Teacher Perceptions of Teacher Performance Pay and Performance Evaluation in Yunnan Province, China
In China, teacher performance pay has been implemented for eight years, but teachers' perceptions regarding its implementation have been examined seldomly. Exploring teachers' perceptions is a path to hear teachers' voices, inspect implementation practice, and evaluate impacts. This mixed-method study explored teachers' perceptions toward performance pay in Panda School District of Kunming City, Yunnan Province, China through surveys, interviews, and artifacts. A total of 333 valid responses to the survey were collected and 14 teachers participated in follow-up semi-structured interviews. The quantitative results indicate low to moderate teacher support for performance pay. The qualitative themes generated through content analysis present teachers' perceived merits and problems associated with the implementation of performance pay. A seven-factor model was extracted through principal component analysis drawn from the teacher perception survey, with 58.4% of the variance in perceptions explained. Significant differences in teachers' perceptions toward performance pay and evaluation measures were found based on participating teacher and school characteristics. The findings suggest that local governments should increase funding in teacher performance pay if it is to be successful. Additionally, the specific guidance needs to be developed to regulate school-based performance pay programs that consider school contexts. Further, policymakers and school administrators should focus on the structure and associated evaluation indicators of performance pay. It is necessary for school leaders to improve leadership through professional development programs at the same time of implementing performance pay.
