The Contexts of Teaching in Secondary Schools: Teachers' Realities (Professional Development and Practice)

Research on teacher effectiveness has focused on a variety of areas over the years. This book argues that, in addition to any other factors, effective teaching depends significantly on the context of teaching and the conditions of the workplace. Chapters examine the secondary school workplace from a number of vantage points: the dimensions of the workplace that teachers believe are most salient to their performance and effectiveness, specific features of the context thought to be powerful in shaping teachers' work, the influence of structural features that organize work in secondary schools, and the ways in which the context shapes problems of reform and change.