teachers are charged with one of the greatest responsibilities in our society
the education of our nation's young people in Australia we strive to not
just be among the best education systems in the world but to actually be the best
being a teacher takes commitment and passion and teachers are entitled to
feedback and support to achieve the best outcomes for our students teachers who
do receive appraisal and feedback view it positively they want both to help
them develop their practices the vast majority of teachers agree that the
appraisal and feedback they have received a fair and helpful in the
development of their work laying the foundations for that support is exactly
what the Australian teacher performance and development framework is designed to
do the research shows both national and international that the quality of
teaching is the most significant in-school factor that affects student
outcomes teacher performance has been shown to improve when the following
conditions are present opportunities for teachers self-reflection and
goal-setting frequent feedback on classroom
performance including constructive feedback from their school leader as
well as their peers based on regular classroom observation shadowing off and
coaching from peers and leaders opportunities to contribute to and
engage in teamwork collaboration and action learning with other teachers to
obtain the best possible outcomes for students the framework has been
developed to support the professional growth of teachers in meeting and
achieving their ultimate goal improved outcomes for all young people the
framework calls for the creation of a performance and development culture in
all Australian schools but what precisely comprises a performance and
development culture firstly it's a culture that focuses on
student outcomes where everything that teachers do and the support they get
leads to increased student achievement well-being and engagement there is a
clear understanding of effective teaching the Australian professional
standards for teachers provides a comprehensive and broad picture of what
good teaching looks like teachers leaders and their communities need to
determine what good teaching is in their school context informed by the standards
naturally school leaders are vital to building a healthy productive
performance and development culture but they can't do it alone a shared
commitment to improvement is essential with teachers taking responsibility for
their own and each other's development of course all schools are different and
need to respond to their unique contexts and histories the way performance and
development processes work in each school will be different performance and
development should tie together the various activities that school leaders
and teachers are engaged in alignment to school plans and school-wide approaches
to professional learning are particularly important with the right
culture in place school leaders and teachers can focus on the sorts of
processes they might put in place to improve teacher practice and to provide
feedback and support a simple three-part cycle provides such a structure firstly
the cycle is about reflection and goal-setting goals are agreed by
teachers and school leaders and are based on the teachers own professional
needs and interests as well as wider school and sector goals and strategies
the goals are regularly reviewed and immeasurable with a clear link to
evidence so that teachers can gauge their progress the cycle also promotes
professional practice and learning it supports achieving professional goals
through targeted development opportunities the australian charter for
the professional learning of teachers and school leaders is a companion paper
to the framework and highlights for educators the central importance of
ongoing professional learning to achievement career development and
progression there are in fact many ways we can
measure the improvement in teaching such as evidence of the impact on students
outcomes direct observation of teaching evidence of the teachers impact on
colleagues and the school as a whole student feedback peer to supervisor
feedback and self assessment if we're going to make genuine progress then it's
vitally important that all teachers complete disciple by receiving regular
informal and formal feedback to support their improvement their professional
learning choices their reflection and the revision of their goals this
includes a formal review at least annually high performing education
systems provide continuous and frequent feedback to teachers clearly with a more
recognized engaged and supported teaching workforce comes improved
learning for students we want to create an education culture in all Australian
schools where a focus on performance and development is not only natural but is
sought by all many schools have a long history of putting their energies into
performance and development they report outstanding results and their teachers
acknowledge real improvements made in the quality of their teaching as a
result that's real cultural change change that's focused on mutual
improvement genuine peer feedback and most importantly ongoing professional
growth for all teachers in all schools by supporting teachers to improve their
practice we can make a real and sustained difference to the educational
outcomes of all young Australians
you