The cooperative teacher evaluation: toward a cultural compromise

Abstract

In a multi-cultural setting, evaluating a teacher within the ESL context poses a number of dilemmas: overcoming negative perceptions of the evaluation itself, defining the role of the evaluation as a power tool for advancement, and establishing the evaluation as a valid of teacher development. The first part of this session will highlight some basic assumptions concerning the teacher evaluation as rationale, components (time, categories, scale, style), role of the evaluator/ observer, and its overall impact. Building upon the concept of the cooperative approach, participants' (Thai, Asian and Western instructors in this case) expectations and perceptions will be discussed. The session's second part will resemble a workshop whereby small groups of participants/staff members create a working teacher evaluation model which may later be used at the participants' home university or institute as part of an in-class evaluation system. Past teacher evaluation samples and various personal teaching philosophies will provide a guide for individual group discussions.