Performance appraisal: Teacher efficacy, effectiveness and its relationship to student outcomes

This session reports on some of the key literature connected to the performance appraisal processes in place for teachers, including aspects and outcomes. It points to the need to better understand how these processes and associated aspects are connected to bigger ideas. Enhancing student achievement and providing a quality educational experience for all students has long been the most important outcome of schools.  With evidence suggesting that "teacher quality is the single most important school variable influencing student achievement" (OECD, 2005, p.26), the important role teaching and teachers play in enhancing student achievement is recognised.  Arguing that "teacher appraisal can be a key lever for increasing the focus on teaching quality" (OECD, 2013b, p.9) and that many reforms in the past have failed (Kleinhenz & Ingvarson, 2004), understanding the aspects of performance appraisal that are successful is essential.  The literature has started to indicate that a number of factors support the development of an effective performance and development system. This paper will provide a narrative of these factors, and signal some of the components within the appraisal process and their impact on teacher practice, efficacy and student learning outcomes. This paper highlights the importance of an enhanced understanding of performance appraisal as a discursive approach to building teaching quality, and flags elements that need research to better understand the implications of performance appraisal.