The Changing Face of Teacher Evaluation: Teacher Perceptions of One Policy Implementation

The call for teacher improvement has recently moved into the realm of policy with the implementation of Race to the Top. RTTT challenged states to raise the bar of teacher effectiveness through the implementation of more rigorous evaluation procedures, which are tied in part to student achievement. Tennessee was one of the first states to implement this type of teacher evaluation policy. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine teacher perception and to explore the role of the teacher in policy implementation and the relationship to instructional decision making in the classroom. Results point to the complexity of instructional change and the pivotal role of the administrator in facilitating that change