Abstrakt
Teacher's professional development is a crucial element for building of school quality. One of the tools is a group supervision in school (Aseltine, Faryniarz & Rigazio-DiGilio, 2006).
The basic purpose of supervision is to improve teaching and learning through reflection of schooling practices and its verbalization. It helps teachers find out whether and what they can do in different way to promote their self-efficacy, teaching practices and relationships with colleagues, students and parents (Green, 1992; Sidhu & Fook, 2010).
Although many studies confirm efficiency of supervision among teachers (Judge & Bono, 2001), there are also obstacles for/in schools to organize supervision. For effective promotion of supervision, it is important to understand what teaches consider to be difficulties of supervision and what contributes to negative attitudes toward supervisions.
Apart from the teachers, principals of schools and school psychologists should be also questioned because they are the ones who come up with the idea of supervision and advocate it. In the paper, we will present the research on principals and school psychologists from Czech elementary schools.
The aim of the study was to find out whether principals and psychologists consider supervisions a beneficial tool, what were their experiences with supervision of teacher's team in their schools and what obstructions they encountered when promoting supervision in their schools. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The research combined a qualitative study and a quantitative survey.
The qualitative study was based on interviews with 15 head of elementary schools and 11 school psychologists. The interviews focused on teacher's professional development, group evaluation and supervision.
Their general beliefs, knowledge and experience within their schools were also explored. Based on the analysis of interviews, the survey for school principals and the survey for school psychologists were designed.
Both surveys focused on sources and structure of positive and/or negative attitudes toward supervision and experience with supervision in the schools. The on-line surveys were sent via emails to all elementary schools in the Czech Republic.
The sample consisted of 1,800 principals and 740 psychologists. Quantitative data were analyzed using statistical analyses.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings There has not been yet any systematic support for supervision in educational institutions in the Czech Republic. Therefore most school principals do not use supervision in their schools and even high number of them is not sure what supervision exactly means and which effects it can have.
Psychologists were well informed about supervision and its benefits for teachers. Both groups find the main obstacles in teacher's exhaustion and teacher's resistance to professional development (except education).
All detail results from quantitative and qualitative study will be presented. The implications for school practice (i.e. how to introduce the idea of supervision in the teacher's team, how to sett up the organizational conditions and how to convince teachers to engage in the supervisions) will be discussed in the presentation as well.