Enhancing Teacher Efficacy in Special Education Through the Assessment of Student Performance

D i d you ever wonder why most teachers get nervous when a supervisor walks into the classroom? Why do most teachers shudder at the thought of being videotaped? Data from these sources and data on student progress, collected continuously and systematically, can help teachers assess the impact of their teaching. If they fail to collect this data, teachers can fall into a vicious cycle of low self-efficacy and uninformed decision making. Objectives are not clearly stated and student progress is not carefully measured. This article advocates the collection of student data, both academic and behavioral, to enhance teacher self-assessment and self-efficacy and to promote learning. Instruction that focuses on direct and continuous measurement of student progress toward