The Evaluation of Teaching Performance

Evaluation of teaching Is a key concern of educational administration. In Victoria, Australia, inspectors are required to carry out assessments of teaching performance hut no written guide or checklist is provided. This study seeks to identify by means of two instruments, a critical incident paper and an evaluation record designed to highlight Mitzel's Product, Process and Presage criteria, the criteria used by Victorian inspectors in evaluating teacher performance. It was found that inspectors stressed Process criteria when recommending promotion in teaching positions and Presage criteria when recommending selection for administrative positions. Little emphasis was placed on Product criteria. Inspectors' judgments of teachers were found to be based largely on their own individual “image” of good teachers. On the basis of this study it seems that a guide could be developed to assist inspectors in reaching agreement on basic criteria for promotion of teachers.