Critic or critical friend? The case for peer observation of teaching Ana Bratkovic

“Teaching is a process of lifelong learning and development “Teaching is a process of lifelong learning and development.” Murray, 2010

Teachers engage in professional development to: Reflect on practice Develop skills and knowledge Challenge assumptions “a process that can be started but never finished” Underhill, 1999

The most common form of collaborative professional development:

Today’s aim: To develop our understanding of peer observation and identify ways it can be more successfully implemented in centres and embraced by teachers. Why? “Teachers are the primary initiators of their own development.” Wajnryb, 1992

Peer Observation: An opportunity for colleagues to observe one another and gain insights into their professional practice without the specter of authority or evaluation. Richards & Farrell, 2005

The benefits of peer observation: Teachers can reflect on and improve their teaching It promotes team building, collegiality and collaboration Peer observation improves the quality of teaching amongst the entire teaching team “it narrows the gap between one’s imagined view of teaching and what actually occurs in the classroom” Richards and Farrell, 2005

Shortcomings of peer observation: Overly bureaucratic Purpose is not clear Time and workload Feeling judged and scrutinized Feeling anxious Peers are reluctant to provide constructive feedback Poor etiquette – arriving late, not coming, interrupting the class

Best practice in peer observation Formative Clear purpose Structured Training Aligns with a culture of trust and mutual respect and recognition

Purpose The focus is on maintaining and enhancing teaching quality, continuous improvement = formative peer observation Summative observation remains with the Director of Studies/ Academic Manager

Structure Pre-observation briefing – discuss the context and the focus of the observation The observation - record data on template Post-observation discussion (debrief) A joint statement or record to share with the team Recording the event with the manager

Training Explanation of the purpose and protocols Observation training How to give and receive constructive feedback based on reaching an understanding, not making judgements Using templates/checklists Etiquette

Culture Critic vs critical friend Mutual trust and understanding Encouraging sharing and ongoing development of practice

Alternatives Self observation – eg. Video an aspect or focus and record a self reflection, become your own critical friend Peer coaching – colleagues discuss a lesson plan before and after a lesson

References

References AITSL, (2018) How to Guide, Peer Observation, www.aitsl.edu.au Borg, S (2018) Teacher Evaluation: Global perspectives and their implications for English language teaching, British Council Gosling, D (2002) Models of Peer Observation in Teaching, LTSN Generic Centre Hockley, A (2013) Setting up a peer observation scheme, IATEFL Leadership and Management SIG, lamsig.iatefl.org Murray, A (2010) Empowering teachers through professional development, English Teaching Forum, 1(1) pp 2-11 Richards, J & Farrell, T (2005) Professional Development for language teachers, Strategies for teacher learning, New York, CUP Rowe, A et al (2010), How to collaborate with Peer Observation, Macquarie University Faculty of Business and Economics Showers, B & Bruce, J (1996) The Evolution of Peer Coaching, Improving Professional Practice, Vol 53, No. 6 Todd, M (2017) Peer Observation as a Tool for Professional Development, St Cloud University Underhill, A (1999) Continuous Professional Development, IATEFL, 149, 17 Wajnryb R (1992) Classroom Observation Tasks, Cambridge, CUP

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