Rural middle school principals' perspectives of supervision and evaluation as they implement Georgia's A Plus Education Reform Act of 2000

Abstract

The perspectives of three rural middle school principals as they implement Georgia’s A Plus Education Reform Act of 2000 were investigated in this study. A case study approach was utilized, employing both within case and cross case analyses. The constant comparative method of data analysis was employed to examine the perspectives of the participants. Three interviews were conducted with each of the three participants, resulting in a total of nine interviews. Additionally, the researcher compiled fieldnotes and examined documents obtained from the participants and accessed through the World Wide Web. Symbolic interactionism was the theoretical framework that guided this study. Four perspectives emerged from the data: (1) Evaluation of teacher effectiveness can be indicated only by the results of standardized tests, (2) Supervision consists of classroom visits and observations, (3) Ruralness affects how staff development is delivered, and (4) Lack of funding limits the effectiveness of the staff development component of teacher evaluation.