This article presents the results of an evaluation of the fairness of the Teacher Work Sample (TWS), a performance assessment for preservice teachers as used at one university, for candidates in a general education or a deaf education teacher preparation program. The TWS is a high-stakes assessment, and as such, issues of fairness and reliability are critical, particularly when trying to promote increased diversity in the teacher workforce. Dimensions of ethnicity, gender, and hearing status are reviewed as part of this study. A brief overview of the TWS will be provided, followed by a discussion of the study and a discussion of the implications for practice and further research. Results indicated that all of the components of the TWS were fair along lines of hearing status, race, and gender, although the disparate impact assessment revealed that there is an overall impact for program completion based on candidates’ race. Possible reasons for this impact as well as suggestions for improvement are provided.
A qualitative study of the perceptions of the use of the teacher work sample methodology in student teaching
