Indicators of Mid-Career Teacher Quality through Perspectives of Key Stakeholders

The ongoing quest of quality education has focused on teaching quality in K-12 classrooms globally, as evidenced by recent research, reviews, and media coverage. Yet, identifying, defining, and measuring ‘teacher quality’ remains a complex challenge, particularly during the crucial mid-career stage. The focus on mid-career teachers in educational research is often neglected, when compared with early career teachers or teachers in leadership. This qualitative study explores the characteristics that mid-career teachers, teacher leaders and accreditation personnel perceive as the indicators of a quality mid-career teacher. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 29 participants including 23 mid-career teachers, five school principals, and a regulatory authority representative in Australia, the United Arab Emirates, and Pakistan, the research sheds light on factors that contribute to mid-career teacher quality. Thematic analysis revealed 794 indicators, 45 sub-themes, and eight themes of mid-career teacher quality. The participants’ perceptions revealed ‘knowledge of teaching practice’ as the most frequently discussed element. Next in terms of frequency was ‘content knowledge’, followed by ‘collaboration and relationship building’. This research lays the groundwork for future action focusing on locating valid and reliable measures of the identified indicators. This, in turn, will empower future efforts to promote and improve mid-career teacher quality.