Volume 2 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal of K-12 Educational Research - Page 16

14 A STUDY OF THE IMPACT OF REFLECTIVE CONVERSATIONS ON TEACHER PRAXIS AND CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION DeAnna Jenkins, Ed.D. Journal of K-12 Educational Research 2018, VOL. 2, ISSUE 1 www.dbu.edu/doctoral/edd Introduction It has long been perceived by some that the American public education system is failing today’s students. Ravitch (2014) as - serted, “the leading members of our political class and our media elite seemed to agree: Public education is broken. Our students are not learning enough. Public schools are bad and getting worse” (p. 3). Reports and reform movements, such as A Nation at Risk (1983), the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), No Child Left Behind (NCLB), and Race to the Top (RTT), are categorized as some of the levers for the decline of opinion regarding public education and the effectiveness of teach - er praxis (Marzano, Frontier, & Livingston, 2011; Popham, 2013; Ravitch, 2014; Toch & Rothman, 2008; Zhao, 2009). The implementation of teacher evaluation systems has been one of the recommended answers to fix the perceived crisis in education. In the 1983 report A Nation at Risk, the National Com - mission on Excellence (NCEE) at that time recommended that teacher’s salary, promotion, and retention be tied to “an effective evaluation system” (p. 38). The major purpose of supervision and evaluation is to improve teacher praxis and classroom instruction (Darling-Hammond, 2013; Glickman, 1980; Marzano, et al., 2011; NCEE, 1983; Popham, 2013; Sullivan and Glanz, 2000). However, history and research has shown that states across the nation have been and continue to struggle with teacher evaluation systems and their lack of improvement on teach - er performance. Blumberg (1985) reviewed annual reports of superintendents in the common schools of the 59 counties in the state of New York in 1845. Superintendents discussed concerns about limited and outdated methods of teaching, inadequate staff development, and opportunities to elevate the quality of teaching in the classroom over a century ago. Darling-Hammond (2013) discussed teacher evaluation systems as failing and in need of drastic improvements, as the process rarely “distinguished those who were succeeding from those who are struggling” (p. 1). Popham (2013) argued that “If we evaluate American teachers inappropriately…we will not only see many American teachers being unfairly judged, but we’ll also witness a definite dip in the quality of our public schools” (pp. ix-x). With the increase in high-stakes evaluations, teachers are often evaluated without the opportunity to receive recurrent critical, constructive feedback that allows self-reflection on instructional practices. Successful teacher evaluation systems can be designed if they are individualized and allow for self-direction. Many researchers have identified effective teacher evaluation systems encompass the formative practice of providing facilitated, timely, relevant, and reflective feedback during recurrent instructional conversations that encourage self-reflection on praxis and instruc - tional growth (Brookhart and Moss, 2015; Danielson and McG - real, 2000; Darling-Hammond, 2013; Downey and Frase, 2001; Fullan, 2009; Lezotte and Snyder, 2011; Marzano, et al., 2011; Popham, 2013; Sullivan and Glanz, 2000). According to Killion (2015) feedback is a powerful process that provides “criteria-ref - erenced” evidence to assist in the identification of strengths and weaknesses, process of setting goals, and creation of an authentic plan for achieving those goals (p. 8). Hall and Simeral (2015) stated, “to be good at anything, you need to be thoughtful, in- tentional, and reflective about your practice…Self-reflection can bridge the doing-thinking gap, knowing-doing gap, and another gap that might otherwise impede your progress” (p. 21).