Effective teachers and effective teaching: Subject matter, classroom practices and teacher value-added measure
Julie Cohen
About the research
Award
NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship
Award Year
2012
Institution
Stanford University
Primary Discipline
Teacher Education/Teaching and Learning
Current policies stress identifying effective teachers, but we know little about whether good teaching looks the same and has similar relationships with student achievement across academic subjects. This study analyzes whether one observation tool can reliably assess the quality of teaching practices across content areas, and whether several practices have similar relationships with achievement gains in mathematics and English language arts (ELA). For each of 122 4th grade teachers, six lessons (three in both math and ELA) are scored with a reliable observation tool. Using regressions, I analyze the relationship between scores on teaching practices and achievement gains. Case studies of 15 teachers help explain patterns in the analyses by demonstrating how content shapes practices. Understanding and mapping of effective teaching practices across content areas is crucial to improving the quality and precision of elementary teacher evaluation, preparation, and professional development.
About Julie Cohen
N/A