Performance appraisal and review

The education performance of institutions, teachers and learners in many countries has been increasingly significant as economic prosperity has been perceived to be closely linked with the quality of an educated and skilled workforce. Brown and Lauder (1996, p.23) state that ‘the increasing importance attached to education in the global economy is not misplaced in the sense that nations will increasingly have to define the wealth of nations in terms of the quality resources among the population.

It is the process by which organizationevaluate employee job performance.

It is a process that involves determining andcommunicating to an employee how he orshe is performing the job and ideallyestablishing a plan of improvement.

It is a systematic and objective way ofevaluating both work-related behaviour andpotential of employees.

It can be argued that it is managers’

and employees’ perceptions of the real

purpose of the managing and appraisal

of performance that may dictate how

effective it actually is.

The evidence from leadership and management of people in organizations leads us to believe that, to work effectively, employees need:

To know what it is they have to do

To receive help, support, advice etc when they need it

To get regular feedback on how they are performing

To receive recognition for what they have done.

Given frequent peer observation and joint preparation, Chinese teachers are well informed about the teaching quality of their colleagues in the whole school and able to make comments on colleagues’ teaching style, subject knowledge level, capacity for managing class discipline, strength and weakness in teaching and reputation among students. As a result of this familiarity, teachers are evaluated by a committee of their peers as well as by the principal (Washington 1991). This process is frequent and iterative rather than occasional and ‘top-down’.

Performance management helps schools to improve by supporting and improving the work of head teachers as individuals and leaders of school teams. It sets a framework for teachers and leaders to agree and review priorities and objectives in the context of the school’s improvement plan. It focuses attention on making teaching and leadership more effective to benefit pupils, teachers, and schools.’

Performance management supports: schools to improve by supporting and

improving the work of practitioners as individuals and in teams

teachers to meet the needs of learners and raise standards.

Performance management demonstrates the school’s

commitment to: develop all practitioners effectively ensure job satisfaction high levels of expertise the progression of practitioners in their chosen

profession.

Reviewing PlanningSelf-reflection Appraiser Self-analysis

Review meeting and Strategic analysis

Appraisal statement Appraisee Setting objectives

Agreeing continuous

professional development (CPD)

Monitoring

Informal in-year reviews

Teaching observation

Other agreed sources ofevidence appropriate to

the teacher’s role

Key partners

Governing body/relevant body.

Headteacher.

Appraiser(s).

Appraisee.

Local authority.

Welsh Government.

The process of evaluating how

well employees perform their

jobs and then communicating

that information to the

employees.

Processes used to identify,

encourage, measure, evaluate,

improve, and reward

employee performance.

clear – offering no possibility of ambiguity or confusion about the intended outcome

concise – using as few words as possible to convey the intention

measurable – expressed in such a way that criteria can be agreed which will demonstrate whether or not the objective has been achieved

challenging – sufficiently challenging, taking into account the circumstances of the school, to bring about significant improvement

developmental – supporting the improvement of the school and the appraisee.

Serious concerns exist, however, about the narrowness of this kind of model, reflecting as it apparently does a particular view of education. The language of those proposing effective implementation of the scheme in England and Wales is revealing. Hobby (2001,.p.79), a member of the group that researched and proposed much of the scheme suggests that success depends upon as first priority, ‘a rigorous understanding of the link between their (teachers) behaviour and their objectives. If I do X then Y will occur’ and then he advises teachers to : ’Input the two or three main priorities identified by the feedback into objective setting for performance management’.

Difficulty of measuring outcomes

The issue of rewards

If the reservations put forward so far in this chapter appear unduly negative, this is because the schemes described are either.

Imposed in a top-down way with little ownership by the staff affected or

Transferred from one setting to another which, as Long (1986,p.62) warned after studying over 300 performance appraisal systems, ‘rarely function satisfactorily.

The failure is due …. To cultural differences’.

Whatever the scheme, leaders and

managers need to address issues and

manage them in the way most

appropriate to their school or college.

The issues here are:

What data should be collected?

From what sources should it be

collected?

How should it be collected?

A. In what way does the performance management process:• support the vision of the school?

• contribute to improving the attainment and welfare of learners?

• assist in the professional development of all staff?• establish an atmosphere of trust between the teacher and

their appraiser, which allows for rigorous evaluation of strengths and identification of areas for development?

• encourage the sharing of good practice?

• underpin the overall approach of leading and managing the school?

• meet the revised statutory regulations?

B. How is performance management embedded in theimprovement processes of the school?

C. Are there any aspects that could be improved?

‘Performance management focuses

attention on making teaching and

leadership more effective to benefit

pupils, teachers and schools.’Performance management for teachers

(Welsh Government, 2012)