Paper
A SURVEY OF HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH TEACHERS IN THE PARK HILL SCHOOL DISTRICT ON PERCEPTIONS OF TEACHER AUTONOMY IN SCHOOLS
Published 2012 · A. Dale
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of teacher autonomy on student achievement levels in public education. The research includes findings that answer the questions, “Is teacher autonomy perceived differently between two high schools in the same district?” “Do prescribed programs work as a means to increase test scores?” The research was conducted using an anonymous survey done through the use of Google Docs and was given to both high school Communication Arts departments in the Park Hill School District in suburban Kansas City, Missouri.. The findings were analyzed by Chi-Square through Microsoft Excel and A Statistical Program (ASP) software. Findings indicate that there is a difference between the level of teacher autonomy between the two schools. Both schools, while high achieving, do vary in the performance level on state End of Course Exams for both 9 and 10 grade. Teacher Autonomy-3 INTRODUCTION Background Issues and Concerns: Educators are constantly trying to find their stride in teaching. One of the biggest areas of focus and debate amongst teachers and administrators is a feeling of autonomy from the administration for teachers to adequately, and by using their own resources, educate their students. This project will involve research and a survey of information to determine if teacher autonomy has a positive effect on student learning. Practice Under Investigation: This practice under investigation is the effect of teacher autonomy on student learning. School Policy to be Informed by Study: The school district in focus has two high schools with varying opinions and methods which support teaching autonomy. Each high school has roughly the same number of students with the same number of teachers. Each building also has 5 administrators to supervise its teachers. These high schools both serve students grades 912 with approximately 1600 students. Conceptual Underpinning: Both state and national governments implement mandated testing that districts are required to administer to their students. As standards for performance raise to even higher levels, schools are determining the best way to meet these goals. One such method has Teacher Autonomy-4 been to deprive teachers of autonomy and force them to a set curriculum and “teach to the test.” While this practice is usually looked down upon by teachers, some schools have seen results with a more set curriculum. Either way, standardized testing scores are effecting the level of teacher autonomy in the classroom. In theory, an increase in teacher autonomy would increase student achievement as a number of factors come into play. Teacher autonomy allows teachers to take ownership of their work and allows them to do what they do best: teach. In theory, if a teacher is consistently concerned with getting through a prescribed curriculum with materials which have been provided for them, it leaves them very little room to modify or make improvements in their teaching practices. Secondly, teacher burnout is becoming an increasing problem. And as the brightest crop of new teachers are graduating from universities and colleges, schools need to make an effort to make keep them in the profession. If they are being forced to teach a certain way, it gives them very little ownership and allows them little room to practice the art of teaching which they learned in their respective college and university. Therefore, entrusting teachers to make adequate and appropriate instructional decisions, provides them a greater sense of ownership of their classroom and decreasing the amount of burnout which would work to increase student achievement. Statement of Problem: The current deprivation of teacher autonomy in the classroom is preventing students from a beneficial educational experience and increasing teacher burnout rates. Teacher Autonomy-5 Purpose of the Study: To determine if building climate affects the perceptions of teacher autonomy. Research questions: RQ1: Is there a difference of opinion regarding teacher autonomy between two high schools in the same school district? RQ2: Is NCLB and other state level initiatives preventing teachers from exploring more creative and innovative teaching strategies and practices? Null hypothesis: There is no significant difference between perceptions of teacher autonomy between the two high schools in the same district. Anticipated benefits of the study: The benefits of this study will be for both teacher and student. This will require a reflection and analysis of teaching practices from the teacher. From the student perspective, they will benefit from a different approach to teaching which requires more interaction between not only student and teacher, but students with other students. Teacher Autonomy-6 Definition of terms: AYP: Annual Yearly Progress. Each public school is assessed in Comm Arts and Math. The school is required to reach a certain achievement level in these areas. Since this program began with the implementation of No Child Left Behind, each year the number of schools making this goal has decreased. NCLB: No Child Left Behind. Education legislation created by the George W. Bush administration and put into effect in 2002. It is designed to set benchmarks for each child in Comm Arts and Math and is assessed each year. Autonomy: being self governing. Ability and freedom to make own professional choices regarding curriculum and content. DESE: Missouri Department of Education IEP: Individual Education Plan. Plan created on a student by student basis to address needs of special education students. These plans consist of accommodations and modifications for classroom teachers to follow to ensure that the needs of special education students are being met. Summary: PHSD is a suburban district based in Kansas City, MO. Each high school has roughly the same number of students with the same number of teachers. Each building also has the same number of administrators to supervise its teachers. These high schools both serve students grades 9-12 with approximately 1600 students. The research investigates the level of teacher autonomy in the classroom and then will compare this level to the success of its students on standardized test scores. Teacher Autonomy-7 REVIEW OF LITERATURE In a keynote address, University of Northern Kentucky Professor Doug Feldmann said, “I submit that those going into the education field in contemporary times are no longer overly concerned with traditional discouragements such as low salaries; rather, what appears to be desired today by teachers—both novice and veteran—is the freedom to make reasonable curricular and instructional choices, and the administrative support to enact such choices” (Feldmann 2011, p.2). This is, in fact the overwhelming issue teachers face in public education. Feldman (2011) will go on to argue that the lack of teacher autonomy has led to an increase in teacher attrition rates as well as a more compartmentalized view of public education. However, with the increase in emphasis in standardized test scores, policy makers have, what they feel to be, a more defined curriculum that teachers and public schools should subscribe to leaving the teacher with little freedom. It is publicly acknowledged that there is much good to come from a child’s education that extends beyond their standardized test scores. However, what cannot be determined is what should be achieved beyond theses scores. Feldmann (2011) speculates that if this could be determined, and the teachers were left alone from policy makers and the general public to achieve these goals, America would see a drastic increase in the performance of public education. Furthermore, common syllabi and curriculum do not foster higher levels of achievement in teachers causing them to become complacent or leave the profession altogether. Similar to Feldmann’s thoughts on teacher autonomy, the discussion also comes around about high stakes testing and the teacher response to the increase in this type of Teacher Autonomy-8 assessment. Reich and Bally (2010) speculate through research that this sort of high stakes testing which determines levels of state funding for schools as well as public knowledge of which schools reach No Child Left Behind (NCLB) or Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) force teachers to abandon their own teaching strategies and practices and resort to “teaching to the test”. This often times requires teachers to teach a list of terms or ideas that may be too extensive to cover in such a short period of time. The other negative impact of high stakes testing on teaching practices is the abandonment of teaching actual content and students effectively learning information. Rather teachers are informing students on testing strategies for a particular test. Therefore, the question must be asked that if students are simply learning terms or testing strategies for a particular test at a particular time, are they actually learning skills that will make them effective and contributive members of an ever changing 21 century society? Both the Feldmann (2011) and Reich and Bally (2010) articles speculate that what needs to be improved in public schools is a renewed faith in the educators to achieve holistic common goals and an improvement in teaching practices—not a quick fix to what teachers should teach and what students should know. Reich and Bally (2010) write, “What often happens is that the sense of urgency for the achievement of better results, that is, higher test scores, places tremendous strain on teachers and administrators alike. Paradoxically, as the pressure for higher achievement cascades down the institutional hierarchy, conditions are created that make higher achievement less likely to occur” (p.181). In their article, “Following the Script” authors Parsons and Harrington (2009) evaluate the desire of inner city schools to raise reading levels of younger students and Teacher Autonomy-9 that added pressure that N
Teacher autonomy positively impacts student achievement in communication arts, as it allows teachers to take ownership of their work and reduce teacher burnout.
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