UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL HOMEROOM TEACHERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THE NEW TOOL FOR THEIR PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

Abstract

The homeroom teacher (HRT) is one of the main roles in the school. HRTs effective teaching and classroom management are central to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education. The main goal of this study was to examine Israeli upper secondary HRTs perceptions of the new multiple domain performance tool (USHRT-MDPT) to evaluate their work performance. The study applied a qualitative paradigm of data collection and analysis. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and were analyzed thematically. Participants were 46 upper secondary school HRTs. All HRTs had tenure and were evaluated at least once using the USHRT-MDPT. The main findings were that the upper secondary HRTs perceived the USHRT-MDPT as: (1) an evaluation rubric that is appropriate for HRTs, (2) an advance organizing rubric for HRTs self-performance-improvement, (3) an evaluation rubric that promote dialogical empowerment, (4) an evaluation rubric that encourages HRTs professional development, (5) an evaluation rubric that misses the HRTs classroom management in a time of crisis component. There is a clear dearth in scholarly literature dealing with the evaluation of upper secondary HRTs work performance. This study is the first to reveal Israeli upper secondary school HRTs perceptions of the tool for their work performance evaluation.