Teacher work sample methodology : a content analysis of the mathematics work samples produced by student teachers at Western Oregon University between 1991-1999

The purpose of this study was to analyze the contents of 50 work samples produced by student teachers at Western Oregon University between fall 1991 and spring 1999 to determine the following: ♦ the efficacy of Teacher Work Sample Methodology in moving state and national standards, for example, the NCTM standards, into the classroom. ♦ the extent to which Teacher Work Sample Methodology promotes alignment of standards, content, instruction and assessments of instruction. ♦ the impact of the methodology on "quality" instructional planning, assessment, and teacher reflections. Five study questions based on the above problem statements were designed by the investigator as the foundation of the investigation. Protocols were developed to analyze the contents of the work samples. The analysis involved the investigator and a second rater, who independently assigned ratings to the work samples in response to the study questions. The investigator then conducted tests of correlation to determine inter-rater reliability of ratings assigned by the two raters. Tests of MANOVA or independent-samples t tests were applied to determine school level (K-5, 6-12) and early/late (1991- 1993, 1997-1999) differences in the contents of secondary (6-12) work samples (no elementary K-5 early mathematics work samples were available for review). A majority of the student teacher work samples analyzed (elementary as well as secondary) demonstrated weak alignment or no alignment between stated instructional objectives and selected NCTM Curriculum and Evaluation Standards (Problem Solving, Communication, Reasoning, and Connections). In the majority of the work samples, more than half of the pre-/post-assessment methods were aligned with the instructional objectives. The pre-/post-assessments found in the 50 work samples demonstrated moderate teacher understanding of test construction, test administration, and assessment practices. Substantial class gains in student learning were evident in a large percentage of work samples. A small number of work samples contained reflective essays that demonstrated teacher understanding of the instructional process, their perceived ability to improve instruction, and their perceived responsibility to do so. The researcher drew the following conclusions from these findings: 1. Teacher Work Sample Methodology (TWSM) as employed with student teachers at Western Oregon University has not yet made significant contributions to ensuring standards-based instruction in mathematics, if the standards under consideration are the NCTM standards. 2. TWSM as developed at Western Oregon University has the capacity to identify a student teacher's instructional strengths and weaknesses (such as aligning instructional objectives with assessment methods, understanding of assessment and test construction, understanding and ability to reflect on instructional process and improvement on the weaknesses). 3. Teacher Work Sample Methodology has the capacity to demonstrate a pre-service teacher's (student teacher's, teacher intern's) ability to facilitate learning/academic growth. 4. Teacher Work Sample Methodology has the capacity to identify strengths and weaknesses in teacher preparation programs.