Appraisal: valuing difference, fostering self-responsibility

Chris Thornley, New Zealand Teachers Council Kerry Mitchell, The Education Group

Workshop One: Situating appraisal in the New Zealand context

An international picture: what’s missing?

• • TALIS findings (2009) from secondary schools in 20 OECD countries indicate that: 44% of teachers viewed their appraisal as fulfilling administrative purposes only In a number of countries using appraisal and feedback to establish a development plan is less common than simply reporting the outcomes to the teacher

Evaluation

An international picture: stronger processes

• Teachers reported that appraisal and feedback contributed to their development and had a strong positive influence on them and their work • Teachers rated their knowledge and understanding of their subjects and related pedagogy as moderate to high importance in the feedback they receive • Strengthening systems of appraisal relied on improving links between school evaluations, teachers’ appraisal, goal setting, feedback, professional learning and development

An international response

• Grattan Institute in Australia has developed ‘a new system of appraisal and feedback’ for use in schools • Some jurisdictions in the USA implement a summative approach where teachers are appraised using rubrics • In Finland appraisal is characterised by the high level of confidence placed in schools and teachers as professionals.

Since 2007

Since 2007, the practice of New Zealand teachers has been considered against a set of standards developed by their professional body with input from the profession. High trust models for appraisal have been preferred: • • The Graduating Teacher Standards The Registered Teacher Criteria

Evaluation

Cultural locatedness and identity

Cultural competencies: Ako: practice in the classroom and beyond Whanaungatanga: relationships Tangata whenuatanga: socio-cultural awareness Manaakitanga: values, integrity Wānanga: communication Mārama –graduating teachers Mōhio-knowing how to affirm Māori and iwi culture Mātau: being able to lead and engage others in affirming

Teachers’ positioning toward an innovation

The degree to which teachers perceive that any innovation reflects their identity impacts on the likelihood that they will take on and drive the innovation Teacher agency and ownership work positively together when teachers make sense of the innovation and identify with it

Evaluation

Fostering a self-responsibility

Goals, roles and responsibilities Scaffold the change-move slowly Consult at each stage Value contributions, build ownership

70/20/10 rule

• (70) Informal learning – on the job (challenging tasks) • (20) Social learning - (relationships and networks) • (10) Formal What are the professional learning and development opportunities that occur at your school?

Appraisal of Teachers Project

New Zealand Teachers Council Early childhood education and schooling in English and Māori medium settings 18 month pld of workshops and webinars and independent inquiry 17 locations nationally

Bringing all the pieces together-

The profession The system Discipline: subject areas Professional leaders Professional teachers Students

The system

Making the links

Strategic direction Inquiry into practice (Professional teachers and professional leaders) Appraisal Professional learning opportunities

Twelve core elements of Employee Engagement

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

They need to know what is expected Have the necessary materials and equipment Have the opportunity to use their talents everyday Receive recognition for accomplishment Feel someone in the organisation cares at a personal level Know that personal development is encouraged (Buckingham and Coffman)

Twelve core elements of Employee Engagement

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

Feel their opinions count Feel their work is important to the organisation’s mission Have co-workers committed to doing quality work Have good relationships with colleagues at work Have talked to the leaders regularly about their progress Have opportunity to learn and grow.

(Buckingham and Coffman)

Your experience

Think about an appraisal that had a positive effect on your practice as a teacher Describe the process to your partner and what made it successful Now repeat for an appraisal that had either no effect or a negative effect on your performance

Workshop Two: A Framework for appraisal

•Trust •Valid

information

•Commitment

to action Conceptual Framework for Appraisal

Ako

o

Open to learning conversations Evaluative Capability

Wānanga

Performance Management Responsibility

•Inquiry into

practice

Whanaungatanga Ako

•Alignment •Professional

growth

•Self •Joint/shared

Tangata whenuatanga Manaakitanga Ako

Performance

Processes that develop, strengthen and make best use of staff skills, knowledge, training and talent in ways that maximise learning outcomes for students: • Staff appointments • • Induction Professional/staff development • • Appraisal Career support • Competence and discipline processes • Code of ethics

Coherent performance management for performance growth: appraisal and attestation

A coherent Approach

Performance

Attestation Registration Salary review Competence Conduct/ discipline Making the links Appraisal for Learning Criteria and exemplars of effective practice aligned to RTCs and Tātaiako Exemplars of effective practice Evidence of actual practice against agreed criteria of effective practice Developmental goals based on outcomes for learners Self and peer evaluation Observation Professional learning opportunities Teaching as inquiry Career pathways

Open to learning disposition

It’s about a recognition that we are all learners and learning takes place when there are high levels of: • • • • • Trust Respect Inquiry Conversation Action

Key values in open to learning conversations Open to Learning

What makes these conversations tough?

Open to Learning

How do people typically deal with this?

Open to Learning

How do people typically deal with this?

Open to Learning

Self-responsibility Joint responsibility

Professional Teacher responsibility Professional Leader responsibility

Joint responsibility

Self-responsibility Joint responsibility looks like…

Shared understanding

Clarity about criteria for desired practice

What actual practice looks like

Co-construction of descriptions of practice and agreement about what that practice demonstrates

Disposition towards examining and improving practice

Active learners taking responsibility for improving teaching and learning and demonstrating commitment to improvement.

The evaluative (appraisal ) process

1. Describe what ‘good’ looks like 2. Develop indicators, exemplars, illustrations, rubrics, to shape a full understanding 3. Ask the evaluative question: How well does my practice meet each of the RTC and overall?

Evaluation

The evaluative (appraisal ) process

4. Determine the sources of evidence I might collect that can be used to answer this question 5. Use suitable processes to gather the evidence 6. With my professional leader, use the evidence to examine my practice 7. Answer the question by reaching a reasoned conclusion

Evaluation

i.

Jane’s Story http://tekotahitanga.tki.org.nz/Videos/Teacher-stories/Jane-s-story

• Overall evaluative judgements/statements • Key strengths • Next steps/concerns • Support to be provided

Performance Management

• Re-registration ( every 3 years) • Attestation (annual for pay progession) • Appraisal (annual for growth and development)

Appraisal Discussions

• Interpreting evidence • Affirmation • Feedback • Next steps

Evidence Collected (learning portfolio)

• Teaching as Inquiry • Observations /feedback • Evidence of learning • Student voice • Contribution to wider school - feedback from other staff

Process:

• Criteria established • Goal setting • Indicators of success identified • Timeframes and actions identified • Support to be provided

Botany

Botany Downs School

Registered Teacher Criteria

Workshop Three Evaluation

Analysing evidence

sources

Evaluation RTC & Tātaiako

presentation perspectives

Evaluation

Analysing the evidence

How does this meet the RTC/Tataiako?

Reflection: What does this mean for next steps teaching and learning?

Identification: What stands out? Where are the patterns? For me, my group of akonga and individual akonga/priority learners?

From everyday practice: What is available as evidence?

Backward mapping to the RTC

From big to small-starting with teaching and learning From small to big-understanding the criteria From small to big-identifying next steps and goals

Registered Teacher Criteria

Scenarios

Scenario One – Appraisal conversations at SGHS http://www.teacherscouncil.govt.nz/content/professional leaders-employers Scenario Three – Kelvin’s story

Website links

http://www.teacherscouncil.govt.nz/content/professional leaders-employers www.educationgroup.co.nz

Reference List

Refer handout for resources, links articles and research reports