A data-driven conceptualization of teacher evaluation

Research perspectives on teacher evaluation present evaluators with a set of possible acts. Local evaluation systems, on the other hand, specify a permissible set of acts from the total universe. The acts specified within a given locality act as conditions for teacher action. Using the sampling and analytical procedures of grounded theory, this study aims at exploring how evaluation of teaching performance in universities of Iran conditions practitioners' action (conditions), what teachers do in the face of these conditions (action), and the effect these conditions and actions have on practitioners' professional life (consequences). The findings will be useful for stakeholders since they show the other side of the teacher evaluation coin: one side being the research perspectives while the other being practitioners' perspectives. Key Words: Teacher Evaluation, Teachers' Perspectives, Grounded Theory, and Local Evaluation Systems