The Effects of Performance Evaluation System on Teachers During TEOG Exam Period: Kütahya Case

TEOG Exam was administered between 2014 and 2017 to “choose” students for “prestigious” high schools in Turkey. During this exam period not only students but also teachers had “success percentages”. This situation in a way acted like a teacher performance evaluation system. The current study reports on the impacts of teacher performance evaluation system that took place during TEOG exam period on teachers. The participants of this case study that was conducted with the use of qualitative research methods consisted of six full-time teachers that worked in Kütahya in 2017-2018 Academic Year. The opinions of the teachers were collected through face-to-face interviews and the teachers were questioned via semi-structured interview questions. The questions were about three main categories. First, teachers were asked about how the system worked. Secondly, they were asked to present their ideas about the effects of this system on the relationships among teachers. Finally, teachers were asked to talk about “ideal” teacher performance evaluation system. The data of the study were analyzed descriptively depending on the qualitative research method procedures. After the analyses of the transcripts, several codes were created and the data were categorized according to these codes. The results of the study showed that the teacher performance evaluation system created pressure on teachers. They expressed that both the administrators and the parents could question their teaching methods. The results regarding the effects of the system on the relationships among teachers were more complex. The teachers presented both positive and negative opinions with regard to the topic. While some students expressed that they started to collaborate with their colleagues, some presented that it created rivalry among teachers. Finally, the teachers stated that teacher performance evaluation system should exist. However, they failed to give details of the ideal performance evaluation system.