Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

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2 2 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

3 Abu Dhabi Education Council Research Office The Research Office conducts surveys to gather qualitative and quantitative data for research projects. Furthermore, it conducts routine surveys on student, parent, teacher and principal satisfaction in addition to ad hoc surveys by request from internal and external sources. Although the surveys are usually conducted to gather input and data for research projects, they may also be used as stand-alone output. This report is useful for the policy-makers and school administrators to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the schools from the teachers perspectives. It can also help identify the various factors that influence teachers satisfaction with their school and their job. We strive to make the survey results available in a variety of formats and in language that is appropriate to a variety of audiences. If you have any comments or suggestions about this report, we would like to hear from you. Please direct your comments to the following address: Research Office, Abu Dhabi Education Council Tel: adec_survey@adec.ac.ae Website: I

4 Acknowledgement The Research Office would like to convey its heartfelt gratitude to all the principals, teachers and school staff; their participation played a key role in the success of this survey. In total we were able to collect 8017 responses from teachers in public schools located in three different districts across the Emirates of Abu-Dhabi: Al-Gharbiyah, Al-Ain and Abu-Dhabi. We would also like to extend our appreciation to ADEC staff at the Office of Strategic Affairs, Strategic Communication and Media, Private Schools, School Operations and Regional Offices who supported us during this project. II Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

5 Table of Contents List of Tables IV List of Figures V Terminology 1 Introduction 2 The 2011/2012 Teacher Survey 3 The Dimensions and Measures of Teacher Satisfaction 6 Major Survey Findings 9 1 Effective School Leadership 15 2 Professional and Collaborative Teachers 24 3 Quality Teacher Professional Development 36 4 Effective Curriculum and Instruction 40 5 Effective Student Management 48 6 Involved Parents 53 7 Supporting Facilities and Resources 56 Conclusions 57 Appendix A: Reliability Results of Teacher Satisfaction Measures and Items 58 III

6 List of Tables Table 1: Table 2: Table 3: Table 4: Table 5: Table 6: Table 7: Table 8: Table 9: Table 10: Table 11: Table 12: Table 13: Table 14: Table 15: Table 16: Table 17: Table 18: Table 19: Table 20: Table 21: Table 22: Table 23: Table 24: Table 25: Table 26: Table 27: Table 28: The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Major Nationalities The Number of Teachers in Abu Dhabi Public Schools by Region, Gender, and Nationality, 2011/2012 The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Teaching Experience Teacher Satisfaction Index (Satisfaction Dimensions, Measures, Items and Properties) Principal Instructional Leadership Program Coherence Teacher Influence Support to Teachers Teacher Principal Trust Innovation and Learning Teacher Collective Responsibility Teacher Collaboration Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect Teacher s School Commitment Professional Development Activities Overall Professional Development Experience Professional Development on IT Technology Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum ADEC and International Standards Society-Oriented Instruction Student Instruction Quality of Student Discussion Student Management Supportive Student Behavior Student-Teacher Relationship Outreach to Parents Teacher-Parent Trust IT Barriers IV Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

7 List of Figures Figure 1: The Number of Teachers in the Sample by Region Figure 2: The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Age Category Figure 3: Teacher Satisfaction Index, 2009/ /2012 Figure 4: Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Region Figure 5: Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Gender Figure 6: Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Age Group Figure 7: Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Grade Taught Figure 8: Program Coherence (Responses in Percentages) Figure 9: Teacher Influence: Comparing Responses by Gender Figure 10: Teacher Influence: Comparing Responses by Subject Taught Figure 11: Support to Teachers: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position Figure 12: Teacher Principal Trust (Responses in Percentages) Figure 13: Teacher Principal Trust: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position Figure 14: Teacher Collective Responsibility (Responses in Percentages) Figure 15: Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect (Responses in Percentages) Figure 16: Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position Figure 17: Teacher s School Commitment (Responses in Percentages) Figure 18: Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Gender Figure 19: Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Age Group Figure 20: Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Year of Service in Abu Dhabi Schools Figure 21: Teachers Overall Professional Development Experience: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Region Figure 22: Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Grade Figure 23: ADEC and International Standards (Responses in Percentages) Figure 24: Society-Oriented Instruction (Responses in Percentages) Figure 25: Student Instruction (Responses in Percentages) Figure 26: Quality of Student Discussion (Responses in Percentages) Figure 27: Student Management (Responses in Percentages) Figure 28: Student-Teacher Relationship: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Gender Figure 29: Outreach to Parents (Responses in Percentages) Figure 30: Outreach to Parents: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position Figure 31: IT Barriers: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Region V

8 VI Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

9 Terminology Measure Mean The survey measure is composed of multiple questions that are conceptually related. The average value of all responses on a scale of seven points or five points. The mean can be computed using the following formula (for a scale of seven points): Where i is the answer value (1 i 7), N is the number of responses for the value i, and T is the total number of responses for the questionq. Total Number of Responses Overall Rating The registered responses for a question. This value varies between questions as the survey allowed parents to skip questions if they don t want to answer them. The Overall Rating is computed by averaging the mean of all questions: Overall Rating for Measure x= Where i is the number of respondents, A is the answer value (1 A 7), and N is the total number of responses for all questions in the measure. Overall Satisfaction Score Number of Parents Contacted Number of Collected Responses Response Rate The overall satisfaction score is computed by averaging the overall rating score for all the measures. The number of registered parents who received sealed envelopes that contain usernames and passwords. The number of completed and partially completed responses. The percentage of collected responses to the number of parents contacted: Response Rate: Number of Collected Responses Number of Parents Contacted 1

10 Introduction The Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) endeavors to bring every key stakeholder of the education system on board its ambitious educational reforms. There is no doubt that teachers are the most important partners in student learning process and in school development generally. In order to solicit the opinions of teachers on a variety of school and student performance related matters and to measure their overall satisfaction for a whole school year, ADEC has been conducting an annual teacher survey since the 2009/2010 school year. The 2011/2012 Teacher Survey was posted online on the 10th of June, 2012 and lasted for five weeks. The survey covered a wide range of important issues, including school leadership, teacher s educational belief and practices, teacher s school commitment, teacher responsibility, teacher s workplace activities, teacher professional development, parent involvement, classroom and student management, student behavior, and teacher s relationships with the principal, students, parents, and fellow teachers. The survey also inquired about the tools and methods that teachers used in the classroom, as well as time spent on preparing students for taking standardized tests. The aim of this report is to present the major findings of the Teacher Survey 2011/2012 to all the stakeholders and to the general public. Not all the survey results are presented in this report. The focus is rather on issues that link closely to teacher satisfaction. In terms of scope of analysis, it does not involve advanced statistical analysis, nor does it engage in theoretical discussions. The remainder of this report is organized as follows. Section 2 briefly introduces the survey methodology and data. In Section 3 efforts are made to construct a teacher satisfaction framework. Following the framework, the major survey findings are presented in Section 4. The teacher satisfaction index is then calculated and presented in Section 5. And Section 6 is the conclusion. 2 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

11 The 2011/2012 Teacher Survey The 2011/2012 Teacher Survey used a modified version of the 2009/2010 Teacher Survey questionnaire. Most notably, questions in the 2011/2012 Teacher Survey used a 7 point likert scale. The typical format of a 7 point likert scale includes the following items: strongly,, somewhat, neither agree nor, somewhat agree, agree, and strongly agree. The survey was administered online and was addressed to all public schools in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, with each school being assigned a random code that was shared by all teachers. The code authorized teachers to access the survey on an anonymous basis. Several followup s were sent later to remind and encourage teachers to participate in the survey. Technical support was also provided to teachers over phone and through s. A total of 8017 public school teachers participated in the survey, which represented nearly three quarters of the total number of teachers in the public schools of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in the 2011/2012 academic year. Teachers from Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Gharbia accounted for 42 percent, 45 percent, and 13 percent, respectively, of the total participants (Figure 1). Al Gharbia 1058, 13% Al Ain 3595, 45% Abu Dhabi 3334, 42% Figure 1 The Number of Teachers in the Sample by Region The gender composition of survey participants was 41.3 percent of males against 58.7 percent of females. Representing 31.1 percent of the sample, UAE national teachers were the largest nationality group, followed by teachers from Egypt, Jordan, and the US (Table 1). Generally speaking, the sample achieved a good representation of Abu Dhabi s public school teacher population in terms of distribution by region, gender, and nationality (Table 2). Nationality Frequency Percentage UAE Egypt Jordan US Syria Tunisia Table 1 The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Major Nationalities 3

12 Female Male Grand Expat National Total Expat National Total Total Abu Dhabi 1,583 1,563 3,146 1, ,619 4,765 (44.5) Al Ain 1,322 1,855 3,177 1, ,611 Al Gharbia ,788 (44.8) 1,144 (10.7) Grand Total 3,534 3,574 7,108 (66.4) 3, ,589 (33.6) 10,697 (100.0) Table 2 The Number of Teachers in Abu Dhabi Public Schools by Region, Gender, and Nationality, 2011/2012 Source: Intelligent Reporting for School Operations, ADEC Knowledge Management Division 46.6 percent of the survey participants were in their 30s (Figure 2). A substantial number of teachers joined Abu Dhabi schools only in recent years. Teachers who have taught in Abu Dhabi schools for less than 4 years constituted the largest cohort in the sample (Table 3). In the meantime, there were many teachers whose teaching experience in Abu Dhabi extended to more than a decade. More than half (54.2 percent) of the teachers in the survey had taught elsewhere for less than 7 years before they arrived in Abu Dhabi. 4 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

13 Figure 2 The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Age Category Years of Teaching Experience in Abu Dhabi Schools Frequency Percentage Years of Teaching Experience before Joining Abu Dhabi Schools Frequency Percentage 1-3 years years years years years years years years years years years years years years More than 21 years More than 21 years Table 3 The Number of Teachers in the Survey by Teaching Experience 5

14 The Dimensions and Measures of Teacher Satisfaction The Teacher Satisfaction Framework aims to capture the main aspects of teacher satisfaction with his/her job and the school. The framework is consisted of three layers: satisfaction dimensions, satisfaction measures, and questionnaire items that contribute to the measures. This framework is established based on considerations of international experience, theoretical review, as well as the present survey design and data. It has also been aligned with similar stakeholder satisfaction frameworks that the Research Office of ADEC has been developing for other stakeholders such as parents and principals, and therefore may be further amended or adjusted with a view to constructing an overall framework for school satisfaction. Currently, seven Core Satisfaction Dimensions are proposed as follows: effective school leadership, professional and collaborative teachers, quality teacher professional development, supportive facilities and resources, effective curriculum and instruction, effective student management, and involved parents. These core dimensions cover most of the essential areas of school performance and operations, with which teachers satisfaction provides valuable feedback for improvement. As shown in Table 4, those 7 core dimensions are comprised of 24 satisfaction measures. The consistency and reliability of the scales used in the survey was initially checked. The results of scale reliability analysis led researchers to remove some questionnaire items from the framework, most of which were negatively stated questions that may have caused confusions for respondents. The revisions resulted in more reliable scales (Appendix A). Finally, 139 questionnaire items were selected from the survey to construct those teacher satisfaction measures and dimensions. Having presented all the satisfaction dimensions and measures, this report has computed the teacher satisfaction index, which represents the average mean scores of the questionnaire items that comprise the satisfaction measure and dimension. The procedures for calculating teacher satisfaction index are the following: 6 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

15 Dimensions and Measures Items Summated Mean Satisfaction Score (100) a. Effective School Leadership 76.0 a.1 Principal Instructional Leadership a.2 Program Coherence a.3 Teacher Influence a.4 Support to Teachers a.5 Teacher-Principal Trust b. Professional and Collaborative Teachers 83.5 b.1 Collective Responsibility b.2 Innovation and Learning b.3 Teacher Collaboration b.4 Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect b.5 School Commitment c. Quality Teacher Professional Development 74.7 c.1 Professional Development Activities c.2 Overall Professional Development Experience c.3 Professional Development on IT d. Supportive Facilities and Resources 69.9 d.1 IT Barriers e. Effective Curriculum and Instruction 79.2 e.1 Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum e.2 ADEC and International Standards e.3 Society-Oriented Learning e.4 Student Instruction e.5 Quality of Student Discussion f. Effective Student Management 83.7 f.1 Student Management f.2 Supportive Student Behavior f.3 Student-Teacher Relationship g. Involved Parents 84.8 g.1 Outreach to Parents g.2 Teacher-Parent Trust Table 4 Teacher Satisfaction Index (Satisfaction Dimensions, Measures, Items and Properties) 7

16 The consistency of the scales of the questionnaire items that are included in the analysis was firstly checked. Questions that have reversed scales were adjusted to assure that they are consistent with the rest of the survey; For those negatively stated questions, the scales were reversed; The Not Applicable option was excluded in the raw data; All the scaling units were converted to a scale of a 1-7 scale; and The 1-7 scales were rebased to the 100 scale. The calculated teacher satisfaction scores are also presented in Table 4. It is worth noticing that these scores are un-weighted scores. In the future, appropriate weights may be assigned to different satisfaction measures to reflect their importance in the construction of the overall teacher satisfaction index. Among the 7 core satisfaction dimensions, involved parents achieved the highest score of 84.8, followed by effective student management and professional and collaborative teachers. Supporting facilities and resources and quality teacher professional development, on the other hand, received the lowest ratings. However, caution should be taken when we interpret the score for the satisfaction dimension of supporting facilities and resources (for further notes, please consult subsection 4.7). As far as specific satisfaction measures are concerned, teachers gave the highest rating to student management. High scores were also given to measures such as student instruction, teacher-parents trust, teacherteacher trust and respect, innovation and learning, teacher collaboration, and so forth. While these dimensions typically reflect the self confidence of teachers in their professionalism and teaching capabilities, it is encouraging to see that teachers are highly satisfied with the involvement of parents. Among the satisfaction measures, teachers were least satisfied with the level of influence that teachers had on school management, with the IT facilities that their school had, and with their professional development concerning IT technology. The overall teacher satisfaction index is 79.5 for the academic year of 2011/2012. From 2009/2010 when teacher survey was introduced, teachers satisfaction has shown a continuous upward trend (Figure 3). Figure 3 Teacher Satisfaction Index, 2009/ /2012 Collectively, these teacher satisfaction dimensions and measures are capable of providing a good account of teachers opinion on the effectiveness of school performance and operations. However, it should be acknowledged that such an account does not necessarily constitute a comprehensive assessment of school performance and operations. With this in mind, this report presents below the main survey findings in detail following this proposed teacher satisfaction framework. 8 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

17 Major Survey Findings 1 Effective School Leadership School leadership is a multi-dimensional concept and is associated with a number of school characteristics. Due to data constraint, not all the dimensions of school leadership are to be discussed here. The design of the Teacher Survey 2011/2012 allows us to assess school leadership, from the perspective of teachers, in the following aspects: principal instructional leadership, the coherence of education programs, teacher influence, support to teachers, and teacher-principal trust. It can be argued that effective school leadership is more likely to be instructional-oriented, lead to coherent programs, get teachers involved in school management, be supportive to teachers, and witness trusting teacher-principal relationships. 1.1 Principal Instructional Leadership The principal as the leader of a school is widely considered essential to the development of an effective school. Principals are particularly expected to be instructional leaders who focus on developing successful instructional programs and improving pupil learning outcomes, rather than involve themselves mainly in routine school administration matters. A principal with instructional leadership is likely to demonstrate the ability to develop the collective capacity of the school in terms of curriculum, teaching methods, teacher training, as well as school environment and culture, all of which are critical to student performance. The opinions of Abu Dhabi public school teachers on their principal s instructional leadership are presented in Table 5. Teachers were largely in agreement that their principals were of instructional leadership, as nearly 70 percent of them agreed or strongly agreed that the principal set clear vision for the school, set high standards for both teaching and learning, understood student learning, and supported teachers professional development. 9

18 Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean * The principal at the school sets high standards for teaching. (N=6960) 183 (2.6) 190 (2.7) 162 (2.3) 510 (7.3) 779 (11.2) 2454 (35.3) 2682 (38.5) 5.82 The principal at the school makes clear to the staff his or her expectations for meeting instructional goals. (N=6873) 227 (3.3) 225 (3.2) 208 (3.0) 365 (5.2) 828 (11.9) 2444 (35.0) 2676 (38.4) 5.78 The principal at the school communicates a clear vision for our school. (N=6974) 253 (3.6) 226 (3.2) 235 (3.4) 400 (5.7) 801 (11.5) 2257 (32.4) 2802 (40.2) 5.76 The principal at the school sets high standards for student learning. (N=6929) 189 (2.7) 198 (2.9) 196 (2.8) 622 (9.0) 895 (12.9) 2501 (36.1) 2328 (33.6) 5.7 The principal at the school understands how children learn. (N=6943) 261 (3.8) 200 (2.9) 232 (3.3) 546 (7.9) 797 (11.5) 2389 (34.3) 2518 (36.3) 5.69 Principal s encouragement, assistance, or support is extremely helpful this year in my professional development. (N=6862) 304 (4.4) 225 (3.3) 164 (2.4) 529 (7.7) 766 (11.2) 2331 (34.0) 2543 (37.1) 5.68 Table 5 Principal Instructional Leadership Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. *Means are computed based on scores on a 1-7 scale. Further statistical analyses show that there exist statistically significant differences among different teacher groups by region, gender, age, position, years of teaching experience in Abu Dhabi, grade level taught, and subject taught, namely: Teachers from schools in Al Ain rated consistently higher on all the items concerning principal instructional leadership than teachers from Abu Dhabi and Al Gharbia (Figure 4); Male teachers were more satisfied with principal instructional leadership than female teachers (Figure 5); Older teachers tended to have higher satisfaction scores, with the age group scoring the highest on all items and the age group the lowest (Figure 6); The longer teachers had served in Abu Dhabi schools, the more positive 10 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

19 perceptions they had on principal instructional leadership; Compared with higher grade level teachers, those who taught lower grade levels tended to be less satisfied with principal instructional leadership. KG1 teachers were the least satisfied, while teachers taught Grade 12 and Grade 7 were among the most satisfied (Figure 7); Among teacher categories by position, licensed teachers consistently gave the lowest satisfaction scores. Most independent variables including subject taught, grade taught, and years of service in Abu Dhabi schools, however, appeared to have only small to medium size effect on respondents satisfaction with principal instructional leadership. English teachers were the least satisfied group by subject taught, with significantly lower mean scores on all the items than those of other groups; Principal s encouragement, assistance, or support is extremely helpful this year in my professional development. The principle at the school sets high standards for student learning The principle at the school understands how children learn The principle at the school sets high standards for teaching The principle at the school communicates a clear vision of our school Mean Score Figure 4 Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Region Al Gharbia Al Ain Abu Dhabi 11

20 Principal s encouragement, assistance, or support is extremely helpful this year in my professional development. The principle at the school sets high standards for student learning The principle at the school understands how children learn The principle at the school sets high standards for teaching The principle at the school communicates a clear vision of our school Mean Score Figure 5 Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Gender Female Male 12 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

21 Principal s encouragement, assistance, or support is extremely helpful this year in my professional development. The principal at the school sets high standards for student learning The Principle at the school understands how children learn. The Principle at the school sets high standards for teaching. The Principle at the school communicates a clear vision for our school Mean Score Figure 6 Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Age Group 13

22 Principal s encouragement, assistance, or support is extremely helpful this year in my professional development. The principal at the school sets high standards for student learning The Principle at the school understands how children learn. The Principle at the school sets high standards for teaching. The Principle at the school communicates a clear vision for our school Grade 12 Grade 11 Grade 10 Grade 9 Grade 8 Grade 7 Grade 6 Grade 5 Grade 4 Grade 3 Grade 2 Grade 1 KG2 KG1 Mean Score Figure 7 Principal Instructional Leadership: Comparing Responses by Grade Taught 14 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

23 1.2 Program Coherence Instructional program coherence is defined in the literature as a set of interrelated programs for students and staff that are guided by a common framework for curriculum, instruction, assessment, and learning climate and are pursued over a sustained period. A high level of instructional program coherence can be seen as one of the positive results of effective school leadership. This satisfaction dimension is assessed through three questions asked in the Teacher Survey. As show in Table 6 and Figure 8, the majority of teachers surveyed (64 percent) responded affirmatively that the school made efforts to ensure the completion of a new task, and that curriculum, instruction, and learning materials were well provided, while only 47.1 percent of them agreed or strongly agreed that there was real continuity among those initiatives taken by the school. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Once this school starts a new task, it follows it up until it makes sure it is done. (N=7012) 231 (3.3) 233 (3.3) 311 (4.4) 663 (9.5) 1089 (15.5) 2570 (36.7) 1915 (27.3) 5.50 Curriculum, instruction, and learning materials are well provided across the different grade levels at this school. (N=7032) 412 (5.9) 316 (4.5) 316 (4.5) 483 (6.9) 980 (13.9) 2437 (34.7) 2088 (29.7) 5.41 I can see real continuity from one initiative to another at this school. (N=6969) 225 (3.2) 346 (5.0) 415 (6.0) 1335 (19.2) 1371 (19.7) 2297 (33.0) 980 (14.1) 5.02 Table 6 Program Coherence 15

24 I can see real continuity from one initiative to another at this school. Once this school starts anew task, it follows it up until it make sure it is done. Percentage of Frequency Figure 8 Program Coherence (Responses in Percentages) Strongly Neither or Strongly Similar patterns of differences among various teacher groups can be observed as follows: Teachers from Al Ain rated higher on all the items concerning program coherence than teachers from Abu Dhabi and Al Gharbia; Male teachers were more satisfied than female teachers with the school s effort on program coherence; Older teachers tended to have higher satisfaction scores; The longer teachers had served in Abu Dhabi schools, the more positive perceptions they had on program coherence; Teachers teaching at higher grade levels were more likely to give higher scores than those teaching at lower grade levels; English teachers were the least satisfied group by subject taught; Licensed teachers were the least satisfied group by position. 16 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

25 1.3 Teacher Influence One of the school leadership activities is to involve teachers in the process of school level decision-making, so that teachers are empowered and the school will be held firmly together as an organization. Only 43.2 percent of respondents in the survey agreed or strongly agreed that teachers were involved in their school s decision-making, while 18.9 percent held a contrasting opinion (Table 7). There are significant differences among the responses from teachers of different age, gender, experience, and grade and subject taught. Most notably, female teachers and English language teachers are more likely to respond negatively to this measure (Figure 9 and Figure 10). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Teachers are involved in making the important decisions in this school. (N=7277) 562 (7.7) 812 (11.2) 593 (8.1) 562 (7.7) 1606 (22.1) 2269 (31.2) 873 (12.0) 4.66 Teachers have a lot of informal opportunities to influence what happens in this school. (N=7223) 869 (12.0) 1190 (16.5) 672 (9.3) 1290 (17.9) 1369 (19.0) 1483 (20.5) 350 (4.8) 3.96 Table 7 Teacher Influence Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. Teachers are involved in making the important decisions in this school Female Male Mean Score Figure 9 Teacher Influence: Comparing Responses by Gender 17

26 Teachers are involved in making the important decisions in this school. Other 4.89 Chemistry 5.10 Philosophy 6.25 Biology 5.36 Art 4.9 Physics 4.86 Geology 5.11 Social Study 4.84 History 4.99 Geography 5.05 Science 4.63 English 3.83 Islamic Studies 4.88 Arabic 4.92 Mean Score Figure 10 Teacher Influence: Comparing Responses by Subject Taught The survey also asked whether teachers felt that they had many informal opportunities to influence what happened in the school. On average, teachers gave a much lower score to this question and there was no much variance among different teacher groups except for gender and grade taught. 18 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

27 1.4 Support to Teachers Principals and school administrators bear the responsibility for supporting teachers in performing their duties. More than 60 percent of the survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the school made conscious effort to welcome new teachers, that they had experienced a good year of teaching in 2011/2012, and that the school strongly supported teachers (Table 8). However, proportionally less English language teachers and Islamic studies teachers were in agreement with these views. As many English teachers are new to Abu Dhabi schools, their relatively lower satisfaction with the level of support to them provided by the school deserves further attention. Similarly, among teacher categories by position licensed teachers perceived the lowest satisfaction with regards to support provided to them (Figure 11). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Teaching this year has been a good experience for me. (N=7187) 368 (5.1) 259 (3.60) 247 (3.4) 459 (6.4) 776 (10.8) 2308 (32.1) 2770 (38.5) 5.65 I feel strongly supported in my school this year. (N=7231) 450 (6.2) 341 (4.7) 363 (5.0) 524 (7.2) 1002 (13.9) 2092 (28.9) 2459 (34.0) 5.41 A conscious effort is made by the school to make new teachers feel welcome here. (N=7253) 398 (5.5) 379 (5.2) 299 (4.1) 691 (9.5) 1068 (14.7) 2391 (33.0) 2027 (27.9) 5.34 Table 8 Support to Teachers Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 19

28 I feel strongly supported in my school this year. Teaching this year has been a good Experience for me. Mean Score Other Licensed Teacher Teacher Head of Faculty Figure 11 Support to Teachers: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position 20 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

29 1.5 Teacher-Principal Trust It is important for a school to maintain trusting relationships between the principal and teachers. Various studies have found that principal-teacher trust contributes positively to school performance outcomes. The survey approaches teacher-principal trust through examining how teachers perceive the way trusted principals have demonstrated in their interactions with teachers Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I feel highly respected by the principal. (N=7055) 265 (3.8) 183 (2.6) 151 (2.1) 279 (4.0) 479 (6.8) 1730 (24.5) 3968 (56.2) 6.06 The principal places the needs of children in the school ahead of personal and other interests. (N=6966) 228 (3.3) 179 (2.6) 159 (2.3) 502 (7.2) 606 (8.7) 2173 (31.2) 3119 (44.8) 5.88 The principal takes a personal interest in the professional development of teachers. (N=6977) 237 (3.4) 218 (3.1) 197 (2.8) 405 (5.8) 730 (10.5) 2074 (29.7) 3116 (44.7) 5.85 I trust the principal at his or her word. (N=6951) 258 (3.7) 211 (3.0) 181 (2.6) 398 (5.7) 694 (10.0) 2260 (32.5) 2949 (42.4) 5.82 The principal has confidence in the expertise of the teachers. (N=6981) 228 (3.3) 243 (3.5) 208 (3.0) 378 (5.4) 808 (11.6) 2623 (37.6) 2493 (35.7) 5.74 It s OK in this school to discuss with the principal my feelings, worries, and frustrations. (N=6964) 322 (4.6) 272 (3.9) 259 (3.7) 495 (7.1) 814 (11.7) 2225 (32.0) 2577 (37.0) 5.61 The principal looks out for the personal welfare of the teachers. (N=6957) 396 (5.7) 299 (4.3) 278 (4.0) 625 (9.0) 958 (13.8) 2097 (30.1) 2304 (33.1) 5.44 Table 9 Teacher Principal Trust Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 21

30 The principal places the needs of children in the school ahead of personal and other interests. The principal looks out for the personal welfare of the teachers. The principal takes a personal interests in the professional development of teachers Its OK in this school to discuss with the principal my feelings, worries, and frustrations I trust the principal at his or her word. I feel highly respected by the principle. Strongly Neither or Strongly Percentage of Frequency Figure 12 Teacher Principal Trust (Responses in Percentages) 22 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

31 Survey results show that there seemed to be a high level of trust between the principal and teachers in Abu Dhabi public schools. As presented in Table 9 and Figure 12 by summing up the numbers of strongly agree and agree, teachers overwhelmingly (80.7 percent) felt that they were highly respected by the principal; 76 percent of the respondents trusted that the principal placed children s needs before his/her personal interests; Nearly three quarters (74.9 percent) of teachers in the sample stated that they trusted the principal s words; 74.4 percent felt that the principal took a personal interest in teachers professional development; 73.3 percent agreed that the principal had confidence in the expertise of teachers; the majority (69 percent) felt that they could discuss personal feelings and issues with the principal; and 63.2 percent of teachers believed that the principal took care of their welfare. Noticeably in Figure 13, among teacher categories by position licensed teachers showed the lowest level of satisfaction on this measure. The principal places the needs of children in the school ahead of personal and other interests. The principal looks out for the personal welfare of the teachers. The principal takes a personal interests in the professional development of teachers Its OK in this school to discuss with the principal my feelings, worries, and frustrations I trust the principal at his or her word. I feel highly respected by the principle. Mean Score Other Licensed Teacher Teacher Head of Faculty Figure 13 Teacher Principal Trust: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position 23

32 2 Professional and Collaborative Teachers 2.1 Innovation and Learning Survey participants were quite positive about teachers attitudes and actions towards innovation and continuous learning. Nearly three quarters of them claimed that teachers in their school were eager to learn and to try new ideas (Table 10). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean In this school, teachers have a positive attitude. (N=6958) 98 (1.4) 113 (1.6) 189 (2.7) 339 (4.9) 838 (12.0) 2653 (38.1) 2728 (39.2) 5.96 Teachers in this school are eager to try new ideas. (N=7070) 87 (1.2) 150 (2.1) 175 (2.5) 329 (4.7) 939 (13.3) 2610 (36.9) 2780 (39.3) 5.95 In this school, teachers are continually learning and seeking new ideas. (N=6957) 73 (1.0) 103 (1.5) 160 (2.3) 409 (5.9) 1007 (14.5) 2729 (39.2) 2476 (35.6) 5.91 Table 10 Innovation and Learning Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 2.2 Collective Responsibility Collective responsibility is a characteristic of teachers as a professional community that encourages a sense of ownership for the quality of students learning and creates a shared belief that together they take all the initiatives to advance students learning. It is considered as a crucial aspect of schools organizational capacity building that improves effectiveness of teaching and learning. Teachers collective responsibility was reported by the survey, in the order of computed mean score, as teachers genuine efforts to improve teaching, feeling responsible for the learning of all students, helping students develop themselves, improving the school, setting high standards for themselves, feeling responsible for students failure, maintaining discipline in the entire school, willing to take risks to make the school better, as well as contributing extra effort in preparing students for higher education (Table 11). Overall, this is one of the satisfaction measures that teachers rated with high scores. It appears, however, that a substantial number of teachers in the survey were undecided on whether they should consider preparing student for higher education as part of their job (Table 11 and Figure 14). 24 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

33 Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Teachers in this school are really trying to improve their teaching. (N=7058) 50 (0.7) 72 (1.0) 109 (1.5) 297 (4.2) 727 (10.3) 2605 (36.9) 3198 (45.3) 6.14 Teachers in this school feel responsible that all students learn. (N=7061) 51 (0.7) 66 (0.9) 104 (1.5) 282 (4.0) 769 (10.9) 2700 (38.2) 3089 (43.7) 6.13 Teachers in this school feel responsible for helping students develop themselves. (N=7080) 54 (0.8) 76 (1.1) 104 (1.5) 296 (4.2) 810 (11.4) 2774 (39.2) 2966 (41.9) 6.1 Teachers in this school take responsibility for improving the school. (N=7106) 88 (1.2) 159 (2.2) 216 (3.0) 417 (5.9) 1124 (15.8) 2782 (39.2) 2320 (32.6) 5.81 Teachers in this school set high standards for themselves. (N=7082) 81 (1.1) 138 (1.9) 190 (2.7) 507 (7.2) 1122 (15.8) 2917 (41.2) 2127 (30.0) 5.79 Feel responsible when students in this school fail. (N=7046) 100 (1.4) 135 (1.9) 215 (3.1) 574 (8.1) 997 (14.1) 2691 (38.2) 2334 (33.1) 5.79 Teachers in this school help maintain discipline in the entire school, not just their classroom. (N=7112) 158 (2.2) 245 (3.4) 254 (3.6) 309 (4.3) 1009 (14.2) 2538 (35.7) 2599 (36.5) 5.78 Teachers in this school are willing to take risks to make this school better. (N=7087) 140 (2.0) 211 (3.0) 262 (3.7) 795 (11.2) 1180 (16.7) 2575 (36.3) 1924 (27.1) 5.55 Teachers in this school feel that it is a part of their job to prepare students to succeed in higher education (college or university). (N=6981) 118 (1.7) 133 (1.9) 141 (2.0) 1289 (18.5) 1030 (14.8) 2499 (35.8) 1771 (25.4) 5.52 Teachers at this school help students plan for higher education (college or university) outside of class time. (N=7012) 198 (2.8) 312 (4.4) 202 (2.9) 1641 (23.4) 1309 (18.7) 2181 (31.1) 1169 (16.7) 5.11 Table 11 Teacher Collective Responsibility Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 25

34 Teachers in this school feel that it is a part of their job to prepare students to succeed in higher education (college or university) Teachers at this school help students plan for higher education (college or university) outside of class time Strongly Neither or Strongly Percentage of Frequency Figure 14 Teacher Collective Responsibility (Responses in Percentages) From the data, we could also observe the following trends: On almost all the questionnaire items listed in Table 11, teachers satisfaction scores tend to increase along with their age, although there is a small drop for the over 50 age cohort; Grade 4 teachers were the least satisfied among teachers by grade taught, consistently giving the lowest scores to most questionnaire items; English teachers were the least satisfied among teachers by subject taught. Elsewhere research shows that teachers taking collective responsibility for student learning are positively linked to pupils higher achievement gains. Further studies are necessary to examine such impact in the context of Abu Dhabi schools. 2.3 Teacher Collaboration Collaboration among teachers is important for the teaching community to grow. Around 80 percent of the respondents in the survey agreed or strongly agreed that formal collaboration with teachers in the same subject was very helpful, that teachers felt responsible to help each other, that teachers were regularly engaged in informal discussions with colleagues about instruction, and that networking with other teachers was helpful (Table 12). 26 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

35 Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Regularly scheduled collaborations with other teachers in my subject area or grade level have been extremely helpful this year. (N=6857) 108 (1.6) 118 (1.7) 83 (1.2) 355 (5.2) 633 (9.2) 2470 (36.0) 3090 (45.1) 6.07 Teachers in this school feel responsible to help each other do their best. (N=7065) 64 (0.9) 86 (1.2) 130 (1.8) 347 (4.9) 903 (12.8) 2768 (39.2) 2767 (39.2) 6.02 Teachers talk about instruction outside formal meetings in the teachers lounge, faculty meetings, etc. (N=7235) 102 (1.4) 117 (1.6) 134 (1.9) 249 (3.4) 903 (12.5) 2966 (41.0) 2764 (38.2) 6.00 Participation in a network of teachers has been extremely helpful this year. (N=6844) 102 (1.5) 120 (1.8) 80 (1.2) 445 (6.5) 740 (10.8) 2692 (39.3) 2665 (38.9) 5.97 Teachers in this school really care about each other. (N=7070) 87 (1.2) 150 (2.1) 175 (2.5) 329 (4.7) 939 (13.3) 2610 (36.9) 2780 (39.3) 5.95 Suggestions or advice from other teachers in my school has been extremely helpful this year. (N=6848) 75 (1.1) 66 (1.0) 71 (1.0) 389 (5.7) 967 (14.1) 3062 (44.7) 2216 (32.4) 5.94 Teachers in this school are eager to help each other. (N=7064) 84 (1.2) 103 (1.5) 126 (1.8) 397 (5.6) 1042 (14.8) 2869 (40.6) 2443 (34.6) 5.91 Teachers in this school share and discuss student work. (N=7236) 106 (1.5) 127 (1.8) 181 (2.5) 276 (3.8) 1058 (14.6) 3197 (44.2) 2291 (31.7) 5.88 Observation of my teaching with feedback from experienced teachers has been extremely helpful this year. (N=6839) 148 (2.2) 165 (2.4) 122 (1.8) 554 (8.1) 840 (12.3) 2788 (40.8) 2222 (32.5)

36 Help given to me by my Head of Faculty or someone with similar responsibilities has been extremely helpful this year. (N=6818) 229 (3.4) 147 (2.2) 133 (2.0) 592 (8.7) 888 (13.0) 2614 (38.3) 2215 (32.5) 5.71 Teachers in this school regularly discuss assumptions about teaching and learning. (N=7246) 163 (2.2) 293 (4.0) 302 (4.2) 431 (5.9) 1242 (17.1) 2874 (39.7) 1941 (26.8) 5.58 Experienced teachers in this school invite new teachers into their classrooms to observe and give feedback. (N=7233) 196 (2.7) 267 (3.7) 255 (3.5) 512 (7.1) 1270 (17.6) 2717 (37.6) 2016 (27.9) 5.57 Released time to observe other teachers teaching has been extremely helpful this year. (N=6837) 201 (2.9) 212 (3.1) 182 (2.7) 702 (10.3) 1033 (15.1) 2698 (39.5) 1809 (26.5) 5.56 Table 12 Teacher Collaboration Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 2.4 Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect Survey results indicated that most teachers in Abu Dhabi s public schools perceived a high level of respect among fellow teachers. Teachers also generally believed that those who are expert in their respective fields and those who took the lead in school improvement received respect from colleagues (Table 13). Survey respondents also considered favorably interpersonal trust among teachers, and more than 71 percent of them felt that they did not have problems in discussing personal feelings and worries with colleagues (Table 13). Licensed teachers tended to have lower satisfaction scores than the groups of head of faculty and teacher (Figure 16). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I feel highly respected by other teachers. (N=7049) 40 (0.6) 45 (0.6) 62 (0.9) 173 (2.5) 444 (6.3) 2177 (30.9) 4108 (58.3) 6.4 Teachers at this school respect those colleagues who are experts at their field or discipline. (N=6956) 69 (1.0) 86 (1.2) 115 (1.7) 347 (5.0) 755 (10.9) 2752 (39.6) 2832 (40.7) Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

37 Teachers respect other teachers who take the lead in school improvement efforts. (N=6962) 76 (1.1) 81 (1.2) 158 (2.3) 438 (6.3) 860 (12.4) 2729 (39.2) 2552 (36.7) 5.95 Teachers in this school trust each other. (N=6972) 107 (1.5) 119 (1.7) 224 (3.2) 513 (7.4) 1056 (15.1) 2818 (40.4) 2135 (30.6) 5.77 It s OK in this school to discuss feelings, worries, and frustrations with other teachers. (N=6964) 137 (2.0) 138 (2.0) 187 (2.7) 444 (6.4) 1110 (15.9) 2763 (39.7) 2185 (31.4) 5.77 Table 13 Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. Its OK in this school to discuss feelings, worries, and frustrations with other teachers. Teacher in this school trust each other. I feel highly respected by the teachers. Strongly Neither or Strongly Percentage of Frequency Figure 15 Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect (Responses in Percentages) 29

38 Teachers in this school trust each other. I feel highly respected by other teachers. Figure 16 Teacher-Teacher Trust and Respect: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Position Other Licensed Teacher Teacher Head of Faculty 30 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

39 2.5 School Commitment The level of teachers commitment is considered to be as a key factor in the success of current educational reform agenda as it critically influences the level of teachers willingness to engage themselves in cooperative practice and quality teaching performance, and in shaping students learning. As high as 76.8 percent of teachers in the survey reported that they were loyal to the school of them looked forward to teaching in the new school year. School commitment is also shown through the keenness of teachers to recommend their school to parents, which was confirmed by 71.5 percent of the respondents. Slightly lower percentages of the respondents claimed that they looked forward to each working day at school and that they would not work for any other school (Table 14). Further analysis suggests that male teachers were more committed to the school compared with female teachers (Figure 18). And the older a teacher is and the longer he/she served in Abu Dhabi schools, the more likely he/she would show higher level of school commitment (Figure 19 and Figure 20). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I feel loyal to this school. (N=7159) 269 (3.7) 173 (2.4) 118 (1.6) 521 (7.3) 582 (8.1) 1780 (24.9) 3717 (51.9) 5.96 I am looking forward to teaching in this school next year. (N=7187) 446 (6.2) 229 (3.2) 170 (2.4) 525 (7.3) 550 (7.7) 1776 (24.7) 3491 (48.6) 5.76 I would recommend this school to parents seeking a place for their child. (N=7229) 330 (4.6) 221 (3.1) 174 (2.4) 724 (10.0) 618 (8.5) 1905 (26.4) 3257 (45.1) 5.75 I usually look forward to each working day at this school. (N=7216) 345 (4.8) 294 (4.1) 249 (3.5) 621 (8.6) 880 (12.2) 2375 (32.9) 2452 (34.0) 5.54 I wouldn t want to work in any other school. (N=7226) 528 (7.3) 388 (5.4) 238 (3.3) 757 (10.5) 656 (9.1) 1583 (21.9) 3076 (42.6) 5.45 Table 14 Teacher s School Commitment Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 31

40 I would recommend this school to parents seeking a place for their child. I feel loyal to this school. I wouldn t want to work in any other school. I usually look forward to each working day at this school. I am looking forward to teaching in this school next year Strongly Neither or Strongly Percentage of Frequency Figure 17 Teacher s School Commitment (Responses in Percentages) 32 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

41 I would recommend this school to parents seeking a place for their child. I feel loyal to this school. I wouldn t want to work in any other school. I usually look forward to each working day at this school. I am looking forward to teaching in this school next year. Mean Score Figure 18 Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Gender Female Male 33

42 I would recommend this school to parents seeking a place for their child. I feel loyal to this school. I wouldn t want to work in any other school. I usually look forward to each working day at this school. I am looking forward to teaching in this school next year Mean Score Figure 19 Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Age Group 34 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

43 I would recommend this school to parents seeking a place for their child. I feel loyal to this school. I wouldn t want to work in any other school. I usually look forward to each working day at this school. I am looking forward to teaching in this school next year. over 21 years years years years years 7-9 years 4-6 years 1-3 years Mean Score Figure 20 Teacher s School Commitment: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Year of Service in Abu Dhabi Schools 35

44 3 Quality Teacher Professional Development The survey also focused on teacher professional development. It asked various questions regarding teachers professional development activities in the 2011/2012 school year, their opinions about the overall experience, and specific school teacher training and development on IT technology. As shown in Table 15, teachers predominantly (89%) agreed that in 2011/2012 they participated in professional development activities organized by the school. The majority of teachers in the survey (80.4%) also attended professional activities outside the school, which were either sponsored by the school or ADEC. When being asked whether they had taken and paid by themselves for courses at a college or university, teachers were divided as 45.5 percent of them agreed or strongly agreed and 29.4 percent thought otherwise. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Attended PD activities organized by my school (include meetings that focus on improving my teaching). (N=6865) 71 (1.0) 94 (1.4) 60 (0.9) 168 (2.4) 364 (5.3) 1776 (25.9) 4332 (63.1) 6.4 Attended PD activities sponsored by the school or ADEC. (N=6881) 207 (3.0) 191 (2.8) 113 (1.6) 252 (3.7) 589 (8.6) 2303 (33.5) 3226 (46.9) 6 Participated with other teachers in PD outside your school. (N=6891) 455 (6.6) 582 (8.4) 244 (3.5) 496 (7.2) 881 (12.8) 2083 (30.2) 2150 (31.2) 5.27 Discussed curriculum and instruction matters with an outside professional group or organization. (N=6866) 419 (6.1) 594 (8.7) 241 (3.5) 693 (10.1) 964 (14.0) 2038 (29.7) 1917 (27.9) 5.18 Taken courses at a college or university related to improving myself and paid for it by myself. (N=6857) 792 (11.6) 1222 (17.8) 266 (3.9) 912 (13.3) 543 (7.9) 1329 (19.4) 1793 (26.1) 4.51 Table 15 Professional Development Activities Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. Teachers own assessment of their overall professional development experience in 2011/ 2012 also looked quite positive. Proportionately more survey participants confirmed within school work collaboration than between school work collaboration (Table 16). Comparing the responses by different regions, teachers from Al Gharbia were the most satisfied group, followed by teachers from Al Ain and Abu Dhabi (Figure 21). 36 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

45 Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Overall, my professional development experiences this year included opportunities to work productively with colleagues in my school. (N=6799) 167 (2.5) 195 (2.9) 225 (3.3) 498 (7.3) 1162 (17.1) 2687 (39.5) 1865 (27.4) 5.62 Overall, my professional development experiences this year are closely connected to my school s improvement plan. (N=6791) 181 (2.7) 206 (3.0) 250 (3.7) 618 (9.1) 1118 (16.5) 2488 (36.6) 1930 (28.4) 5.57 Overall, my professional development experiences this year are coherently focused and have clear objectives. (N=6808) 200 (2.9) 268 (3.9) 300 (4.4) 508 (7.5) 1138 (16.7) 2604 (38.2) 1790 (26.3) 5.51 Overall, my professional development experiences this year included enough opportunities to evaluate new ideas. (N=6765) 228 (3.4) 280 (4.1) 323 (4.8) 581 (8.6) 1245 (18.4) 2531 (37.4) 1577 (23.3) 5.4 Overall, my professional development experiences this year have been sustained and followed up by the school. (N=6793) 251 (3.7) 328 (4.8) 326 (4.8) 679 (10.0) 1200 (17.7) 2401 (35.3) 1608 (23.7) 5.34 Most of what I learn in PD addresses the needs of the students in my classroom. (N=6793) 282 (4.2) 319 (4.7) 401 (5.9) 637 (9.4) 1294 (19.0) 2471 (36.4) 1389 (20.4) 5.25 Overall, my professional development experiences this year included opportunities to work productively with teachers from other schools. (N=6779) 575 (8.5) 476 (7.0) 372 (5.5) 866 (12.8) 1242 (18.3) 2023 (29.8) 1225 (18.1) 4.87 Table 16 Overall Professional Development Experience Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 37

46 Overall, my professional development experiences this year included opportunities to work productively with teachers from other schools. Overall, my professional development experiences this year included opportunities to work productively with colleagues in my school. Overall, my professional development experiences this year are closely connected to my school s Improvement plan. Overall, my professional development experiences this year included enough opportunities to evaluate new ideas. Overall, my professional development experiences this year have been sustained and followed up by the school. Overall, my professional development experiences this year are coherently focused and have clear objectives. Most of what I learn in PD addresses the needs of the students in my classroom. Mean Score Al Gharbia Al Ain Abu Dhabi Figure 21 Teachers Overall Professional Development Experience: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Region 38 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

47 Professional development on IT received the lowest teacher satisfaction score among all the satisfaction measures (Table 17). However, the low scores are possibly caused, to some extent, by the inclusion of several negatively worded questionnaire items. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I have taken PD that enhances my ability to use computing technology in classroom instruction. (N=6411) 418 (6.5) 350 (5.5) 190 (3.0) 541 (8.4) 682 (10.6) 1982 (30.9) 2248 (35.1) 5.44 The PD available to me is relevant to how I believe computers should be used in the classroom. (N=6384) 401 (6.3) 352 (5.5) 194 (3.0) 694 (10.9) 751 (11.8) 2205 (34.5) 1787 (28.0) 5.32 The school or ADEC provided me with PD to integrate curricula with information technology. (N=6393) 555 (8.7) 439 (6.9) 285 (4.5) 604 (9.4) 875 (13.7) 1848 (28.9) 1787 (28.0) 5.11 The school or ADEC provided me with PD to better utilize the Internet and its resources in my teaching. (N=6381) 590 (9.2) 462 (7.2) 303 (4.7) 658 (10.3) 846 (13.3) 1786 (28.0) 1736 (27.2) 5.04 The school or ADEC provided me with PD to integrate software applications in the subjects I teach in the class. (N=6373) 585 (9.2) 473 (7.4) 311 (4.9) 704 (11.0) 928 (14.6) 1751 (27.5) 1621 (25.4) 4.99 Lack of appropriate professional development on how to integrate computing technology into curriculum. (N=6409) 816 (12.7) 1281 (20.0) 575 (9.0) 877 (13.7) 1157 (18.1) 1112 (17.4) 591 (9.2) 3.93 Lack of release time to learn/ practice/plan ways to use computers or the Internet. (N=6412) 925 (14.4) 1284 (20.0) 535 (8.3) 766 (11.9) 1201 (18.7) 1127 (17.6) 574 (9.0) 3.89 Lack of expertise in the school in helping me develop my computer skill. (N=6406) 1283 (20.0) 1610 (25.1) 731 (11.4) 997 (15.6) 716 (11.2) 669 (10.4) 400 (6.2) 3.29 Table 17 Professional Development on IT Technology Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 39

48 4 Effective Curriculum and Instruction 4.1 Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum A little more than half (51.5%) of the respondents felt that the curriculum at their school focused on preparing students for higher education, while substantial shares of teachers took a neutral position (19.8%) or only partially agreed on this (17.2%). Similarly, a big proportion of teachers in the survey (27.3%) were not sure whether most students would want to go for higher education (Table 18). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean The curriculum at this school is focused on helping students get ready for higher education (college or university). (N=7000) 255 (3.6) 280 (4.0) 273 (3.9) 1388 (19.8) 1203 (17.2) 2342 (33.5) 1259 (18.0) 5.15 Most of the students in this school are planning to go to higher education (college or university). (N=6982) 200 (2.9) 282 (4.0) 338 (4.8) 1908 (27.3) 1329 (19.0) 1955 (28.0) 970 (13.9) 4.95 Table 18 Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. Teachers taught at higher grade levels, especially at Grade 12, tended to have more positive opinion on the school s higher education oriented curriculum (Figure 22). Most of the students in this school are planning to do higher education (college or university). The curriculum at this school is focused on helping students to get higher education (college or university). Grade 12 Grade 11 Grade 10 Grade 9 Grade 8 Grade 7 Grade 6 Grade 5 Grade 4 Grade 3 Grade 2 Grade 1 KG2 KG1 Mean Score Figure 22 Higher Education Oriented School Curriculum: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Grade 40 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

49 4.2 ADEC and International Standards Survey results show that ADEC learning standards have been reportedly followed by most teachers (90.3%) in their teaching. And teachers generally (73.6%) agreed that ADEC learning standards are appropriate learning standards (Table 19). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I align my teaching emphases with ADEC learning standards. (N=6620) 25 (0.4) 14 (0.2) 27 (0.4) 212 (3.2) 362 (5.5) 2134 (32.2) 3846 (58.1) 6.42 The ADEC learning standards in my subject area are appropriate guidelines for what students should know. (N=6608) 180 (2.7) 196 (3.0) 278 (4.2) 355 (5.4) 736 (11.1) 2175 (32.9) 2688 (40.7) 5.81 When available, EMSA scores and results have helped me to better identify weaknesses or challenges of students learning. (N=6326) 713 (11.3) 561 (8.9) 193 (3.1) 2120 (33.5) 504 (8.0) 1157 (18.3) 1078 (17.0) 4.41 EMSA scores and results have been provided to me to evaluate how the students are performing. (N=6381) 831 (13.0) 661 (10.4) 197 (3.1) 1928 (30.2) 396 (6.2) 1208 (18.9) 1160 (18.2) 4.36 Table 19 ADEC and International Standards Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 41

50 When available, EMSA scores and results have helped me to better identify weaknesses or challenges of students learning EMSA scores and results have been provided to me to evaluate how the students are performing The ADEC learning standards in my subject area are appropriate guidelines what students should know I align my teaching emphases with ADEC learning standards Strongly Neither or Strongly Figure 23 ADEC and International Standards (Responses in Percentages) However, teachers had rather split views on the use of international standardized tests such as EMSA and its usefulness (Table 19 and Figure 23). As presented in Table 19, 37.1 percent of teachers agreed or strongly agreed that EMSA results were provided to them for assessing student performance; 23.4 percent took a contrasting view; and 30.2 percent neither agreed nor d. In a similar pattern, around 20 percent of respondents believed that EMSA results were not useful in helping them enhance the performance of students, while 35.3 percent were quite positive about the use of EMSA. 4.3 Society-Oriented Instruction The survey asked teachers whether or not they taught students or discussed with students issues in a way that demonstrated society-oriented educational practices and belief. The majority of respondents in the survey (60% or higher) agreed or strongly agreed that in their instruction they taught students about people and projects that made the society and community better, things that need to be changed in a society, as well as issues that normally accommodate different views (Table 20 and Figure 24). 42 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

51 Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Learn about people and groups that work to make society better. (N=6617) 63 (1.0) 100 (1.5) 111 (1.7) 711 (10.7) 1032 (15.6) 2953 (44.6) 1547 (24.9) 5.72 Work on service learning projects to improve their community. (N=6589) 93 (1.4) 176 (2.7) 172 (2.6) 798 (12.1) 1063 (16.1) 2634 (40.0) 1653 (25.1) 5.59 Learn about things in society that need to be changed. (N=6597) 117 (1.8) 213 (3.2) 164 (2.5) 971 (14.7) 1112 (16.9) 2707 (41.0) 1313 (19.9) 5.44 Discuss social topics about which people have different opinions. (N=6580) 218 (3.3) 329 (5.0) 222 (3.4) 1335 (20.3) 1214 (18.4) 2212 (33.6) 1050 (16.0) 5.10 Table 20 Society-Oriented Instruction Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. Work on service learning projects to improve their community. Learn about things in society that need to be changed. Learn about people and groups that work to make society better. Strongly Neither or Strongly Percentage of Frequency Figure 24 Society-Oriented Instruction (Responses in Percentages) 43

52 4.4 Student Instruction Instruction methods matter the most in students learning. The survey shows that teachers in Abu Dhabi s public schools applied a variety of instruction techniques in student instruction, which demonstrated a high level of student centered approach and instructional flexibility. Teachers surveyed overwhelmingly agreed or strongly agreed that they adjusted the instructional methods and pace in order to respond to students levels of understanding (91.4% and 90.6%); that they provided individual instructions to low-achieving students (89.4%); that high-achieving students were given extra work (84.2%); that attention was paid to students problem-solving skills (83.4%); and that additional lessons were added to enhance students understanding (80.8%) (Table 21 and Figure 25). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Have to adjust instructional strategies to respond to students levels of understanding. (N=6438) 8 (0.1) 6 (0.1) 16 (0.2) 210 (3.3) 316 (4.9) 2277 (35.4) 3605 (56.0) 6.43 Adjust pacing of a lesson to respond to students levels of understanding. (N=6433) 11 (0.2) 7 (0.1) 10 (0.2) 226 (3.5) 348 (5.4) 2331 (36.2) 3500 (54.4) 6.40 Work one-on-one with students who are having difficulty. (N=6444) 7 (0.1) 13 (0.2) 25 (0.4) 222 (3.4) 414 (6.4) 2256 (35.0) 3507 (54.4) 6.39 Assign high-achieving students to do additional advanced work. (N=6443) 18 (0.3) 35 (0.5) 48 (0.7) 295 (4.6) 626 (9.7) 2254 (35.0) 3167 (49.2) 6.24 Attempt to assess students problem-solving processes, not just answers. (N=6410) 12 (0.2) 25 (0.4) 30 (0.5) 339 (5.3) 658 (10.3) 2698 (42.1) 2648 (41.3) 6.17 Add more lessons to help the students understand the subject. (N=6409) 24 (0.4) 69 (1.1) 77 (1.2) 394 (6.1) 667 (10.4) 2384 (37.2) 2794 (43.6) 6.11 Table 21 Student Instruction Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 44 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

53 Add more lessons to help the students understand the subject. Adjust pacing of a lesson to respond to students levels of understanding. Have to adjust instructional strategies to respond to students levels of understanding. Attempt to access students problem-solving process, not just answers Assign high-achieving students to do additional advanced work Percentage of Frequency Strongly Neither or Strongly Figure 25 Student Instruction (Responses in Percentages) 45

54 4.5 Quality of Student Discussion Teachers were generally satisfied with the quality of student discussion in the class. According to the feedback of teachers, students often built on other s ideas during discussion. The participation of students in classroom discussion seemed to be fairly extensive, as most students participated in the discussion at some point. And students were able to draw on relevant knowledge that they learned outside the classroom (Table 22 and Figure 26). Students classroom discussion appeared to be conducted in a friendly atmosphere, in which students respect to others were noted by teachers. Around 60 percent of teachers surveyed were satisfied with the constructive feedback that students were able to provide to teachers and classmates. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Students build on each other s ideas during discussion. (N=6412) 32 (0.5) 41 (0.6) 64 (1.0) 343 (5.3) 887 (13.8) 2779 (43.3) 2266 (35.3) 6.03 Most students participate in the discussion at some point. (N=6357) 54 (0.8) 95 (1.5) 190 (3.0) 416 (6.5) 1319 (20.7) 2777 (43.7) 1506 (23.7) 5.71 Students draw on relevant knowledge learned outside of class. (N=6391) 45 (0.7) 67 (1.0) 103 (1.6) 537 (8.4) 1449 (22.7) 2810 (44.0) 1380 (21.6) 5.70 Students show each other respect. (N=6339) 77 (1.2) 120 (1.9) 240 (3.8) 425 (6.7) 1299 (20.5) 2690 (42.4) 1488 (23.5) 5.65 Students provide constructive feedback to their peers/teachers. (N=6356) 79 (1.2) 127 (2.0) 159 (2.5) 690 (10.9) 1496 (23.5) 2609 (41.0) 1196 (18.8) 5.52 Students use data and text references to support their ideas. (N=6345) 147 (2.3) 156 (2.5) 170 (2.7) 861 (13.6) 1382 (21.8) 2405 (37.9) 1224 (19.3) 5.41 Table 22 Quality of Student Discussion Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 46 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

55 Most students participate in the discussion at same point Students draw on relevant knowledge learned outside of class Students provide constructive feedback to their peers/teachers. Student show each other respect Students use data and text references to support their ideas Students build on each other s ideas during discussion. Percentage of Frequency Figure 26 Quality of Student Discussion (Responses in Percentages) Strongly Neither or Strongly 47

56 5 Effective Student Management 5.1 Student Management When comes to matters concerning student management and classroom management, teachers in the survey were very confident in the positive roles that they could play. As high as 90 percent of teachers surveyed claimed that they could help students become optimistic about their performance at school. More than 86 percent of the respondents believed that they could instill a learning value into students, effectively control disruptive student behaviors in the classroom, and motivate less-performing students (Table 23). Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I can do a great deal to get students to believe they can do well in school work. (N=6579) 11 (0.2) 13 (0.2) 23 (0.3) 127 (1.9) 500 (7.6) 2411 (36.6) 3494 (53.1) 6.39 I can do a great deal to help my students value learning. (N=6575) 14 (0.2) 25 (0.4) 50 (0.8) 164 (2.5) 518 (7.9) 2422 (36.8) 3382 (51.4) 6.34 I can do a great deal to control disruptive behavior in the classroom. (N=6576) 39 (0.6) 60 (0.9) 78 (1.2) 159 (2.4) 531 (8.1) 2377 (36.1) 3332 (50.7) 6.28 I can do a great deal to motivate students who show low interest in school work. (N=6585) 22 (0.3) 35 (0.5) 57 (0.9) 160 (2.4) 653 (9.9) 2573 (39.1) 3085 (46.8) 6.26 Table 23 Student Management Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 48 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

57 I can do a great deal to help my students value learning. I can do a great deal to get students to believe they can do well in school work. I can do a great deal to motivate students who show low interest in school work. I can do a great deal to control disruptive behavior in the classroom. Percentage of Frequency Figure 27 Student Management (Responses in Percentages) Strongly Neither or Strongly 49

58 5.2 Supportive Student Behavior The survey asked teachers opinion about positive student behaviors in the classroom (Table 24). Teachers generally felt satisfied with students active participation in class (76.2%), with the keenness of student on their grade (74.2%), and with students behavior of helping each other s study (71.7%). Around two third (66.4 percent) of the respondents believed that all their students attended class regularly. Only half of the teachers in the survey agreed or strongly agreed that their students took notes in class. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean I believe that all my students actively participate in class activities. (N=6406) 66 (1.0) 118 (1.8) 150 (2.3) 250 (3.9) 945 (14.8) 2854 (44.6) 2023 (31.6) 5.89 I believe that all my students care about what grade they receive in this class. (N=6351) 103 (1.6) 123 (1.9) 119 (1.9) 552 (8.7) 745 (11.7) 2273 (35.8) 2436 (38.4) 5.88 I believe that all my students help other students. (N=6395) 52 (0.8) 84 (1.3) 98 (1.5) 343 (5.4) 1233 (19.3) 2835 (44.3) 1750 (27.4) 5.83 I believe that all my students regularly pay attention in class. (N=6418) 97 (1.5) 186 (2.9) 248 (3.9) 277 (4.3) 1165 (18.2) 2804 (43.7) 1641 (25.6) 5.68 I believe that all my students attend class regularly. (N=6409) 152 (2.4) 323 (5.0) 308 (4.8) 333 (5.2) 1039 (16.2) 2391 (37.3) 1863 (29.1) 5.56 I believe that all my students come to class on time. (N=6446) 191 (3.0) 350 (5.4) 346 (5.4) 252 (3.9) 1219 (18.9) 2439 (37.8) 1649 (25.6) 5.46 I believe that all my students come to class prepared. (N=6413) 167 (2.6) 292 (4.6) 358 (5.6) 405 (6.3) 1381 (21.5) 2345 (36.6) 1465 (22.8) 5.41 I believe that all my students always turn in their homework. (N=6333) 182 (2.9) 275 (4.3) 330 (5.2) 580 (9.2) 1200 (18.9) 2378 (37.5) 1388 (21.9) 5.37 I believe that all my students take notes. (N=6295) 256 (4.1) 275 (4.4) 298 (4.7) 1001 (15.9) 1345 (21.4) 2075 (33.0) 1045 (16.6) 5.11 Table 24 Supportive Student Behavior Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 50 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012

59 5.3 Student-Teacher Relationship Various ways of student and teacher interactions, as listed in Table 25, are good indicators of student-teacher relationship. According to the teachers surveyed, students very often share their academic achievements with teachers, chat with teachers before or after class, and come to teachers for help with class work. In addition to class progress, student also frequently talk to teachers about their friends, families, and other personal matters (Table 25). Collectively these activities indicate a close, positive and supportive student-teacher relationship. Question Strongly Neither agree nor agree Strongly agree Mean Students very frequently share good grades or other academic achievements with you. (N=6414) 43 (0.7) 39 (0.6) 43 (0.7) 367 (5.7) 547 (8.5) 2347 (36.6) 3028 (47.2) 6.19 Students very frequently chat with you before or after class. (N=6442) 24 (0.4) 36 (0.6) 36 (0.6) 282 (4.4) 773 (12.0) 2775 (43.1) 2516 (39.1) 6.13 Students very frequently come to you for help with class work. (N=6390) 38 (0.6) 53 (0.8) 71 (1.1) 451 (7.1) 860 (13.5) 2665 (41.7) 2252 (35.2) 5.98 Students very frequently talk to you about their progress in your class. (N=6370) 69 (1.1) 80 (1.3) 90 (1.4) 612 (9.6) 806 (12.7) 2509 (39.4) 2204 (34.6) 5.88 Students very frequently talk to you about their friends. (N=6445) 68 (1.1) 135 (2.1) 116 (1.8) 564 (8.8) 1260 (19.6) 2480 (38.5) 1822 (28.3) 5.72 Students very frequently talk to you about what they are doing in other classes. (N=6371) 111 (1.7) 188 (3.0) 207 (3.2) 889 (14.0) 1458 (22.9) 2167 (34.0) 1351 (21.2) 5.4 Students very frequently talk to you about their families. (N=6424) 187 (2.9) 277 (4.3) 291 (4.5) 962 (15.0) 1471 (22.9) 1851 (28.8) 1385 (21.6) 5.23 Students very frequently ask you for help with personal problems. (N=6380) 196 (3.1) 295 (4.6) 250 (3.9) 1091 (17.1) 1449 (22.7) 1827 (28.6) 1272 (19.9) 5.17 Table 25 Student-Teacher Relationship Note: Figures in brackets are percentages of total responses. 51

60 Students very frequently ask you for help personal problems Students very frequently talk to you about their families. Students very frequently talk about their friends Students very frequently share good grades or other academic achievements with you Students very frequently talk to you about what they are doing in other classes. Students very frequently talk about their progress in your class Students very frequently come to you for help with class work. Students very frequently chat with you before or after class Mean Score Figure 28 Student-Teacher Relationship: Comparing Responses (Mean Score) by Gender Female Male 52 Teacher Survey Results Academic Year 2011/2012