Principals’ informal methods for appraising poor-performing teachers

Abstract

Teacher appraisal is never an easy task, especially of teachers experiencing difficulties and failures. Nevertheless it is a requirement for good management, in our schools no less than our corporations. Forty elementary school principals in Israel described the informal methods they use to appraise teachers who are performing poorly. Most considered traits such as sensitivity to children and their needs as well as motivation, rather than professional standards or pupil achievement, as the main criteria in judging poor or outstanding teaching. Due to the sensitive nature of the issue, and the desire to avoid misjudgment and painful conflict, the principals took several precautions: they used several different formal and informal methods of appraisal; they relied on various information sources and sometimes they preferred to delay drawing final conclusions until a crisis or external complaint occurred. The discussion situates the current findings with other research on the obstacles to identifying, evaluating and providing feed back to poor-performing teachers.

Principals' Perceived Supervisory Behaviors Regarding Marginal Teachers in Two States

“…Additionally, the study sought to determine what supervisory methods were most useful in providing assistance to the marginal teacher. Similar to other studies by Ikemoto, Taliaferro, and Adams (2012) and Yariv (2004Yariv ( , 2009, male and female principals in this study relied on informal supervisory methods to diagnose marginal teaching. These informal techniques included classroom walkthroughs and informal classroom observations.…”

“…With the exception of the female principals in the Rocky Mountain State, all other principal groups ranked informal classroom observation in second place. The findings are important to note because both classroom walkthroughs and informal classroom observations allow principals to evaluate teachers' instruction on a more routine basis, thus painting a clearer picture of teacher effectiveness (Marshal, 2005(Marshal, , 2012bYariv, 2009). This also allows principals to observe teacher practice in a natural, unplanned fashion as opposed to formal classroom observations in which teachers have prior knowledge they will be observed (Marshal, 2009(Marshal, , 2012aRange et al, 2011;Sather, 2009).…”

Assisting struggling teachers effectively

“…First, principals must be ready to work hard, assume responsibility and become directly involved. Such a decision requires courage and determination, and it contrasts with principals’ tendency to shy away from conflicts and threats, found in previous studies (Yariv, 2009; Bridges, 1992). The decision not to accept the current situation, even at the expense of difficult negotiations and emotional stress, is an essential first step to change the current situation.…”

The Interpersonal Challenges of Instructional Leadership

“…Principals commonly struggle to have effective conversations about staff performance issues and typically work around the issues rather than directly address them (Cardno, 2007; Pajak & Arrington, 2004; Yariv, 2009). Principals in the United Kingdom also identify dealing with weak teachers and resistance to change as ongoing challenges (Crow & Weindling, 2010).…”