dc.contributor.author	Podsen, Stephen B.
dc.coverage.spatial	United States, Georgia	en_US
dc.coverage.temporal	2016-2019	en_US
dc.date.accessioned	2020-11-06T14:52:34Z
dc.date.available	2020-11-06T14:52:34Z
dc.date.issued	2019-10
dc.identifier.other	CA2C0CE7-1CCE-DBA8-4BE5-6CE1D3048F42	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/10428/4521
dc.description.abstract	The stakes are continually getting higher for teachers, as more states adopt policies and procedures based on teacher evaluations. Educational accountability practices reflect an ever-growing system where schools and teachers are being held more responsible for student achievement and learning (Lavigne, 2014). According to the Georgia Department of Education (2016), two-thirds of teachers within the State of Georgia would not recommend teaching as a viable profession. Additionally, as of 2015, 44% of teachers were leaving the profession within the first 5 years at great personal expense to themselves and the state in terms of time, effort, loss of productivity, and financial costs (GaDOE, 2016). This study examined current and former teachers’ experiences to determine if the Teacher Keys Effectiveness System (TKES) has influenced teacher retention rates within the State of Georgia. A basic interpretive qualitative research approach was applied to examine six participants’ experiences. Participants were selected via purposeful and snowball sampling. Data for this study were analyzed via face-to-face semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate that inconsistent and biased observations were negatively impacting teachers’ performance ratings, lack of quality feedback was hindering teacher’s abilities to improve their teaching, and the bureaucratic nature of the TKES and teaching, in general, are contributing factors for why teachers leave the profession. The findings from this study indicate that if school leaders and policymakers begin to address the subjective and bureaucratic nature of the TKES, teacher retention rates may begin to shift in the right direction. Keyword 1: Teacher Keys	en_US
dc.description.tableofcontents	CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1 -- Overview 1 -- Teacher Attrition 2 -- Problem Statement 3 -- Purpose Statement 3 -- Research Questions 4 -- Significance of the Study 4 -- Conceptual Framework 5 -- Teacher Retention Theory 7 -- Research Methodology 8 -- Limitations 9 -- Summary 9 -- Definition of Terms 10 -- CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 12 -- Conceptual Framework 14 -- Teacher Evaluation 15 -- The Widget Effect 18 -- Performance Appraisals 24 -- Policy Implications 28 -- Principals’ Perceptions of Teacher Evaluation 29 -- Teacher Evaluation Models 31 -- Georgia Teacher Evaluation Models 32 -- Teacher Attrition and Retention 38 -- Time, Effort, and Financial Costs 41 -- Teacher Empowerment and Self-Efficacy 44 -- Framework for Teaching 45 -- Georgia’s Teacher Keys Effectiveness System 50 -- Teacher Assessment on Performance Standards 52 -- Professional Growth 53 -- Student Growth 54 -- Teacher Effectiveness Measure 54 -- Summary 55 -- CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY 57 -- Introduction 57 -- Research Design 57 -- Research Questions 58 -- Rationale 59 -- Setting 60 -- Researcher Role 61 -- Participant Sampling and Selection 62 -- Data Collection 64 -- Interviewing Process 64 -- Data Analysis 67 -- Validity Issues 67 -- Credibility 68 -- Transferability 68 -- Ethical Issues 69 -- Summary 69 -- CHAPTER IV: PARTICIPANT PROFILES 71 -- Background of Participants 72 -- Participant Profiles 72 -- Allyson 72 -- Barbara 76 -- Carla 79 -- Deborah 81 -- Eva 84 -- Frank 87 -- Summary 89 -- CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION OF THEMES 91 -- Data Analysis 92 -- Themes 95 -- Bias in Classroom Observations 96 -- Summary 101 -- Unintended Consequences of the TKES 101 -- Lack of Quality Feedback 105 -- Theme Summary 108 -- The Bureaucratic Nature of TKES and Teaching Duties 109 -- Summary 119 -- Research Findings 119 -- Theme One—Bias in Classroom Observations 119 -- Theme Two—Unintended Consequences in the TKES 120 -- Theme Three—Bureaucratic Nature of the TKES and Growing Resentment 120 -- CHAPTER VI: SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND -- RECOMMENDATIONS 121 -- Research Questions: Summary and Discussion 123 -- Professional Teaching Experiences 124 -- School Experiences 126 -- Career Work History 126 -- Bias in Classroom Observations 130 -- Bureaucratic Nature of the TKES and Teaching 130 -- Unintended consequences of the TKES 134 -- Professional Growth and Development 135 -- Implications and Discussion 139 -- Limitations of the Study 141 -- Recommendations for Future Research 143 -- Conclusions 144 -- REFERENCES 147 -- APPENDIX A: Letter of Cooperation 167 -- APPENDIX B: Institutional Review Board Approval 165 -- APPENDIX C: General Interview Protocol 169 -- APPENDIX D: Interview Protocol 1 171 -- APPENDIX E: Interview Protocol 2 173.	en_US
dc.format.extent	1 electronic document, 191 pages.	en_US
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf	en_US
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US
dc.rights	This dissertation is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law 94-553, revised in 1976). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgement. Use of the materials for financial gain with the author's expressed written permissions is not allowed.	en_US
dc.subject	Dissertations, Academic--United States	en_US
dc.subject	Employee retention	en_US
dc.subject	Georgia. Department of Education	en_US
dc.subject	Teacher effectiveness	en_US
dc.title	A Study to Determine How the Application of Georgia’s Teacher Keys Effectiveness System (TKES) has Influenced Teacher Retention Rates as Perceived by Current and Former Public School Teachers	en_US
dc.type	Dissertation	en_US
dc.contributor.department	Department of Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology of the Dewar College of Education and Human Services	en_US
dc.description.advisor	Tsemunhu, Rudo E.
dc.description.committee	Green, Robert B.
dc.description.committee	Truby, William F.
dc.description.degree	Ed.D.	en_US
dc.description.major	Education in Leadership	en_US