1. 1 Peer Review of Teaching K.P. Kwan & J. Jones, EDU etkpkwan etjjones x 6287 x6320 EDU Seminar 7 May 1999 (Friday)

2. 2 Peer review of teaching Peer review of teaching may take different forms: –review of course design (e.g. validation) –review of student performance (e.g. external examiner system) –review of implementation (e.g. classroom observations) –review of teaching portfolio (e.g. teaching awards and appraisal for promotion, etc.)

3. 3 Classroom observation: Six key questions What is it for? Who will observe? What will be observed? How will it be observed? What are the criteria to apply? What will happen afterwards?

4. 4 Issues in observing teaching (1) So many things happen during a class: What to observe? Many different forms of ‘good’ teaching: What are the criteria? Differences between classes in objectives, contexts and constraints: How to take these into account? Observer subjectivity: How to minimise personal biases in observation?

5. 5 Issues in observing teaching (2) Staff development needs versus inadequate learning environment: What to do to improve? Direct observation alone is incomplete: What other information is needed to enable a more useful dialogue? Observation will not automatically lead to improvement: How to make the system work?

6. 6 Agreement on purposes Purposes of the observation should be agreed and made clear to all parties concerned Agreement and acceptance of the purposes is the pre-requisite for success Purposes of peer observation determine what the appropriate policies and procedures should be

7. 7 Why observe? DevelopmentalJudgmental Developmental & judgmental Main concerns: effectiveness trust confidentiality support Main concerns: fairness objectivity validity reliability

8. 8 Who will observe? Mutual Appointed appraisers Trusted colleagues ‘Senior’ staff Concerns: mutual trust element of choice colleagial relationship Concerns: objectivity expertise in subject & pedagogy multiple observers

9. 9 Selecting observers Confidence and mutual trust are important An element of choice is desirable A collegial relationship between the observer and the observed is helpful Observers should have knowledge of subject matter and/or pedagogy Desirable to have more than one observers, especially for judgmental purposes

10. 10 What to observe? To be negotiated Pre-determined standardised dimensions Focus: context-specific issues of concern to the observed improvements Focus: generic skills standardised dimensions appraising

11. 11 The briefing session Need to have a briefing session between the two parties before observation: To explain objectives, contexts, plan of instruction, and constraints To discuss and agree on what to observe Useful to include a brief lesson plan, notes or handouts, exercises, etc. for the discussion in the briefing session

12. 12 How to observe? Open observation Rating scales Checklist approach Focus: open-ended responsive to context achievement of objectives Focus: standardised insensitive to context comparison

13. 13 Choosing the approach Need to agree on the approach Approach depends on purposes For improvement purposes, a more ‘open’ approach is preferable For judgmental purposes, need to agree on the dimensions and the criteria for evaluation

14. 14 What criteria to apply? Need to have a clear, overt and agreed set of criteria before observation Criteria should accommodate different objectives and contexts, and be based on sound pedagogical principles Always remember: there are many forms of good teaching Students’ reactions and responses to the teaching provide useful information

15. 15 Setting the criteria The following questions are important: –What constitute ‘good classroom teaching’ in the department? –Do different dimensions apply to different teaching contexts? –What criteria should be used for evaluating the effectiveness of the teaching?

16. 16 How to avoid observer biases? Need for staff to have a shared agreement on what constitute good teaching Important to distinguish between what is ‘different’ and what is ‘wrong’ Observer as a ‘critical friend’ rather than a ‘judge’ Multiple observers Check observations with other evidences

17. 17 How to provide feedback? The debriefing session is a MUST Encourage the observed to reflect on own teaching first Avoid the ‘deficiency’ model aiming at finding faults and remedying: acknowledging strengths and good practices is often more motivating than pointing out mistakes Feedback should be constructive, based on concrete observations and incidents

18. 18 What to do afterwards? Need to differentiate between staff development need and inadequate learning environment: –Ensure that support and help will be available to meet staff development needs –Report inadequate learning environment to someone responsible, and follow up to ensure that actions are taken to deal with them –Develop an action plan based on discussion and shared views –Modify the system based on experience

19. 19 Peer observation: different models Developmental Judgmental Developmental & judgmental Colleagial model Mentoring model Supervision model Quality control model

20. 20 References Brown, S., Jones, G., & Rawnsley, S. (1993). Observing Teaching. SEDA paper 79. Birmingham: Staff and Educational Development Association.