrative Performance through Teacher Evaluation.

18 Pages·1993·0.2 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
CS 011 715
ED 370 092
Sanacore, Joseph
AUTHOR
Teacher
Improving Administrative Performance through
TITLE
Evaluation.
PUB DATE
[93]
NOTE
18p.
etc.)
Viewpoints (Opinion/Position Papers, Essays,
PUB TYPE
Tests/Evaluation Instruments (160)
(120)
MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.
EDRS PRICE
Administrator Effectiveness; *Administrator
DESCRIPTORS
Methods;
Evaluation; Elementary Education; Evaluation
*Feedback; *Principals; *Reading Instruction; Reading
Programs; School Administration; *Teacher
Administrator Relationship; *Teacher Attitudes
*Professional Concerns; Reading Management
IDENTIFIERS
ABSTRACT
To help principals improve as reading leaders,
Although informal
teachers should first provide them with feedback.
teachers' formal feedback
comments are important to administrators,
evaluation
in a survey or questionnaire helps to objectify the
with a more complete picture.
process and to provide principals
attention
Specifically, teachers can call to administrators'
reading leadership, and
strengths and weaknesses that affect their
enhancing their
This type of feedback increases the chances of
with teachers. A
performance and also improving their relationship
specific efforts
review of the professional literature suggests that
almost nonexistent.
to have teachers evaluate reading leaders are
implementing such an
Teachers and principals who are interested in
council;
(2)
evaluation might: (1) form a language arts advisory
(3) review the
develop a rationale for evaluating reading leaders;
establish
professional literature; (4) use related literature to
(5) develop a survey to determine the degree to which the
goals;
to
reading leadership goals are attained; (6) distribute the survey
in a way that assures
the entire faculty; and (7) tabulate results
reading leaders
confidentiality. (A survey for teacher evaluation of
is attached.) (RS)
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Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made
from the original document.
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Improving Administrative Performance through Teacher Evaluation
Dr. Joseph Sanacore
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Education& Research and Improvement
"PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS
EDU ATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION
MATEMAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
CENTER (ERIC)
document has been reproduced as
The
received from the person Of organization
originating it
r Minor changes have been made to improve
reproduction quahty
Points of view or opinionS Stated in thiS doCu-
ment do not neCessanly represent official
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
OERI position or pohcy
INFORMATION CENTER (ERLCL.2.-___
C-1
leaders
Building principals and others serving as reading
students' growth in reading and
can have a major impact on our
The substance, humanism, and style they bring to daily
writing.
decision-making can mean the difference between productive or
To help principals improve
mediocre language arts outcomes.
provide them with feedback.
as reading leaders, we should first
Although our informal comments are important to administrators,
questionnaire
our formal feedback in the form of a survey or
helps to objectify the evaluation process and to provide
Specifically, we can
principals with a more complete picture.
call to their attention strengths and weaknesses that affect
increases
their reading leadership, and this type of feedback
the chances of enhancing their performance and also improving
their relationship with teachers.
What examples are available?
Regrettably, my review of the professional literature
suggests that specific efforts to have teachers evaluate reading
hQkzevr,baoka, articles, and
Ieade-rs-a-r-e_almost_ nonexistent
instruments concerning general aspects of evaluating
Poi example, in
administrative r/..xformance are available.
',-
Performance AR)raisal of School Management (Lancaster, PA:
Technomic, 19)2), Donald Langlois and Richard McAdams focus
A necessary
on the importance of evaluating the leadership team.
but controversial part of this process is for teachers to
Not surprisingly, although about
evaluate their principals.
3
86 percent of our school systems have formal approaches for
evaluating administrators, only 14 percent permit teachers to
evaluate their principals.
Of the procedures that do exist, Allan Vann, a building
administrator, uses a principal's report card as a source of
Writing in the March 1989
formal feedback from his teachers.
issue of the journal Principal, Vann describes his report card
which consists of (1) factors and qualities of effective schools,
including being knowledgeable about and supporting the
curriculum, (2) personal characteristics like fairness, honesty,
and dedication, (3) specific programs, policies, and practices,
such as placing professional literature in the faculty room,
and (4) comments about how to handle controversial issues,
including formally observing classroom performance for up to
After analyzing the results, Vann responds personally
3 hours.
to teachers who sign their names on the report card, posts the
results in the faculty room, and discusses the results at faculty
meetings.
A more comprehensive approach involving districtwide efforts
is described-irith-dUanuary-1-991 dourna/ of School Leaderslip.
Coauthors W. Richard Garrett and Jack Flanigan discuss the
principal evaluation model which fulfills both a local need
and a state mandate of South Carolina's Education Improvement
to improve
Act. The purpose of this approach is twofold:
The
instruction and to reward high performing principals.
process involves a school needs assessment survey, a school
gain index, a portfolio documenting the principal's
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accomplishments, and an individual school innovation component.
Within this context, teachers, parents, and central office
administrators evaluate the performance of building principals
student
while focusing on such criteria as leadership;
staff selection, evaluation, and
development and achievement;
school/community
interpersonal competence;
development;
and personal/professional
school climate;
relations;
Each criterion is represented by several
development.
for example, leadership includes "involves all
descriptors;
audiences in problem solving" and interpersonal competence
includes "recognizes and manages conflict."
Evaluating reading leadership
These efforts certainly help us realize the diverse roles
however, they
effective principals are expected to perform;
do not increase our awareness of how principals improve reading
My criticism is not meant to lessen the importance
programs.
of global aspects of leadership but rather to complement
principals' perspective with a sensitivity to reading and the
This position is necessary because a
other language arts.
communications-oriented school supports success across the
curriculum.
Unfortunately, the only professional literature I could
find concerning teacher evaluation of reading leadership is
an article I wrote in the January 1977 Journal of Reading.
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(N.Y.) school district's
Island
This article focuses on a Long
teachers
by having
efforts to upgrade its reading programs
as
in such areas
evaluate their principals' effectiveness
development, program
administration and supervision, staff
relationship with staff, and
concerns, individualization,
Efforts of this type are worth
relationship with community.
administrators with feedback
considering because they provide
in the reading program.
concerning their leadership performance
interested in implementing
Teachers and principals who are
following strategies:
this innovation might focus on the
council consisting of
Form a language arts advisory
Parents may be invited to present
administrators and teachers.
however, they should
their concerns and to offer their support;
be privy to the
immediately be made aware that they will not
results of the evaluation.
Included
leaders.
Develop a rationale for evaluating reading
helped us improve our
is a perspective that evaluation has
drive
-performance-in-the-clasasroom-and that_common sense should
supports similar improvement in reading
us to a process that
shared decision-
In addition, today's thrust toward
leadership.
is another reason
making, a dominant force in U.S. education,
Furthermore,
for seriously considering mutual evaluation.
reading leaders can
realizing the positive or negative impact
knowing teachers are
have on the instructional program and
impact provide us with
in the best position to observe this
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the impetus to carry out this innovation.
important
Review the professional literature to determine
reading field.
aspects of leadership that are linked to the
support their children's
For example, motivating parents to
sessions to
reading efforts and organizing staff development
curriculum are recognized
promote reading and writing across the
qualities of reading leaders.
the
Use the related literature to establish goals. Among
from our
forces that should be driving us are insights gained
These insights have practical value if
professional reading.
district's philosophy of education
we apply them to our school
and if this blending results in the development of reading
Thusrpart of the philosophy is likely to
leadership goals.
potential
state a commitment to helping all students reach their
Although this statement is
as readers and writers.
general--typical of most school philosophies--it can be
The
structured as one of several reading leadership goals:
principal will guide classroom teachers to incorporate the
teaching of reading and writing into their content areas.
Develop a survey to determine the degree to which the reading
This task is specific and
attained.
leadership goals are
time-consuming, but the outcomes are rewarding. Our roles include
reviewing each goal carefully, writing survey items that relate
directly to each goal, and revising the instrument several times.
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To provide for validation, we can ask teachers and administrators
We also may
to make constructive comments about the survey.
send the instrument to noted authorities on reading leadership,
Our
such as Sidney Rauch, and ask them for critical feedback.
next role is to consider these responses as we revise the survey
Then, we can randomly select teachers to use it on a
again.
pilot basis.
Distribute the survey to the entire faculty with an
accompanying letter, reviewing its purposes and providing
In the March 1986 issue of
directions for completing it.
Executive Educator, Langlois reminds us that this process works
His advice to principals
effectively at a'faculty meeting.
is to tell teachers that the results of the survey will be used
to open communication, enhance leadership performance, and
improve awareness of staff needs. Principals also are advised
to leave the faculty room while the forms are being completed
and to have a reliable teacher collect the completed forms.
is an example of an instrument teachers can use for
Figure 1
This survey goes not consider
evaluating their reading leaders.
all aspects of reading-related matters; instead, it focuses
Practitioners should consider
on important leadership qualities.
changing the categories and the list of items that represents
them, but these modifications should be based on local needs
and wants.
Tabulate results in a way that assures confidentiality.
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We are more likely to maintain credibility in how we handle
process if principals have options, such as tabulating
the
the results themselves or having the language arts advisory
We also can make this process a
do the tabulation.
council
rewarding one by respecting the principals' way of handling
For example, they may review the findings in
the findings.
the privacy of their office, discuss them at a faculty meeting,
or post them in the faculty lounge. Regardless of the approach
taken, most principals who are working with reasonable faculties
will value the feedback and use it to improve reading leadership
performance.
Our Mission in retrospect
Teacher evaluation of reading leadership is an important
It can help principals improve their performance in
process.
literacy education, and this energy can lead to positive effects
Our chances of successfully implementing
across the curriculum.
this innovation are increased when we form a language arts
advisory council and cooperatively enjoy worthwhile activities.
These include developing a rationale, reviewing the professional
Afterward, we can
literature, and establishing related goals.
develop and administer a survey to determine the effectiveness
Finally, tabulating the results with
of our reading leaders.
confidentiality and respecting the administrastors' way of
handling the findings provide further support for our mission
of improving reading leadership and its impact on students'
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literacy learning.
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