The purpose of this study is to describe principals’ perceptions and experiences with the teacher evaluation system within Tippecanoe County, Indiana (Part A) and throughout the state of Indiana (Part B) relative to the evaluation of physical education (PE) teachers.
The primary research questions are:
- How do principals perceive the state mandated teacher evaluation system relative to PE?
- How do principals evaluate PE teachers?
- How do principals perceive student learning data in the evaluation of PE teachers?
In 2012, the Indiana Department of Education implemented a new teacher evaluation. Unlike academic subjects, the criteria for evaluation of PE teachers are not well defined, vary from school to school, and involve much subjectivity on behalf of the evaluators. Principals are finding it difficult to carry out all the expected formative and summative visits, while teachers claim to be unclear about the expectations and criteria for evaluation.
A mixed method design will be used for this study. Data collection started in Fall 2014 and will continue until Fall 2015. Quantitative data will be collected using a survey administered through Qualtrics. Qualitative data will be gathered through semi-structured interviews administered to a sample of 20 principals from across the State and researcher field notes. Quantitative data will be used to correlate variables such as experience, gender, age, number, and duration of visits, to different aspects of the teacher evaluation process. Axial coding and constant comparison will be used to categorize, explain, and interpret the emerging patterns supported by theories and available literature.
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