The Learning Bar

Teacher Survey Measures

Five classroom and school climate measures are assessed with the teacher questionnaire.

• Effective school policies and practices
• Effective practices to support vulnerable youth
• Staff morale and commitment to school improvement
• Effective assessment practices
• Positive relations with parents and the wider community

Effective school policies and practices gauges the quality of the organizational structures in the school that guide school improvement and support student learning and positive behaviour. It is particularly concerned with whether the school has a strong orientation to student success, reflected in its mission statement, the effectiveness of school committees and faculty meetings, the communication among staff, and professional development. For example, teachers are asked to indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with the following statements: "There is an effective action plan for school improvement," "Teachers work effectively on school committees," and "Communication between the principal and staff is effective."

Effective practices to support vulnerable youth encompasses several practices that have been shown to be effective in supporting youth with learning or behavioural difficulties. The recent concern for school safety and positive student behaviour has engendered several studies of schools that have adopted a preventive, whole-school approach to supporting positive student behaviours (Sugai & Horner, 2002). This research, and recent research on vulnerable children in Canada (Willms, 2002), calls for schools that have effective policies and practices to support vulnerable youth. Tell Them From Me asks teachers to assess some of their own classroom practices, and to indicate the level of support provided by school counselors and administrative staff. Some example items include: "Routines for classroom activities are well established," "There is strong support from school counsellors," and "I am available to give students extra help when needed."

Staff morale and commitment to school improvement includes items about the morale of teachers in the school and the commitment of teachers to improving student outcomes. Considerable research has documented a relationship between teacher morale and commitment, with students' academic achievement. Schools with committed, satisfied teachers have less teacher absenteeism, lower turnover, less burnout, and less dysfunctional classroom behavior. Teachers tend to be more committed when there is a high level of trust among school staff, when staff work together to set specific goals for student outcomes, and when they have a strong sense of efficacy – their work is meaningful and they feel empowered to make a difference. Some example items in Tell Them From Me are: "I am committed to making our school one of the best in the province," "I am excited about the classes I teach," and "On most days I look forward to going to work."

Effective assessment practices includes both formal and informal assessment practices. Teachers are asked to rate the adequacy of the assessment practices in their school for various purposes, such as assessing students' ability in basic skills, informing parents about their child's progress, making comparisons with district or provincial norms, and informing decisions about school policy and practice.

Positive relations with parents and the wider community is based primarily on Epstein's framework for fostering positive relations between the school and the community. Successful schools foster greater communication with parents, and encourage parental involvement in their child's schoolwork. Successful schools also enlist parents to volunteer at the school and participate in school governance. In Tell Them From Me, teachers are asked to rate the extent of parent and community involvement in their school and to indicate the extent to which teachers encourage parental involvement. Some example items are: "Teachers use a variety of tools to establish meaningful two-way communication with parents", "Parents are involved in setting student goals," "Parents' opinions are solicited on issues concerning school practices," and "The staff help make our school a centre for culture, recreation, and learning."

No teacher data is uploaded to our system. A school receives survey usernames and passwords based on the number of teachers to be surveyed, and then distributes these randomly and anonymously to teachers. Reports are made available to the school when they determine they have reached their optimal response rate. School-level Teacher response data are not accessible by the district except in aggregate form from a minimum of five schools. Reports will only be made available to the school when there are at least 5 teachers having completed the survey.

Contact Us

e-mail: info@thelearningbar.com
tel: (506) 458-9311