A Case Study on Teacher Perceptions of the Wisconsin State Educator Effectiveness Requirement: Mandates and Results

Abstract

Teachers are the essential element in improving student learning in education. The State of Wisconsin requires public school teachers to participate in the Wisconsin Educator Effectiveness System. There is limited research on the links between required participation with the State of Wisconsin’s Educator Effectiveness System and on the experience of teachers and their outcomes for students (Dvorak et al., 2014; Jones, 2017). This qualitative case study explored, through semi-structured interviews, the experiences of Wisconsin educators who engaged with the EE System, teachers’ connections with EE and subsequent changes to their practice. The study addressed whether teachers’ felt the technical elements required within the EE System and the related professional development they experienced contributed to changes in their teaching practice and perceptions of improvements in learning outcomes.

Findings suggest that this governmental mandate has not fully led to the results envisioned, and the unintended consequences are many and the unanticipated results have had a cumulative effect on the educators who participated in this study. Teacher experiences were positive, negative, endemic and often uncertain. This study concludes with recommendations for the Educator Effectiveness System today and for the future.