Redefining teacher practice improvement: Development of the Teacher Practice Improvement Tool

This paper addresses the development of the Teacher Practice Improvement Tool (TPIT). Currently, ACER has a family of evidenced-based tools that support school and system improvement. This suite comprises the Education System Improvement Tool (ESIT), School Improvement Tool (SIT), and the Principal Performance Improvement Tool (PPIT). These tools are structured according to (1) domains or areas of practice, (2) characteristics, the observable measurable practices informed by research evidence, and (3) performance level descriptors, which outline increasingly effective practices for each domain. These tools aim to support structured self-evaluation, to improve practice at different levels of the system across diverse international contexts.

Notably absent from the current ACER improvement suite is a tool that addresses effective teacher practices. This is a critical gap because “Highly Effective Teaching” is a core element of effective learning systems (Masters, 2023), and vital to system transformation. Findings from decades of empirical research highlight that the teacher has the greatest impact on student engagement, learning, and achievement of all variables within a learning system (Darling-Hammond, 2000; Leithwood et al., 2020). Not surprisingly, a relentless focus on quality teaching is a priority for many systems internationally (Al Mekhlafi & Osman, 2019; NCEE, 2020). Given the compelling evidence on the impact of teacher practices “we need to pay attention to ways in which we can change practice as well as looking at what effective practice is” (Muijs et al., 2014, p. 231). However, a coherent evidence-based articulation of effective teaching practices is currently lacking.
The TPIT addresses this gap by being firmly grounded in research evidence. Adopting a systematic yet iterative design research methodology (McKenney & Reeves, 2012), the first stage involved reviewing literature to determine: “What do highly effective teachers do?” A review of 100 publications from diverse international contexts informed the inductive development and refinement of domains or areas of practice. This process resulted in five domains that holistically represent the nature of teachers’ work. For each domain, research evidence was examined to develop characteristics. These characteristics were iteratively refined, drawing on expert consultation. Next, performance levels were articulated and iteratively refined. Consultation and piloting with intended end users across international contexts were vital in ensuring international resonance.

The TPIT adds unique value to the existing landscape of teacher frameworks. Its core focus on teacher self-reflection enables ongoing growth of teacher practices holistically. This improvement focus sets the TPIT aside from existing accountability-oriented frameworks such as teacher standards or certification systems. A unique feature of the TPIT is the emphasis on teachers’ professional identity. Directly relevant to the conference theme, this feature recognises the distinctive relational aspects and complexity of teachers’ roles in improving student outcomes, and the need to negotiate these factors in a sustainable way. The TPIT intersects with ACER’s suite of improvement tools and will play an important role in enabling ACER to coherently support effective practices across all components of a learning system (Masters, 2023).

References
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